The University of Debrecen has held an orientation week for the exchange students coming to Debrecen for the spring semester. The objective of this arrangement is to show the new arrivals what it is like to be a student in Debrecen.
It was the traditional Welcome Week between February 13 and 18 that DEHÖK Hallgatói Külügyi Bizottsága [Foreign Affairs Committee of the Student Self-Government of the University of Debrecen], Erasmus Student Network (ESN), and the International Office of the University welcomed spring-semester international exchange students with. The largest numbers of a total of about 90 foreign students arrived from Turkey, Spain, Poland, Italy, and Portugal.
These international students received the information package essential for a successful start of the semester from the International Office, while the ESN team gave a presentation to them on the academic, cultural, and social, sports and leisure-time opportunities available at the University of Debrecen.
Wednesday’s program was built around Valentine’s Day, when foreign students could get to know each other through “rapid” dating and other funny assignments. During the guided day-tour on the following day, they could visit the sights and places of interest of our city and even do a quick round of the university campuses.
On February 17, a traditional Hungarian dinner crowned the week, where the music was provided by the band Szeredás and the energy of the folk dances was introduced by amateur dancers into the venue called Aula at the University of Debrecen. Stuffed cabbage and somlói galuska [chocolate sponge cake with whipped cream] were the staple items on the menu, to which a shot of homebrew pálinka [fruit brandy] prepared the hungry student body. The foreign students could also try on the most conspicuous pieces of Hungarian folk wear, including cifraszűr, pántlika, kötények, ingek, and párták, following which they could learn folk dances in order to help them digest the special Hungarian bill of fare. The fun part did not end after dinner, as the international crowd could move on to Bakelit Music Café to continue with the merriments. The last leg of this Welcome Week took place in the thermal baths with a joint splashy wet and wild experience for the participants.
“We tried to do our best to put together a week of programs to make sure that these international students could also learn a lot about the city of Debrecen, our university, and Hungary, in addition to usual routine of academic and university life,” said Réka Jakab, President of ESN Debrecen.
A similar opportunity might await Hungarian students, too, as the deadline for submitting applications for Erasmus scholarships (celebrating 30 years of successful exchanges this year) as well as the same for Campus Mundi exchange programs is equally March 30, 2017.
DEHDK Press Office
