The programme is aimed at early childhood educators, teachers and other education professionals working in German minority, German-language or multilingual educational settings. It is particularly suitable for professionals interested in early childhood education, German language and culture, heritage-language education, multilingualism and minority education. The programme also welcomes graduates of related bachelor’s programmes who wish to develop advanced professional and academic competences in these fields and prepare for further study at doctoral level. The programme offers an international perspective on German minority and multilingual education and provides knowledge and competences that can be applied in diverse minority-language and multilingual educational contexts across Europe.

Degree: German language and ethnic culture in childhood
Level of the study programme: MA/MSc full degree
Nominal duration: 4 semesters/2 years
Intake: Autumn 2027
Language of instruction: German
Location: Budapest, Hungary
Curriculum: TBA

This programme enables students to develop advanced knowledge and practical competences in early childhood education in German minority and multilingual educational settings, to support the preservation and transmission of German language and culture, and to design and implement culturally responsive educational activities. It also prepares graduates for further academic study at doctoral level.
 

Specializations:
 

• German Language and Minority Culture in the Preschool Years

Research and practice in German language and minority culture: fostering openness to the values of the German language and minority culture through creative activities, thereby supporting

children’s personal development through play, singing, music and rhythm, dance and movement, storytelling, puppetry, and visual arts for children under six years of age. Educational settings for German language and minority culture include kindergartens, nurseries, children’s libraries, minority heritage trails, and natural and built environments as sources and contexts of experience, as well as other important community and cultural spaces, such as children’s theatres, museums, German minority heritage houses, dance groups, choirs, orchestras, and community associations.

• German Language and Minority Culture in the Early Years of Schooling

Research and practice in German language and minority culture: fostering a creative relationship with the German language and the values of minority culture in support of children’s personal development through play, singing, music and rhythm, dance and movement, drama, traditional minority crafts, visual arts, and traditional and digital culture for children aged 6–12. Educational settings for German language and minority culture include schools, children’s libraries, children’s theatres, minority heritage trails, and natural and built environments as sources and contexts of experience, as well as other important community and cultural spaces, such as museums, German minority heritage houses, dance groups, choirs, orchestras, and community associations.

The strength of the programme:

The institution places particular emphasis, in the development and implementation of the programme, on incorporating the research and teaching achievements of its own academic staff, as well as the latest national and international research findings in the fields of children’s and youth culture, cultural mediation, interculturality, and German-language cultural pedagogy. The development and continuous renewal of the curriculum are supported by the work of the department’s active research groups. Academic staff directly integrate their own publications, research-methodological expertise, and case studies into course reading lists and teaching content, as well as into the supervision of students’ independent academic work, including portfolios, research proposals, and master’s theses. Research-based learning plays a central role in the master’s programme. Students participate in mentored research projects and become involved in ongoing institutional and international research collaborations.

The Kinderreime grenzenlos project (Klein–Márkus–Meier): the international comparative study of traditional nursery rhymes is incorporated into the practical activities of the course German Children’s Folklore.

The findings of the thematic lexicographic research on German dialects in Hungary (Márkus et al.) are incorporated into the reading materials and fieldwork assignments of the course Dialectology and Cultural Heritage.

Research on the traditional games of the German minority in Hungary (Klein–Márkus–Lázár) provides the basis for the practical repertoire of the seminar Children’s Culture and the Transmission of Traditions.

The historical and contemporary overview of German-language children’s literature in Hungary (Klein–Márkus, 2025) serves as a core text for the course Analysis of Children’s Literature.

Research on the linguistic manifestations of cultural sensitisation (Radvai, 2023) is incorporated into the curriculum reflection module.

The Miniprofis methodological series (Lehr-Balló et al., 2024) expands the practical materials used in the course German Language Pedagogy for Young Learners.

Job examples:

Head of Institution at a kindergarten or school for the German minority in Hungary.

University Lecturer’s position in Hungary (after earning a Ph.D. degree).

For foreign citizens / Hungarian citizens with foreign high school certificates or double citizenship holder:

If you are a Hungarian citizen or hold a double citizenship and have obtained your high school diploma in an international school in Hungary or in any foreign school abroad, you can apply through the DreamApply system of ELTE as an international self-funded applicant.

• Apply Now!

• The deadline for submitting your application for entry in Autumn 2027 is: 30 May 2027.

Please read our step-by-step application guide below:

Application Guide
 

Admission fee:

 
For Hungarian citizens with Hungarian high school certificates:
 

• Felvi application platform

• The deadline for submitting your application is: 15 February 2027.

• For more information click here.

Scholarship opportunities 

If you are looking for Scholarships, please click here.

Mandatory application documents

• Bachelor-level degree;

• Motivation letter;

• Copy of the main pages of the passport scanned, in colour all personal details and expiry date must be shown, the passport must be valid;

• Proof of the Application fee and the Entrance exam fee transfer;

• Language certificate

After the faculty accepted the required document uploaded to the application platform, the applicant will take a professional online entrance examination organised by the Admission Committee of the Eötvös Loránd University, Faculty of Primary and Pre-School Education.

The online exam should take about 30 minutes and contains the following parts:

Reservation fee

The reservation fee is part of the first semester's tuition fee if the student establishes legal status, in which case the fee paid does not require separate treatment and accounting. If the applicant's

legal status as a student is not established for any reason, the reservation fee must be settled and accounted for from the amount of tuition paid, as follows.

The amount of reservation fee:

1. if the establishment of student status fails due to the refusal to issue a visa (i.e., through no fault of the applicant): 10% of the semester tuition fee for the given program;
    

2. if the establishment of student status fails for other reasons: the reservation fee is 100% of the semester tuition fee for the given program, which may be reduced by the dean of the faculty based on the applicant's individual request.

Scholarship holders

Scholarship holders are exempted from the payment of tuition fee.

Please use the form below to get in touch with us. We will get back to you as soon as possible. 

Degree programme inquiry form