The Hungarian government wants to ban gender studies programs at Hungarian universities, according to Hungarian Free Press.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbáns populist government proposal to discontinue gender studies has to do with economics.
“There is no economic rationale for studies such as these, and so we have reason to presume that it was not created in response to labor market needs, and equally not to furnish students with skills that can be readily and directly converted on the labor market,” Zoltan Kovacs, a Hungarian government spokesman, said. “It is also questionable to what extent studies with admittedly such low student numbers are economical and sustainable.”
Orbáns government staff members have been critical of gender studies in the past.
Laszlo Nacsa, chairman of the Youth Christian Democratic Alliance, wrote a letter in 2017 questioning one of Hungarys top universities adding gender studies to its curriculum.
“We are surprised to learn that the institute you run is also launching gender studies. The first university of ELTE Hungary has a prominent place in several European rankings year after year. Many of its students are renowned lawyers, politicians, scholars and public men. It is unfortunate that the university does not want to remain faithful to its value-creating past,” he wrote.
The gender studies ban only affects Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) and Central European University (CEU). This ban will impact only 13 students: 11 students at ELTE and two at CEU, according to the Hungarian Free Press.
As Hungary puts a stop to gender studies in its country, this degree continues to become more popular in the United States. Students receiving gender studies degrees at American universities have increased 300 percent since 1990, according to USA Today.
According to Studyportals, 359 American colleges offer gender and sexual studies degrees.
