A new program in economics, BA in Public Governance starts next autumn at PPCU as a joint program of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Faculty of Law and Public Administration. What is the novelty of the program? Who should apply? The Dean of the faculty, Máté Botos answers.
Please introduce the new program in public governance.
The major aim of the program is to educate future public administrators in both economics and finance as well as law and regulation. Since administrators deal with people we also believe it is important to provide a broader social science background.
Who should apply to the program?
The program is primarily aimed those who want to work in the public sector rather than for private companies.
What does the program provide for its students?
We aim to provide a high-quality education, which is competitive with other similar programs in Hungary. Well-known scholars promised to teach courses on international economics, finance and law, which are all indispensable for preparing high-quality decisions in public policy.
Is there a similar program in other faculties of humanities?
We are unique in this aspect. In other countries economics or law faculties provide such programs. This leads to a situation when public administrators are either lawyers who do not understand economic considerations, or economists who do not understand the regulatory aspects.
This program focuses on the public sector, which includes the civic sphere and non-profits organizations as well. How do you see the future of this sector?
I believe that the public sector has to adapt to the requirements of the global economy. Although there are attempts to cut back on the sector, this does not mean that there would be less work to do – instead public administrators have to do a lot more high quality work than before. This means that in the future the educational requirements for public servants are likely to rise.
What other objectives do you wish to serve with this joint program with the Faculty of Law?
Economics education in Hungary has a rather specific orientation – mainstream economics dominates as elsewhere. We do not aim to counter the mainstream but at the same time we believe a catholic perspective can add some additional dimensions. We feel we have a mission to promote the tradition of catholic economic thinking on social market economy, which contributed to the prosperity of Germany, Austria and Switzerland during the second part of the 20th century. In Hungary this line of thinking was rooted out from public conscience after the 1950s and we would like to revive it.
