Four associate professors join the teaching staff of Rákóczi College

On June 26, 2024, the Qualification Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine awarded academic titles and degrees. As a result, the teaching staff of the Ferenc Rakoczi II Transcarpathian Hungarian College of Higher Education (II RF KMF) has been enlarged by four associate professors: dr. Ibolya Szamborovszkyné Nagy, dr. Irén Pólin, dr. István Kolozsvári, and dr. István Hadnagy, who all met the necessary requirements.

The title of associate professor is a prestigious academic rank in higher education institutions. Candidates are first evaluated by the scientific council of their institution, which determines whether they meet the criteria for the position. If found suitable, the council recommends the candidate to the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine for the award.

In Ukraine, candidates for the title of associate professor must hold a doctoral or candidate of sciences degree, have at least a B2 level proficiency in a foreign language, and have five years of professional experience in higher education. Additionally, candidates must present independent scientific research, recognized publications in their field, and have at least one study published in journals indexed by Scopus or Web of Science (WoS). Regular participation in pedagogical and professional training courses is also expected, complemented by international mobility experience. The final condition for the award of the title of associate professor involves delivering a public lecture at the institution.

Dr. Ibolya Szamborovszkyné Nagy earned her PhD in 2011 from the Eötvös Loránd University Doctoral School of History, specializing in the Doctoral Program on the 19th–20th Century History of Eastern Europe. Her dissertation focused on Educational Policy and the Teaching of History in the Soviet Union and Ukraine (1945–2010). Her research areas include the social history of the Soviet Union between 1945–1991 (including the history of educational policy and history teaching in schools and their implications for Transcarpathia), the content and didactics of school history textbooks, Soviet church policy and the history of the Transcarpathian Reformed Church between 1945-1991. She is currently the director of the Apáczai Csere János Library at the II RF KMF and an associate professor at the Department of History and Social Sciences. She is the author and co-author of one Scopus-indexed paper, four category “B” publications in Ukrainian journals, and also the author of four monographs. In addition, she is the initiator and author of a three-volume textbook series on the History of the Hungarians used in Transcarpathian Hungarian schools.

Dr. Irén Pólin obtained her candidate of sciences degree in agricultural sciences in 2012 from the Kharkiv National Agrarian University. Her dissertation was titled Characteristics of cultivation technologies for medical lemongrass and garden hyssop in the Transcarpathian plain. Her research interests include herbal medicine, pharmacognosy and medical herb cultivation. Since 2003, she has been a lecturer for the horticulture program of the Szent István University in Gödöllő (now the Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences), where she also served as the program head from 2012. In recognition of her outstanding work, she was awarded a certificate by the Faculty of Horticultural Sciences of Corvinus University in Budapest in 2016. She is currently an associate professor at the Department of Biology and Chemistry at II RF KMF. She has published studies in three Ukrainian academic journals, has one publication listed in the Web of Science (WoS), over forty professional articles in Hungarian and local journals, one monograph, as well as three patent rights.

Dr. István Kolozsvári earned his PhD in 2017 from the Pál Juhász-Nagy Doctoral School of Biology and Environmental Sciences at the University of Debrecen. His dissertation focused on The dragonfly fauna of the Tisza River between Tiszaújlak and Huszt. His research interests lie in hydrobiology and hydroecology. He is the author and co-author of five papers indexed in WoS and Scopus, four publications in category “B” Ukrainian journals, three monographs and several other publications in national and foreign journals. In 2017, he was recognized by the Transcarpathian Hungarian Academic Council for his contributions to life sciences. Since 2016, he has led the Fodor István Research Center at II RF KMF and is an associate professor at the Department of Biology and Chemistry.

Dr. István Hadnagy received his PhD in 2021 from the Doctoral School of Earth Sciences at the University of Debrecen. The topic of his dissertation is The energetic characterization of the near-surface wind field in Transcarpathia. His research areas include ecology, environmental protection, and nature conservation. He is the author or co-author of three monographs and more than forty scientific publications, four of which have been published in Ukrainian journals, and six of his publications are listed in Scopus or Web of Science databases. In 2019, the Transcarpathian Hungarian Academic Council recognized his contributions to life sciences with a certificate. Since 2007, he has been teaching at II RF KMF, and since 2021, he has served as an associate professor at the Department of Biology and Chemistry.

Having met all the requirements, the Qualification Committee of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine awarded them the title of associate professor. The new associate professors received their certificates at a meeting of the college’s scientific council on August 27.

Congratulations on their professional achievements, and best wishes for further success!

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