Within the framework of a ceremony held in the Main Building’s Aula, 104 new doctors were awarded their degrees at the University of Debrecen. At the event on Saturday, July 4, habilitated doctoral and Professor Emeritus titles were also conferred, along with the Excellence PhD Scholarships of the Count István Tisza Foundation for the University of Debrecen.
At the ceremony, the first welcome speech was delivered by Zoltán Bács, rector of the University of Debrecen.
“Today we can witness several milestones. We recognize those young researchers who, through their Excellence PhD Scholarships, have already demonstrated talent and dedication during their studies. We are awarding doctoral degrees to those who, through persistent work, have enriched their fields with new scientific results. We are awarding habilitation titles to lecturers whose academic preparedness and teaching excellence mark another milestone in their careers, and we express our respect with the Professor Emeritus title to those who, as defining figures of their institutions for decades, continue to support our university even after retirement,” the rector said.
Zoltán Bács emphasized that the University of Debrecen is more than an institution: it is an intellectual community connecting generations. The life’s work of emeritus professors inspires habilitated lecturers; their example motivates young researchers, from whom future university leaders, professors, and key figures of scientific workshops may emerge. This continuity, he said, is what gives the university its strength and credibility.
The ceremony continued with the presentation of the Excellence PhD Scholarship of the Count István Tisza Foundation for the University of Debrecen (GTIDEA). The scholarship was awarded to 15 doctoral students.
Applicants eligible for the scholarship are state-funded, full-time PhD students at the University of Debrecen under the age of 30, Hungarian citizens, who have demonstrated outstanding performance in the first two semesters of their doctoral studies and are approaching their complex examination.
The recipients, as well as the guests of the ceremony, were welcomed by György Kossa, chairman of the GTIDEA board of trustees, who quoted Albert Einstein:
“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited, whereas imagination embraces the whole world, stimulates progress, and gives birth to evolution.”
“You have proven that you possess knowledge. Now it is your imagination’s turn to open new paths in science.”
Addressing the doctoral graduates, he emphasized that they earned their PhD at an institution that has been a stronghold of knowledge, faith, and culture since 1538. This nearly five-century heritage carries responsibility: respect for values, preservation of traditions, and continuous renewal. They have become part of a diverse, international community, with young researchers arriving from all over the world to obtain their scientific degrees in Debrecen—demonstrating the university’s strength and appeal.
University autonomy—the freedom of research, teaching, and thought—was described as the foundation on which the future is built. The shift in the funding model, he said, was designed precisely to help the university become a modern, flexible institution capable of responding quickly to 21st-century challenges without abandoning its centuries-old values. The board of trustees provides a strong supportive background enabling university leadership, lecturers, and researchers to focus solely on academic excellence.
A total of 104 candidates met the requirements for the PhD degree, with 87 awarded summa cum laude and 17 cum laude, across the fields of natural sciences, engineering, humanities, medical and health sciences, social sciences, and agricultural sciences.
The new doctors of science were welcomed by Ferenc Kun, scientific vice-rector of the University of Debrecen.
“A PhD is not an endpoint, but an authorization: recognition that you are capable of independent inquiry, systematic thinking, evidence-based argumentation, and evaluating your results according to the standards of the scientific community. From this day forward, you are not only practitioners but also responsible shapers of the scientific environment you belong to,” he said.
“Preserve your curiosity. Preserve the courage to ask questions, but also the discipline of verification. In today’s world, where the amount of information is growing at an unprecedented rate, the value of scientific thinking is even more important. The task of a scientist is not only to collect data or provide answers, but also to distinguish between certain and uncertain, essential and irrelevant, verified and merely plausible claims,” he added.
Following the oath-taking and diploma conferrals, based on the proposals of the Disciplinary Habilitation Committees and the decision of the University Doctoral and Habilitation Council, the rector awarded habilitated doctoral titles. A total of 14 recipients received this title: 6 in humanities, 3 in medical and health sciences, 4 in social sciences, and 1 in natural sciences.
The Senate of the University of Debrecen awarded the title of Professor Emeritus to six retired professors:
Elek Bartha – Faculty of Humanities; István Fábián – Faculty of Science and Technology; László Mátyus – Faculty of Medicine; Noémi Nagy – Faculty of Science and Technology; Zsolt Páles – Faculty of Science and Technology; László Kristóf Takács – Faculty of Medicine.
The emeritus title recognizes the outstanding achievements and decades of service of the university’s most distinguished professors, while also granting rights and conditions for continued academic activity.
The list of awarded doctors, habilitated doctors, and PhD scholarship recipients is available here.
The tributes to the Professor Emeriti are available here.
