An overview of adult education in Hungary

Vanó, Péter

The main trends in adult education, based on the statistics of the past 10 years can be summarised as follows: the number of courses and participants have increased dynamically; the ratio of adult education institutions operating as businesses have reached critical mass on the education market; officially recognised qualifications represent a dominant share of the available training, which is not always a positive fact as it means that part of the training is longer and more expensive than would be otherwise necessary and may thus reduce the number of potential participants; the commonest courses are those providing the 400 hour maximum training leading to accredited qualifications, the disadvantage of which is that the achievement of higher levels of professional qualification are not generally guaranteed.

Based on its make-up, adult education has a long-term role within Hungary’s education system. The statistics have been showing continuous and unidirectional change for the past 10 years, so it can be assumed that the processes sketched here point to a higher educational level in the long-term and a positive role of higher qualification levels in the evolution of employment. The national economy’s demand for employees with higher levels of schooling and professional skills is predictable. This requirement goes hand in hand with the demand for knowledge of foreign languages.