Current Scholars

Miklós Leszkó

Program: HF-Quinnipiac Hungarian American Business Leaders Scholarship

Year: 2022/23

Host Institution:  Quinnipiac University

Quote: With the theoretical background which I get from this program and hands–on work experience from American companies, I can improve my skillset and live up to the task to build a better world. I believe in delivering value in every possible way. The American culture of hard work and deep belief in the future can help us to deepen our nations connection both economically and culturally.

Read his introduction here: hungaryfoundation.org

Miklos Leszko obtained a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Obuda University in 2020. During his bachelor studies, he gained experience in development and project management roles at KnorrBremse Fékrendszerek Kft and Vincotech Hungára Kft. At the end of his bachelor studies he earned a Campus Mundi Erasmus Scholarship at Hochschule Esslingen University of Applied Sciences and spent a semester in Esslingen am Neckar, Germany. After finishing his degree, he worked fulltime as a sales support engineer at Reynaers Aluminium Kft in Hungary. He started his Master’s studies as a fulltime Mechanical Engineering Modelling student at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics parallelly with his fulltime job. He obtained his degree in Mechanical Engineering Modelling in 2022.

His technical skillset and interest in business drove him to take a role as an Aftersales Zone Manager at Ford Motor Company where he worked till he joined the Hungarian American Business Leaders Scholarship Program.

Viktor Marsai

Program: Andrássy National Security Fellowship

Year: 2023

Host Institution: Center for Immigration Studies

Research Focus: Comparative analysis of the American and European migration policies and the role of gatekeeper countries to mitigate the flow of illegal mass migration

Quote: “My hypothesis is that because of historical reasons, Europe maintains much closer cooperation with its neighborhood which significantly helps reduce the number of illegal arrivals. It not only stems from its colonial past but also from the experiences of the last centuries when foreign invaders – Huns, Germans, Vikings, Hungarians, Mongols, Turks, Soviets – arrived from the outside world. The United States, if it wants to reduce the number of irregular arrivals, has to concentrate more on the collaboration with gatekeeper countries.”

Read his introduction here: hungaryfoundation.org

Viktor obtained his first master’s degree in history and aesthetics in 2008 at the Faculty of Humanities of Eötvös Loránd University (ELU). Two years later, he earned his second degree in security and defense studies from the Miklós Zrínyi National Defense University. In the meantime, he started his Ph.D. studies at the ELU Doctoral School of Modern History, and defended his dissertation, which examined the Somali state building after decolonization, in 2014.

From 2010-2011, Viktor worked for the Hungarian Ministry of Defense. Since 2012, he has been working for the University of Public Service, first as a junior lecturer, later as an assistant professor, and now as an associate professor. In 2017, he won the János Bolyai Research Scholarship of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. He also got a position at the Budapest-based Migration Research Institute (MRI) in 2017. He became the research director of MRI in 2019, and director in 2022. His main research areas focus on the migration trends of the African continent, African migration toward Europe, and the security aspects of migration. He is the author of three books and more than 160 book chapters and papers in academics, including Q-ranking journals.

 

The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit, research organization. Since our founding in 1985 by Otis Graham Jr., they have pursued a single mission – providing immigration policymakers, the academic community, news media, and concerned citizens with reliable information about the social, economic, environmental, security, and fiscal consequences of legal and illegal immigration into the United States. Our staff has testified before Congress over 130 times.

They are the nation’s only think tank devoted exclusively to the research of U.S. immigration policy to inform policymakers and the public about immigration’s far-reaching impact. The Center is animated by a unique pro-immigrant, low-immigration vision which seeks fewer immigrants but a warmer welcome for those admitted.

Bálint Kovács

Program: Post-Graduate Visiting Research Fellowship

Year: 2022/23

Host Institution: American University Washington College of Law

Research Focus: Issues pertaining to access to investment arbitration of small and medium-sized enterprises

Quote: “At a time when the risk of geoeconomic fragmentation is increasing, the protection and control of foreign direct investment is becoming a more prominent topic. Growing competition between China and the US has already resulted in a number of new legal instruments affecting FDI. My Fellowship to the US will help me better understand the challenges posed by these instruments.”

Read his introduction here: hungaryfoundation.org

Bálint received his legal education in Romania and Hungary, obtaining his LL.B. diploma from Babeș-Bolyai University (Romania), and subsequently an M.A. in Private Law of the European Union from the same institution. He also graduated from the European and International Business Law LL.M. in a joint program of Debrecen University (Hungary) and Sapientia University (Romania), which then led to his enrollment into the University’s Ph.D. program.

During his bachelor’s degree, he was an active member of The European Law Students’ Association (ELSA), organizing local, national, and international moot court competitions, as well as competing in local and national ones. He gained essential experience working as an intern at a local law firm for nearly two years before graduating. This experience put him on a path to working in the field of business law after obtaining his bachelor’s degree.

Subsequent to starting his Ph.D. studies, he was invited to teach seminars on international economic law to fourth-year LL.B. students at Sapientia University (Romania) as a teaching assistant. Balint also teaches international commercial arbitration at the LL.M. program of Miskolc University as a visiting lecturer.

The spirit of American University, Washington College of Law lies in the hearts and minds of their community members, who are dedicated to the professional advancement and well-being of their students and alumni, and who strive to “Champion What Matters,” locally, nationally, and internationally.

At American University Washington College of Law, people meet the world where they will practice their profession. The world has become essentially borderless, where economic, political, and social changes require innovative legal analysis and solutions.

Zsolt Jakó

Program: HF-Quinnipiac Hungarian American Business Leaders Scholarship

Year: 2021

Host Institution:  Quinnipiac University

Quote: “Being part of such a wonderful leadership program like the HABL I would like to leverage this opportunity to the fullest and I look forward to giving back to the community that brought me here. I would like to see Hungary at the forefront of change, driving innovation in the industries that matter the most to our future. I hope that the education and work experience I acquire during my time in the US will help elevate the overall competitiveness of my home region.”

Read his introduction here: hungaryfoundation.org

Zsolt was born in Marosvásárhely and completed his High-School education at Bolyai-Farkas Elméleti Líceum there. He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Management from Babeș-Bolyai University

After receiving his Bachelor’s Diploma, he set out to reach new heights in his educational and professional career and started preparing for the HABL Program. In the meantime, he took up Corporate Financial Management Masters to deepen his financial knowledge. He also started pursuing his personal passion, real-estate renovation.

Mónika Palotai

Program: HF-Hudson Visiting Research Fellow

Year: 2021

Host Institution: Hudson Institute Center for Religious Freedom

Research Focus: Religious and Minority Repression in China – protecting religious freedom and promoting democratic sovereignty in Europe

Quote: “I believe in lifelong learning. Whether it is for a career or for personal gratification, the mind and what it is filled with is assuredly one of the most precious assets. And that journey is not only books and schools but family, friends, and experiences as well. Just as Plutarch said ’The correct analogy for the mind is not only a vessel that needs filling but wood that needs igniting.”

Read her introduction here: hungaryfoundation.org

Mónika Palotai started her professional career working as a correspondent for Hungarian media outlets covering worldwide events such as the 2004 Presidential elections in the United States. She obtained her BA degree in 2006 in Communication and Media at the Budapest Business School, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Hungary. After graduating, she relocated to the United Arab Emirates, the Middle East, and began working in international business development. To complement her education and to be more efficient in doing business in the region, she immersed herself in Arabic Language and Culture and Sharia and Islamic Studies at the University of Sharjah.

She developed a passion for the aviation industry that she consulted globally. Her field of expertise includes improving business processes and finding weak spots and value-added solutions. Returning to Budapest, Hungary, she graduated at master’s level in 2018 as an Expert in International Public Service at the University of Public Service, Hungary. Subsequently, she continued her studies at the Ph.D. program of the Doctoral School of Public Administration Sciences as a Hungarian state scholarship holder.

Hudson Institute

Founded in 1961 by strategist Herman Kahn, Hudson Institute challenges conventional thinking and helps manage strategic transitions to the future through interdisciplinary studies in defense, international relations, economics, health care, technology, culture, and law.

Hudson guides public policy makers and global leaders in government and business through a vigorous program of publications, conferences, policy briefings, and recommendations.

Kristóf Veres

Program: Andrássy National Security Fellowship

Year: 2021

Host Institution: Center for Immigration Studies

Research Focus: The current Central American migration crisis utilizing the ongoing European migration crisis as a comparative framework

Quote: “Apart from climate change, mass migration is the single greatest challenge that modern societies face in the 21st century. It keeps you up at night because there is no simple solution that could be universally applied for this complex phenomenon. That’s exactly why modern mass migration is an attractive field of research for me.”

Read his introduction here: hungaryfoundation.org

Kristóf obtained his Philologist in history (BA) diploma in 2014 at the Faculty of Humanities of Eötvös Loránd University. The same year he enrolled in the archivist MA program and joined the History Workshop of Eötvös József Collegium. In 2015 he won the early medieval Hungarian history section of the National Scientific Students’ Associations Conference. After graduating at the master’s level in 2016, he continued his studies at the Auxiliary Sciences of History Ph.D. program as a Hungarian state scholarship holder.

After years of volunteer work, in August 2017 the college of curators of the Trefort-kert Foundation elected him to become the secretary of the institution. His duties included administering and coordinating the day-to-day operation of the Foundation, but also drafting the yearly budget as well as long-term financial and operational planning.

From 2018 Kristof focused his attention on his Ph.D. studies, his research was the 13th-century institutional development of the Hungarian royal chancery whose main function was to execute the sovereign’s will. His research was supported by various grants, most notably the Scholarship of the Republic, and the New Excellence Program of the Ministry of Human Capacities. During his Ph.D. studies he gave conference presentations in English, French, and Hungarian, his papers and reviews were published in anthologies as well as in Hungarian national academic journals. He defended his Ph.D. dissertation summa cum laude in February 2021.

The Center for Immigration Studies is an independent, non-partisan, non-profit, research organization. Since our founding in 1985 by Otis Graham Jr., they have pursued a single mission – providing immigration policymakers, the academic community, news media, and concerned citizens with reliable information about the social, economic, environmental, security, and fiscal consequences of legal and illegal immigration into the United States. Our staff has testified before Congress over 130 times.

They are the nation’s only think tank devoted exclusively to the research of U.S. immigration policy to inform policymakers and the public about immigration’s far-reaching impact. The Center is animated by a unique pro-immigrant, low-immigration vision which seeks fewer immigrants but a warmer welcome for those admitted.

Dr. Lilla Nóra Kiss

Program: Post-Graduate Visiting Research Fellowship

Year: 2021

Host Institution: Antonin Scalia Law School of George Mason University

Quote: “I firmly believe that my research – focusing on the different approaches and attitudes towards social media regulation in the USA and in the EU – may facilitate the improvement of the Hungarian-American professional relationships. Therefore, it will support the mutual understanding of the different viewpoints of Hungarian-European and US professionals.”

Read her introduction: hungaryfoundation.org

Lilla Nóra Kiss is a Post-Graduate Visiting Research Fellow at the Antonin Scalia Law School of George Mason University. Lilla completed her JD in 2015 at the University of Miskolc, Hungary. During her doctoral studies, she undertook the General and Juridical Mediator course and immersed herself in several international law programs (the Regional Academy on the United Nations (RAUN); the Academy of European Law (AEL) summer schools at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy.

Lilla completed her doctorate in 2018 and defended her thesis on the legal issues of Brexit in 2019. In 2020, she completed her third degree in European and International Business Law LLM at the Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest, Hungary. In addition to her academic studies, Lilla conducted lectures and seminars on European law, in both English and Hungarian.

She also served as a senior counselor specializing in EU law at the Ministry of Justice, State Secretariat for European Union Affairs in Budapest. As such, she has provided legal advice on institutional matters between the EU and the Member States, on the Future of Europe Conference, and some special topics including social media, which inspired her to apply to the Hungary Foundation’s Liberty Bridge Program. During her one-year post-doctoral research she will undertake a comparative analysis on how the US and the EU approach regulating social media.

The Antonin Scalia Law School is located just a few miles from downtown Washington, D.C., the nexus for the creation of the world’s most important legislation and jurisprudence.

During the past decade, the law school has been in the forefront of curricular innovation. Recognizing the rapid changes that are occurring in legal practice and the legal profession, Scalia Law School has been a pioneer in providing its students with an unique curriculum that gives students correspondingly unique advantages in today’s competitive employment market.

 

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