Strategic Objectives and Policy Tools

EU funds may be used at member state level to encourage mobility, as well as to establish and develop strategic partnerships and learning networks in compliance with the strategic European aims. The community tools are funded by the European Commission directly by the coordination of the national agencies.

The main funding tool of the EU in the fields of education, training, youth and sport is the Erasmus+ Programme coordinated by the European Commission. This programme’s aim is to promote the development of skills and employability, as well as to help the modernisation of education, training and youth work. In order to achieve the above aims, the programme funds mobility, cooperation, and activities to encourage the implementation of political reform processes in the sectors of public education, higher education, VET, adult education, as well as youth policy and sport. The objectives of the financial framework for the programme period 2021-2027 – based on the experiences of the 2014-2020 period – are the consolidation of the prior achievements and making the program more inclusive.

The Erasmus+ program provides mobility for teachers, education and training experts, professionals, and students in higher education and vocational training. As a new tool for promoting mobility, the Student Loan guarantee has been introduced. Its aim is to provide a student loan cover part of the cost of higher education. In addition to mobility, the programme places great emphasis on professional dialogue, to establish structured national and international cooperation between higher education and the world of work, also between vocational education and training and the world of work. In addition, it focuses on the development of strategic partnerships, networks and IT support platforms, innovation and the exchange of good practices.

In Hungary, the implementation of the programme is coordinated by the Tempus Public Foundation.

Additional strategic objectives include the strengthening of the international competitiveness of higher education as well as the increase of the number of foreign students. In order to achieve this aim, foreign language programmes are assessed, developed and scholarship schemes are created targeting foreign students. The Campus Mundi Scholarship Programme (between 2016 and 2022), is also involved in this. The aim of the Campus Mundi program is to improve the quality of higher education, to encourage student mobility and to enhance the international recognition of Hungarian higher education institutions. The program is coordinated by the Tempus Public Foundation. The program's main activities are:

• Encouraging higher education mobility through student scholarships.
• Internationalisation of higher education through participation in international student and institutional education fairs, workshops, PLA-type professional co-operation and training.

A further strategic objective is to promote cooperation with the neighbouring countries in the field of education, especially in minority education, since there is a high number of national minorities living in Hungary and Hungarian minorities living in the neighbouring countries.

An additional important objective is to increase the European professional experience of teachers. In order to achieve this goal, it is important to make the qualifications in teacher education and in-service teacher training comparable with similar European qualifications. In order to implement the European goals to strengthen the international dimension of mobility and education, Hungary's strategy for the development of public education includes measures to promote the mobility and cross-border cooperation of students and teachers.

Another priority area for strengthening the international dimension of education is digital education. In connection with this priority area, the Hungarian Government adopted the Digital Education Strategy in 2016 (Government Resolution 1536/2016). The most important goals are: the development of the digital education environment, the availability of digital methodologies and digital curricula, the development of the educational administration, digital solutions in teacher training and supporting the entry to the international online education research.