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Each autumn, a number of Irish school-leavers pack their bags and flock to Szent Istvan University in Budapest to pursue their dreams of becoming qualified vets.
Currently, the number of Irish students studying at the faculty of veterinary medicine in the Szent Istvan is 190, while some 1040 international students study there in total.
The international students are made up of English and German speakers, and with Hungarian students numbering 588 altogether, the amount of international students is almost double that of native students.
Back in Ireland, University College Dublin (UCD), which contains the only veterinary school in the country, currently has 400 Irish students on its veterinary course, so the fact that Budapest hosts almost half this amount is indicative of the popularity of its course with Irish students.
On the plane to Budapest
Back in the late summer of 2010, Nicholas Higgins (23), the son of a dairy farmer from Co Sligo, became one of these students. After he narrowly missed out on the Leaving Cert points required to study veterinary medicine in UCD, he made a decision not to repeat the exam. Rather, following a serious consultation with his parents, he took a risk and found himself on the plane to Budapest within a few weeks of receiving his results.
One entrance exam and one interview later, Nicholas was accepted onto the course. At €10,980 a year fees were not cheap, but, six years on, Nicholas cannot imagine having stayed in Ireland.
"It was tough at the beginning," Nicholas told the Irish Farmers Journal. "Most Hungarians speak English really well but they have a strong accent and it took a while to get used to. But now I'm really happy I did it. Going away makes you grow up really quickly and you learn so much about yourself and what you're capable of."
Popularity with Irish students
Since Nicholas began his course in 2010, the number of Irish students in the faculty has grown by almost 30%. This increase has correlated with raised awarness of the college's reputation among prospective veterinary students in the country.
"It has really spread through word of mouth," he said. "With the points for vet medicine in UCD so high [in 2015 the points required were 575 out of 600], it's a good option for people who have a real passion for animals and medicine but don't get the points they need in the Leaving Cert."
The Szent Istvan University was granted accreditation from the European Association of Establishments for Veterinary Education (EAVE) in 1995 and this was most recently renewed in 2014. After Helsinki, London, Bern, Copenhagen, Vienna, and Gent, the university is the seventh college in Europe that fulfils all the criteria required to become an accredited EAEVE institution. So students who graduate from the faculty's six year course can practice anywhere on the continent. The EAVE accreditation also helps those students who wish to practice outside Europe following graduation.
The course has a strong practical application with small animal health clinics located on campus and a large animal health clinic for farm animals and horses based 30km outside the college. During their fourth and fifth year students do shifts in both clinics for two weeks per semester between 8am and 4pm.
Do Irish students stay in Hungary after they graduate?
Nicholas says the majority of students come back to Ireland after graduation and most also come back during their placements which take place during the sixth and final year of the course.
"I would say 98% come back to Ireland after they graduate," he said. "A small percentage might go on to England but most of the Irish students in my year are considering Ireland. We're all doing placements in Ireland as well because with the way the number of international students has grown Hungary no longer has enough English speaking vets to take on students for their placements."
Nicholas has just returned to Ireland to begin his placement and is working in a regional vet lab in Co Sligo. He says there are a few discernible differences between the systems in both countries, one of the main ones being that vets are called out more regularly in Hungary to look over the animals.
"They have bigger feed-based farms with a low stocking density like they would have in America," Nicholas said. "Some beef farms could have between 30,000 and 40,000 cows. So Hungarian vets are allocated around six farms and they would go out to those farms on a regular basis to check on the animals. It wouldn't be like Ireland where you work on a larger number of farms and are only called out if the animal is sick."
Challenges
Looking ahead, Nicholas has to complete his placement, go back to Budapest in May to hand in his report, defend his thesis and then graduate in July.
His words of advice to students considering the course in the Szent Istvan are to be prepared for a challenging few years.
"People come over and think the going will be easy or just a bit of craic but it's a challenging course and you have to be prepared to work hard," he said. "Only around 35% or 40% of students go straight through from second to third year because they really step it up a gear after first year. And of course, as with any college, you prefer some lecturers over others due to their personality or teaching style. But if you have a real passion for vet medicine and work hard, you'll learn so much from the course and from the college."
Prospective students of veterinary medicine who are interested in learning more about undertaking this course in the Szent Istvan can contact Tim O'Leary, the Irish representative for the university, at mizencomputers@eircom.net.
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