Evaluating and closing the academic year

During the closing ceremony of Sunday evening, Dezső Kállay, the newly elected rector of the Institute has delivered a speech reflecting on the most important moments of the academic year 2015-2016.


In his speech, the rector pointed to one of the most important achievements of the passed academic year: regaining the accreditation following the visit of the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education in October 2015. The Institute was credited with the qualification "trusted", which is in itself an important step forward for the future. The reaccreditation process of the MA degree is due within the following academic year.

The rector expressed words of thankfulness to all teachers and administrative staff for the successes of the past year. He especially mentioned Ildikó Kosztin, teacher of Romanian for 17 years, and Brian Johnston, teacher of English for 20 years, who plan to stop their official activity within the Theological Institute from the next academic year.

After highlighting the various achievements of the teachers in the field of education and research (details accessible on the website of the PTI), the rector mentioned the highly active presence of the students in various church related and social projects both within and outside the Institute.

The background for educational and research activity was provided by the institutional Library that has successfully managed several important grants in the past academic year, including a generous grant from the Congregation of Grossmünster of Zürich and the Hilfswerk der Evangelischen Kirchen Schweiz (HEKS) Literaturdienst (For more information, see the webpage of the Library.)

The rector also highlighted the most ardent tasks of the future, such as the rethinking of basic structures of the current degree programs, following important discussions with the leadership of the Reformed Churches. Future plans also include the restarting of the Doctoral School. Several major changes in the Library infrastructure and institutional building are also projected for the following academic year.

Within this festive ceremony, students who have shown excellence in their studies or in other related activities were honoured with a gift of books.

It has become usual during the past few years that, as a sign of relationship with its former students and with the church, the alumni who graduated 50 and 60 years ago receive their golden and diamond diplomas. This year four alumni were awarded with golden diploma and nine of them received a diamond diploma.

The ceremony was closed with a short programme of the mixed choir of the Institute.