Women in science
It has always been important for the University to promote engineering, technical and natural science among young people, especially girls.
The first female engineer graduated from BME
The history of women in domestic technical higher education goes back less than 100 years: In December 1918, the decree was issued to open BME to them. Only ten people took advantage of this at the time, including the first female student, who graduated in 1920. To commemorate the 100th anniversary of this event, the institution named one of the rooms in the Central Building in March 2020 after Eszter Pécsi, the first female structural engineer to graduate.
What kind of engineer should I be?
BME provides thematic brochures to help young people who are about to choose a career: these provide detailed information on the knowledge that can be acquired with each engineering and technical qualification, the admission requirements, and the labour market opportunities and prospects for professionals with the given qualification, regardless of gender.
Girls' Day
"You can be anything you want to be!" - For a whole day, young women who are about to choose a career can put themselves in the shoes of engineers and researchers at the BME Girls' Day events.
Girls' Day is a national career guidance programme for female students, organised by the Association of Hungarian Women in Science (NaTE) since 2012. Its aim is to provide girls who are about to choose a career with information on professional and training opportunities in higher education institutions, research institutes, technology companies, and on STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) related trainings and career opportunities. BME has taken part in the event from the very beginning.
Outstanding women researchers at BME
The work, innovations and school-creating engineering and technical activities of our female lecturers and researchers are regularly recognised with prestigious professional awards and honours.
Rita Kiss, who originally graduated as a civil engineer, is working on innovative biomechanical studies. In 2021, she received the MTA Academic Award for her achievements in basic research and the Gábor Dénes Prize for her innovation activities.
Andrea Toldy chemical engineering researcher founded a research group as a winner of MTA's Lendület programme and was awarded the Gábor Dénes Prize in 2022.
Márta Rencz was the first woman, and the first electrical engineer, to receive the “Allan Kraus Thermal Management Medal”, a prestigious award from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME).
In 2021, Hajnalka Pataki chemical engineer won the "L'Oréal - UNESCO for Women in Science" award for her research in safe and effective pharmaceutical production.
On several occasions, a colleague from our institution has been awarded the"Women in Science Excellence Award". In 2016 Edit Éva Kózel, née Székely bioengineer, in 2019 Erika Bálint chemical engineer and Edit Cséfalvay environmental engineer, in 2020 Diána Balogh-Weiser chemical engineer, in 2021, Éva Majoros, née Lublóy civil engineer, in 2022, Julianna Oláh chemical engineer received the professional recognition of the Association of Hungarian Women in Science (NaTE).
Thanks also to national and university-initiated career guidance activities, the proportion of female students is gradually increasing in all fields of study, and by 2021 the proportion of women among BME students exceeded 34% (34.11%).
BME Gender Equality Plan 2022-2025
BME attaches great importance to women's career choices in engineering and science, and encourages their involvement in academic life, research and publications. The publication „BME Gender Equality Plan 2022-2025” (BME GEP), which was adopted by the Senate of BME in December 2021 after lengthy preparations, is a testimony to this.