There were many alumni meetings around the world this year where some of our alumni volunteers participated. Here you can read about the collection from Kenya, Azerbaijan, Nigeria, Laos and Kyrgyzistan!
Great Alumni Meetup in Kenya
The bilateral agreement between the Government of Hungary and the Government of Kenya has seen over 500 Kenyan students studying in various universities in Hungary through the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship. This agreement started way back in 2016 when the first batch of 50 students was admitted to various universities in Hungary. As of today, the number has tremendously increased to 200 students per year, thanks to Tempus Public Foundation. Until now, more than 200 students have already graduated and have joined a vibrant alumni community of those who studied in Hungary. Kenyan alumni from Hungary achieved unprecedented success in different sectors including Agriculture, Veterinary and Environmental Studies, Technology, Engineering, Pure Sciences, Business and Management, Medical Sciences, Humanities, and Social Sciences.
Great Alumni Meetup was organized by the Embassy of Hungary in The Education Hungary Office in Nairobi on 2 June 2022. Eight Alumni members, who represented different universities met Mr. Péter Árvai, deputy director of internationalization at The University of Pécs. The main goal of the 3-hours-long meeting was to discuss issues about the Alumni’s welfare and life after returning. The participants also shared some pleasant memories about their stay in Hungary. The few Alumni that met were to spearhead alumni activities in various parts of the country. They were also in charge to oversee volunteering work during various education fairs that will be held in different parts of the country. It was such an exciting meet-up because we ran into colleagues we haven’t seen in a long time, shared fond memories, and even reminded ourselves of some Hungarian words which we shouldn’t forget.
Lillian Aouchola – alumni volunteer from Kenya
ASAP meeting with AHAU-Azerbaijan Hungary Alumni Union
Board members of the different Azeri alumni associations were invited to the “Networking” of ASAP on July 27, 2022. Azerbaijani Students and Alumni Platform (ASAP) is a network that unites and supports Azerbaijani students and alumni of foreign universities. The “Networking” event aimed to strengthen the relations between alumni members.
Members of alumni associations shared their knowledge and experiences with young people who are going to study abroad soon. Around 200 participants were invited to the event where they were informed about the topics of education, living, and representation of their chosen foreign countries in small groups. Fun networking games were also organized to strengthen relations between the young people who will go to study abroad and the members of the alumni associations. I really liked the event because I had an opportunity to get to know other alumni members who graduated from different foreign universities.
Azerbaijani Students and Alumni Platform
Hikmat Hasanov – alumni volunteer from Azerbaijan
Alumni meeting of the Nigerian chapter
Hundreds of Nigerian scholars under the Bilateral Educational Agreement have enjoyed the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship. More than 200 of these scholars have graduated over the past years. Hence there is a need to create a local chapter in Nigeria to facilitate alumni activities in collaboration with the Alumni Network Hungary. Holding regular alumni meetings is one of the best ways to achieve this.
The first meeting for the Nigerian local chapter took place on 7th April 2022. The meeting was held virtually via Zoom and was organized by Lucky Peter Kenda. The meeting had nine participants. It aimed to familiarize them with each other and to raise awareness of the Alumni Network and the importance of building a local chapter in Nigeria. The discussion focused on the need to have periodic meetings and organized events in the future that can encourage networking among students and professionals. It was indeed a great time catching up with colleagues and meeting new alumni members.
Lucky Peter Kenda – alumni volunteers from Nigeria
“Fish soup” (Halászlé) party in Laos
On 3 June there was a fish soup party organized for young Lao alumni of the SH scholarship programme, held at the Office in Vientiane of the Embassy of Hungary. The event was sponsored by Vitafort Agro Asia Zrt, a contractor of agricultural development projects financed by tied aid loans in Laos, and a Hungarian-Lao PDR joint venture, Aquatic Development Company (ADC).
The goal of the event was to support networking activities, introduce young Lao alumni to the representatives of the Hungarian community in Laos, and provide information about employment opportunities.
Dr. István Lénárt, Project Manager of Vitafort Agro Asia held a brief presentation on the activities of his company, which has been present in Laos since 2009. Mr. Ferenc Lévai, General Manager of ADC presented his fish farming joint venture and discussed the business relations between Laos and Europe. The event was also attended by Dr. Phuang Parisak Pravongviengkham, former Lao Deputy Minister of Agriculture (who graduated from Gödöllő in the 1980s), who spoke about employment opportunities for young agricultural professionals at the Lao Ministry of Agriculture. The informal party lasted more than four hours and was well attended by 25 alumni.
Alumni meeting in Bishkek
The meeting with the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship holders and alumni was cordial and warm. The embassy of Hungary organized the Conference for the alumni and current students to learn, network and grow. Participants had a chance to explore themselves and to find answers to the question “Should I stay in my current job, try something else, or invest in developing new skills?”
Moreover, invaluable “how to do” skill sets on secrets of hiring from the HR Director of the large organizations, tools for building and promoting a personal brand, and advice on how to combine family and startup development were presented. During an online session Stipendium Hungaricum alumni residing in Hungary Chekirova Aidai, Nursultan Nurmambetov, and Aidai Anarbek shared their experiences related to job search after graduation. Mr. Sándor Dorogi, ambassador of Hungary to Kyrgyzstan expressed his best wishes to the alumni and his high hopes to stay connected and active in the future, making this conference a sincere tradition among Kyrgyzstan’s Stipendium Hungaricum scholarship holders.
Hungarian Embassy in Biskek