The Human Resources Ministry will release before Christmas the point numbers required for admission to universities and colleges, he said, adding that student contracts will be retained, and partial scholarships will no longer exist. Those accepted for free education must agree to work in Hungary after graduation, Giro-Szasz insisted.

National Conference of Students Councils (HOOK) president David Nagy held a protest on Kossuth ter on Wednesday, then spoke with Human Resources Minister Zoltan Balog.

The comments by Giro-Szasz mark progress, as there will be more funds and places for higher education, Nagy told an impromptu press briefing, but added that a number of questions still remain. It is not known how the 55,000 places will be allocated, and no state-funded places would exist for law and economics students, he averred. HOOK wants to see the government's plans in writing and is prepared to hold negotiations again before the Christmas holidays, Nagy announced.

Admission points will be defined on the basis of statistics on points of previous years, news website Index reports.

It “was not too polite on the part” of student leaders to break off Tuesday's talks with Balog, Fidesz caucus leader Antal Rogan told TV2 Wednesday morning.

The students had not come with the intention of reaching an agreement but rather “wanted to create trouble and partly managed it,” Balog told Kossuth Radio.

Source: Hungary Around the Clock

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