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1. National strategy

2. Formal education: main policy measures on ELET

3. Addressing ELET through non-formal and informal learning and quality youth work

4. Cross-sector coordination and monitoring of ELET interventions

National strategy

The Public Education Strategy 2021 - 2030

In Hungary there is no national strategy with the specific aim of tackling early school leaving, but this topic was included in the Public Education Strategy 2021 - 2030 (Köznevelési stratégia 2021 - 2030) adopted by the Hungarian Government in 2020. One main aim of the strategy is to develop access to qualitative and fair education, prevent early school leaving, and develop qualifications.

In relation to this aim, the development areas are

• decreasing the number of those students who underperform,
• further development of the early warning and pedagogical support system,
• development of the underperforming schools,
• supporting the education of the children with special educational needs,
• supporting the students with strengthening the cooperation between the educational institutions and families,
• programmes for the development of the basic, digital and foreign language skills of the disadvantaged students,
• unique methodological and resource support for disadvantaged student groups.

The government has published the Action Plan 2021-2024 for the Public Education Strategy (A köznevelési stratégia 2021 - 2030 intézkedési terve a 2021-2024 közötti időszakra) in 2023. The action plan includes the yearly monitoring of the strategy and provides information on the status of the measures. Most of the measures related to the goals mentioned above are in the planning phase or ongoing.

Early warning and pedagogical support system for preventing early school leaving

The amendment of the Government regulation no. 229/2012 (VIII.28.) on the implementation of the Act on National School Education [229/2012. (VIII. 28.) Korm. rendelet] entered into force on November 19 2016. The regulation introduced the early warning and pedagogical support system for

• the prevention of early school leaving and
• the commencement of related institutional and state tasks at the national level.

The support system is intended to contribute to achieving the targets of the Europe 2020 strategy, namely that the proportion of early school leavers in Hungary should fall to 10% by 2020. The system draws attention to situations and areas requiring development that, if recognised in time, might prevent the dropout. These are usually linked to

• declining school performance,
• problematic behaviour,
• regular absence from school,
• problems in the family.

Based on the latest data from the Educational Authority, the rate of pupils at risk of dropping out of school was higher than 10% in the first half of the school year 2023/2024 in only 1 county.

Formal education: main policy measures on ELET

Scholarships for preventing early school leaving

Arany János Programmes

The Arany János Talent Programme (Arany János Tehetséggondozó Program) and the Arany János College Programme (Arany János Kollégiumi Program) are complex support schemes for socially disadvantaged students in upper secondary education, thus trying to prevent early school leaving. These programmes aim to provide complex-pedagogical, social, health and cultural support for dropout groups of students.

The 'Útravaló' Scholarship Programme

The 'Útravaló' Scholarship Programme' (Útravaló Ösztöndíjprogram) was set up to provide support for disadvantaged youth (mainly Roma) to prepare for further education or finish their current studies in primary or secondary education. According to the information provided by the ministry in 2025, about 10 000 students receive financial support each year. In 2024, 9 172 students participated in the programme and the budget of the programme was HUF 2.3 billion (about EUR 5.7 million).

The 'Apáczai' Scholarship Programme

The Apáczai Scholarship Programme (Apáczai Ösztöndíj) was launched in 2021 and aims to provide financial support for disadvantaged students in vocational education with good academic results. From the second half of the 2021/2022 academic year, students in Technicum Schools can also apply for that scholarship. The amount of support is between HUF 16 000 and HUF 34 000 per month (about EUR 41-87), depending on the study results. According to the ministry information in 2024, 7 903 disadvantaged students have received support in the project so far. For more information on these programmes, see 4.4 Inclusive Programmes for Young People.

The Complex Basic Program

The Complex Basic Program (Komplex Alapprogram) was launched in 2017 and the Eszterházy Károly University operates it.The program focuses on providing methodological training for teachers to prevent disadvantaged students from dropping out of primary school. Further objectives are to support these students in obtaining a school-leaving certificate and to eliminate academic disadvantage. The project grant amounts to HUF 9.8 billion (about EUR 25 million).

The program consists of 5 sub-programmes that support the development of students' skills and competencies in different areas:

• Digitalisation-based sub-programme aims to acquire the competencies of digital literacy through experiential learning.
• The life-practice-based sub-programme aims to develop and maintain productive life practices related to topics such as healthy lifestyle, life management, sustainability, citizenship, family and emotional intelligence.
• The art-based sub-programme aims, among other things, to use art-related activities to give students an extra motivation to learn, to teach indirect learning techniques about perception, attention, memory and thinking, and to teach interdisciplinary knowledge.
• The logic-based sub-programme aims to develop students' logical, thinking and problem-solving skills through playful methods.
• The physical education-based sub-programme aims to achieve personality development in the peer community through movement and to promote acceptance, cooperation, equality and community life, among other things.

According to ministry information in 2024, more than 700 schools with 10 000 teachers and 130 000 students took part in the programme in 2023. According to the feedback from participants the programme supported teachers in methodological development, coordinating cooperation between students with different competencies and dealing with learning and behavioural problems.

The Complex Basic Program and the Public Education Strategy 2021 – 2030

The Ministry's information from 2023 emphasises that the Complex Basic Program contributes to the objectives of the Public Education Strategy in various ways. One main objective of the programme is to provide disadvantaged students with equal access to quality education, together with social inclusion and talent development, and this is also mentioned in the strategy. In addition, patriotic education, family life and health education are promoted in the sub-programmes (this objective is also included in the National Core Curriculum - Nemzeti Alaptanterv).

The programme also creates a balance between the transfer of knowledge, the development of skills and competencies and the formation of attitudes through its complex pedagogical-methodological view and uses the methodology of subject integration, i.e. working on topics that require the knowledge of several subjects. The programme also supports the organisation of thematic days and weeks as well as various projects based on the active learning methodology.

The Programme for Creating Opportunities

The government launched the Programme for Creating Opportunities (Esélyteremtő Program) in 2024. The programme provides training to teachers working in vocational training, and it aims to prevent early school leaving and to support students in obtaining a profession. Teachers can provide individual classes to students to help them achieve better academic results and develop their competencies. The electronic school and administration system (KRÉTA) has an Early School Leaving (ESL) module that supports this programme by monitoring the academic results and the absence of the students.

The Springboard program and the workshop school program

To tackle early school leaving and to integrate to the labour market those who have lower educational attainment, the government set up the Springboard program (Dobbantó program) and the workshop school program.

The target group of the Springboard program are those young people who

• reached the age of fifteen and
• do not have a primary education by at last day of the previous school year. [12/2020. (II. 7.) Korm. rendelet]

After the Springboard program, the student can attend a workshop school (Műhelyiskola) aimed at acquiring the skills needed to enter vocational training or the labour market. This type of school provides a partial qualification in a trade, in a few months. There is a so-called 'mentor' who supports the student in learning a trade.

For these programs, the Ministry of Culture and Innovation is responsible in general, and the Vocational Training Centres (Szakképzési Centrumok) are coordinating at the local level. Students participating in these programs can receive a scholarship of 5% of the minimum wage.

Results of the Springboard Program

The participation in the Springboard Programme has continuously increased in last years.

In the 2022/2023 academic year among state maintained schools 53 schools from 33 Vocational Training Centres offered training in the frame of the Springboard programme and 855 students participated in these and

• 74 schools from 39 Vocational Training Centres launched a workshop school programme, and 1 340 students participated in workshop school.

Furthermore, in the 2022/2023 academic year

• 39% of the students who participated in workshop school programs obtained a job,
• 18% of them started a vocational school program and
• 14% of them went to another workshop school program.

The Springboard program is also mentioned in Eurydice sub-chapter 2.3 Organisation of the Education System and of its Structure.

'Orientation classes'

The 'Orientation Classes' ('Orientációs évfolyam') were started in the 2022/2023 school year in 47 schools. The aim of these preparation classes is recommended for those students who obtained the primary education certificate but needs redevelopment or do not know which type of secondary school or profession they should choose.

According to the ministry, 26 state and 1 non-state school from 19 Vocational Training Centres held 'orientation classes' in the 2022/2023 school year, in which a total of 353 students participated. The proportion of students with special needs among them is 33% and the proportion of disadvantaged children with multiple disadvantages is 20%. 34% of the participants attended a vocational school, 8% a technicum, 19% a workshop school, 1% a secondary school and 13% plan to find a job after the orientation class year.

Technicum Schools with a degree certificate

From the 2021/2022 academic year a new type of training is available: Technicum Schools with a degree certificate (okleveles technikusképzés). It means that during Technicum School, the students participate in higher education courses besides general professional education and practical training. At the end of this training, they receive a professional certificate, a maturity exam, and a degree certificate for the higher education courses. Furthermore, in the admission process, the university can recognize the knowledge that the student acquired and can recognize 30 credits. 

The main objective is to make the Technicum Schools the 'hall' of technical-IT-academic education with a certificate of completion. In addition, it is important to improve the application of students for higher education after graduating from Technicum Schools and to give them the opportunity to gain easier access to higher education from vocational training in order to prevent them from dropping out of school prematurely (information from related ministry). 

The Technicum School and the university establish the curriculum and the frame of cooperation together for each training. In the 2024/2025 academic year, almost 300 approved trainings are available nationwide, but in the next year, it will increase over 300.

Addressing ELET through non-formal and informal learning and quality youth work

The Tanoda Programme

The Tanoda Programme (Tanoda program) was established to prevent early school leaving. It is a community scene featuring a non-governmental organisation with local features based on voluntary participation and focusing on the individual needs of children. It provides a complex service for the development of personality that would be otherwise unavailable for disadvantaged children. For this programme we cannot make a difference between age groups since every Tanoda has a unique mix of age groups. It depends on who is involved in it. There are places where special target groups are involved such as disadvantaged children in kindergartens or in primary school, but usually students from the youth age group (16-18 years) and from primary schools are present. (For more information, see 4.4 Inclusive programmes for young people).

The 'Let's Teach for Hungary' program

The 'Let's Teach for Hungary' (Tanítsunk Magyarországért) program aims to provide opportunities for the young people (especially primary school students) living in small towns and in villages and prevent them from early school leaving. According to their website, the mentor has an important role in the program:

'The task of the mentors standing next to them is to show them the excitement and possibilities of the world beyond the settlement - high schools, businesses, so that they can see how many different occupations and futures they can choose from.'

The program was launched by the

• former Ministry for Innovation and Technology,
• former Ministry of Human Resources,
• Klebelsberg Centre (Klebelsberg Központ) and the
• National Organisation of Student Self-governing Bodies [Hallgatói Önkormányzatok Országos Konferenciája (HÖOK)].

The program has a university mentor program and a business mentor program. University students could provide mentoring for 4-5 primary school students, support them in completing primary school studies, and motivate them to continue learning in the secondary school system. In the case of businesses, they organise activities for students, such as visiting and introducing their company.

In 2023, they mentored students in more than 100 elementary schools, with mentors from 21 universities. From March 2023, they became the part of the National Talent Centre (Nemzeti Tehetség Központ).

Cross-sector coordination and monitoring of ELET interventions

The Public Education Strategy 2021 - 2030 (Köznevelési stratégia 2021 - 2030) states that the policies related to early school leaving must

• identify the social and educational factors that can result in early school leaving and
• continuously monitor the educational pathways of the most vulnerable pupils.

To achieve this, the early warning and educational support system mentioned above is used and special measures are implemented for students or young people who would leave the education system. The coordination of implementation and monitoring requires the involvement of various actors from the relevant ministries and other non-public actors in the field of public education.

In general, cooperation with local institutions and civil organisations (including social, health, sports, child and youth protection organisations) is very important for the coordination of ELET interventions. It is also important to ensure efficient communication and cooperation between schools and the various stakeholders, as well as the involvement of local cultural institutions in extracurricular educational activities.