CertificateGateway - Hungarian-Chinese Exchange Programme
| Study location | Hungary, Szeged |
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| Type | Short duration, full-time |
| Nominal duration | 1 semester (30 ECTS) |
| Study language | English |
| Awards | Certificate |
| Tuition fee | US$3,300 one-time The schedule of tuition fee payment is determined on the basis of consulate/visa regulations. In case of applicants coming from visa restricted countries, payment of the full tuition fee (1st and 2nd semester) is required. Details will be indicated in the letter of admission. |
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| Application fee | US$40 one-time Please note that it is a non-refundable fee. You are asked to pay via bank-card payment. In case bank card payment fails, you may transfer the amount to the bank account indicated on the payment notification. |
| Entry qualification | High school / secondary education (or higher) Who should Apply? The entry qualification documents are accepted in the following languages: English. Often you can get a suitable transcript from your school. If this is not the case, you will need official translations along with verified copies of the original. Academic Records in English or certified translation. You must take verified copies of the entry qualification documents along with you when you finally go to the university. |
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| Territory requirements | Applications are accepted from the following territories (based on citizenship): China. |
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| Language requirements | English at least CET-4, IELTS 5.0;TOEFL IBT 70, or equivalent |
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| Other requirements | A motivation letter must be added to your application. Please type/copy your motivation/cover letter here. General Health Certificate |
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| More information |
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Overview
Gateway Program (Non-degree)
About the Program
The Gateway Program aims to give a general knowledge about the basics of law regarding the European Union, the criminal justice system in the EU and Hungary and also covers some aspect of regional Economics. Furthermore introducing the International Relations of Europe is an important aspect as well but not the only one. Students can get a glimpse of the Asian and African countries affected by the Belt and Road Initiative too. Diplomatic relations are examined in a global scale.
Teaching Legal English is an important part of the Program as the students need to learn the technical terms of Law in an international environment. In addition to technical English, everyday English is stressed as well, thus students can receive competence not just in the field of Law, Economics and International Relations but also in situations regarding daily life in a foreign Country.
You will be enrolled into three compulsory courses and three elective courses. You will be able to register for additional courses for an additional prices if you wish to do so.
Please indicate your primary choices for your elective courses at the end of your motivation/cover letter.
Please note that the Program no longer provides extracurricular activities.
Please see the details of the courses below at ‘Programme Structure’.
Level of the Program : Non-degree
Length of the Program : 1 semester
Registered by: EU
Credits: 30
Start of the Program: September 2025
Tuition Fee : 3300 USD / semester; (450 USD for each additional optional courses)
Other fees : 35 EUR or 40 USD online application fee
More information on application or on the program please contact Anita Kardos via e‐mail at kardos.anita@szte.hu;
Programme structure
Programme structure
Short Description of Compulsory Courses
Legal English
This practical course aims to introduce the English terminology of some major fields of law, supplemented by language development as necessary. The course will help students better understand the material of other subjects studied in the semester. It will offer plenty of opportunities to practice all four language skills: listening, reading, speaking and writing, mainly in a legal context. Requirements for completing the course include weekly homework assignments such as keeping a diary, writing essays and making presentations. A language test is given both at the beginning and at the end of the course to assess students’ development during the semester.
Basics of EU Law
This course offers a general overview of the core principles of the European Union (EU) legal system. The course focuses both on institutional and substantive law issues and explores the functioning of the unique creature of the EU.
Introduction to Hungarian history, culture and language
The course offers basic language skills and background information on Hungarian culture in a European context. The language component focuses on the essential grammar and vocabulary that is useful in everyday communicative situations. The topics on culture help students understand how people live and think in Hungary and they also provide a good basis for further cultural studies. This course gives some insight to the Hungarian constitutional history as well. We will examine the Hungarian constitutional state construction: the governmental system, the National Assembly, the local governments, the head of state and the jurisdiction.
Introduction to Hungarian history, culture and language
The course offers basic language skills and background information on Hungarian culture in a European context. The language component focuses on the essential grammar and vocabulary that is useful in everyday communicative situations. The topics on culture help students understand how people live and think in Hungary and they also provide a good basis for further cultural studies. This course gives some insight to the Hungarian constitutional history as well. We will examine the Hungarian constitutional state construction: the governmental system, the National Assembly, the local governments, the head of state and the jurisdiction.
Short Description of Optional Courses
Freedom, Security and Justice in Europe
After the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, European integration in the field of criminal justice (Area of Freedom, Security and Justice) gained new horizons: the new competences of the EU in this field promises new criminal policy on the European level. The course offers the possibility to understand the process leading to change in the following areas and with the following aims:
- Understanding the major contemporary debates and theoretical perspectives on freedom, justice and security in a European context.
- Transferring knowledge about the theoretic foundation of the FSJ area of the EU and about the institutional framework of the EU in the field of Judicial and Home Affairs and possible future developments.
- Getting familiar with the role and activity of the Court of the European Union in this field.
- To establish a general understanding of how European Law interacts with national criminal justice systems. Strengthening the comparative approaches in this field in favor of better analysis of the own legal structures.
European Public Policy
This course will consider public policy from the political and legal aspects and examine its practical application in the continual evolution of the European Union. The course examines the historical development of important legal structures for determining the creation and implementation of different types of policy outputs and also introduces the students to various supranational, national and sub-national institutions and actors that contribute to the EU policy-making process. Which policy areas are governed at the supranational level and which by the member states. How the EU institutions ensure democratic accountability? The EU neither a typical international organisation nor a traditional sovereign state. The course explores how the policy processes work in practice by scrutinising developments in important internal and external policy areas and over time. This course familiarizes students with the political and normative effect of the EU in the wider European neighbourhood.
A Brief Introduction to the Belt and Road Initiative
In this course students will be able to get a glimpse into the main purpose of the Belt and Road Initiative (originally called as One Belt One Road or OBOR, 一带一路) initiative, or more commonly referred to as the „New Silk Road”. We will examine the major countries concerned in this initiative, both Asian and European ones. The course itself will show the cultural backgrounds including both historical and where it is important religious aspects of the states which are concerned with this new policy. Furthermore each countries’ relation with China in the 20th and 21st century will be analyzed. The course focuses mainly on the international relations of OBOR countries, but questions of economy and also the legal framework of all the areas where the Silkroad Econonomic Belt and the Maritime Silk Road go through will come up as well.
Comparative Digital Copyright Law
This course aims to discuss some hot topics of the copyright law in the digital age, and of the internet law from a comparative law aspect. In the frames of the course students will be able to get familiarized with the common law solutions of the covered topics in the United States, and various types of the Continental European legal regimes, with a special focus on the law of the European Union.
Civil Sector and Law in Practice
Legal Clinic is an alternative educational method since it focuses on the practical part of the legal education instead of theory. The purposes of the Legal Clinic course are to prepare law student to law practice, improve professional ethics and other competencies, such as communication with clients, drafting legal documents. Furthermore, clinical legal education strengthens the emotional skills of the students. The structure of the seminar is divided into two main parts: theoretical and practical. Within the theoretical part, we deal with the methodology of legal clinic, the issue of discrimination (e.g. gender, race, age, and disabilities), child care system, data protection (GDPR), and client interviewing techniques. In the practical part, we go for a field trip. We will meet with the representatives of the NGOs who have partnership agreement with the legal clinic. Furthermore, we practice client interviewing (e.g. questioning the client, fact finding), drafting legal documents, case solving. Also, we organize a moot court to illustrate, how the judicial system functions.
Parties and Political Systems in Europe
The course provides an overview on the development of European political systems with a focus on the two pivotal institutions of political representation: political parties and elections. A wide range of different institutional configurations can be found on the continent, there are examples for monarchies and republics, presidential and parliamentary systems using majoritarian, proportional or mixed electoral systems for the selection of representatives. This diversity of political frameworks, together with a variety of distinct cultural and historical factors, produced an exciting landscape of parties and party systems in Europe. The course provides students with an opportunity to better understand how European political competition evolved in modern time, how institutional and social factors affected political parties, and how they deal with the challenges of the 21st century. The topic of the course the examination of the parties will indicate issues like the specificities of societies and political cultures, which will make it possible to understand the political cleavages and political differences, strategies in campaigns, and political party families.
EU Competition Law
The course examines the core concepts and principles of EU antitrust/competition law from a comparative perspective and gives a comprehensive overview. It takes an economic and public policy approach, elucidating the key-concepts of antitrust law in the field of restrictive agreements, dominant position and mergers. It aims at providing the students with a broad overview on the economic, legal and policy problems of EU competition law and policy and at equipping them with the conceptual tools that are necessary for analyzing competition matters. At the end of the course, participants will be able to identify and analyze the most important legal and economic issues in competition matters.
Globalisation and Development
Students will be able to understand the concept of development and how the developing countries work and which factors hinder their development.They will be able to analyse the effects of underdevelopment on the macroeconomic and analyse the key factors in economic development. Furthermore they will be able to criticize the effects of international financial flows on economic development.
International and European Social Security Law and Business Management
Social security is a concept enshrined in Article 22 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (hereinafter: UDHR) which states: “Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his/her dignity and the free development of his/her personality.” In simple terms, the society in which a person lives should help them to develop and to make the most of all the advantages (culture, work, social welfare) which are offered to them in the country.
International and European Social Security Law plays a crucial role in protecting the social rights of individuals in an increasingly mobile and interconnected world. This legal field governs the coordination of social security systems across borders, ensuring that workers, including migrants, cross-border employees, and teleworkers, maintain access to essential social benefits such as healthcare, pensions, unemployment insurance, and family allowances when moving between countries.
At the European level, Regulation (EC) No. 883/2004 and its Implementing Regulation No. 987/2009 form the backbone of the EU’s social security coordination framework, providing legal certainty and continuity of rights for citizens within the European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland. Internationally, bilateral and multilateral agreements complement EU law by facilitating cooperation between non-EU countries and Member States.
The course explores the principles, scope, and mechanisms of international and European social security law, with a focus on its practical application, recent developments, and the challenges posed by modern labour mobility trends, such as teleworking and digital nomadism. It also discusses the role of these legal frameworks in ensuring social protection and promoting fair labour mobility across borders.
Comparative Competition Law
The course gives an introduction to competition/antitrust law from a comparative perspective, with special emphasis on EU and US competition law. It covers the three traditional fields of antitrust (dominant position/monopolization, restrictive agreements, mergers), and (briefly) also provides an overview on the law of market liberalization. Students will be able to: understand the logics of competition law, analyse competition matters.