This year’s higher education admissions have set a new record for Tokaj-Hegyalja University. In September 2026, 383 first-year students will begin their studies at the institution, representing a 15 per cent increase compared with the previous year. According to university’s announcement states that a total of 422 applications were received for full-time courses this year, compared with 350 last year. Moreover, this increase is not a one-off result.
The institution’s student numbers rose by 25 per cent in 2024 and by a further 16 per cent in 2025, meaning the university now has more than 1,200 students. This significantly exceeds the target of 850 students set at the time of its re-establishment in 2021.
According to information from Tokaj-Hegyalja University, the teacher training programme, the viticulture and oenology engineering programme, the economics programmes, and the tourism and hospitality programme continue to be among the most sought-after courses. This clearly reflects the institution’s commitment to offering competitive higher education programmes that build on the region’s traditions and economic characteristics.
You need increasingly higher scores to get in
This growing interest is also reflected in the admission thresholds. The average admission threshold for full-time, state-funded degree programmes rose from 180 points to 243 points between 2023 and 2026. The change is even more striking in individual degree programmes:
- in the Tourism and Hospitality programme, from 186 points to 308 points,
- in the teacher training programme, from 180 to 264 points,
- in the early years education programme, from 184 to 233 points,
- In the Business and Management programme, the entry threshold rose from 206 to 277 points.
High entry thresholds have also been set for distance-learning programmes: this year, the cut-off score for the special educational needs programme was 420, for the early years education programme 338, and for the primary school teaching programme 334.
A sign of confidence in quality
Rector Szabolcs Kéri also commented on the results.
„The figures from the past four years speak for themselves: more and more people are choosing Sárospatak, and their results are getting better and better. This is a shared success for our students, our lecturers and our practice-oriented training model, and it is also a responsibility, as we can only repay this trust by further improving our standards.”
In September, Tokaj-Hegyalja University will welcome a record number of new students to Sárospatak, one of Hungary’s most historic university towns, situated in the heart of the Tokaji wine region, a World Heritage Site.
