Universities and schools
There is no journalism BA or MA programme at Hungarian universities. There are, however, communication and media studies BA (three years) and MA (two years) programmes where -with variations in content -future journalists are also trained, among other communication specialists. Until 2015, a special two-year programme had also been launched, free of charge, but this has been terminated as of 2016.
Ten years ago, media and communication studies were among the most popular majors chosen by university students. However, in consequence of a series of higher educational budget cuts introduced after the 2008 financial and economic crisis, the introduction of a tuition fee for most students in 2012, as well as the establishment of enhanced accession criteria in 2013, the number of communication and media studies students has been declining, along with the overall number of students. While their numbers were over 2,500 in the late 2000s, only 852 began their communication and media studies at a BA or a MA programme in 2016. Currently, 15 higher educational institutions offer accredited communication and media studies programmes, including both public and private universities. Of these, only two are specifically dedicated to the training of future journalists. Communication and media studies are mainly taught by academics with no background in journalism or journalism studies, as PhD level communication and media studies have only recently been launched, and few of the universities provide students with practical training. Because of the declining number of students, the future of communication and media studies in Hungary is uncertain, as higher educational institutions may need to close down their departments.
In addition to higher educational institutions, there were, according to a 2013 overview, 16 lover-level schools providing journalism education and hosted by journalism associations and media outlets.