2026 Marks the 35th Anniversary of Central European University
Thirty-five years ago, the idea of an independent, international university brought Central European University to life. The envisioned institution would instill the values of an open and democratic society in the next generation of leaders by bringing transnational perspectives together.
CEU’s history reflects the trials and successes of European democracies. From overcoming resistance to its founding and developing new approaches to scholarship that challenge conventional wisdom, to its displacement from Budapest and subsequent transition to Vienna in response to an attempt to restrict its academic freedom. With an ever-growing community that believes education is the pathway to better societies, CEU has stayed true to its mission and continues to move forward.
Today, CEU is a globally recognized institution committed to turning knowledge into action. Its interdisciplinary and comparative approach to scholarship helps students and researchers address the most pressing social, economic, and political challenges on the global agenda.
The Story of CEU is One of Perseverance
George Soros, a Hungarian-American philanthropist, founded CEU to support the region’s transition from dictatorship to democracy in Central and Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. From the very beginning, CEU’s goal was to become the “transnational regional university” that united national and global topics and addressed the challenges and opportunities of democracies in a globalized world. The university established three campuses in Budapest, Prague, and Warsaw, offering young people and scholars in Europe access to interdisciplinary and comparative approaches to teaching and research in the English language.
“The idea of founding the university was born in the euphoria of the 1989 revolutions; the world of structuring it was carried out during the early 1990s, as disintegration was taking place in the post-communist region.”
From “Ten Years in Images and Documents - Central European University 1989 – 1999”
“People came to CEU in response to the charisma of the challenge. In Latin America I occasionally heard the phrase “poder convocatorio.” It meant that someone, or some group, had the power to convoke people to a place for a mission. Probably like the New School in the 1930s and 1940s, CEU had a ‘poder convocatorio.’”
Alfred Stepan, 1993-1996 CEU President and Rector, in “The Early Years of Central European University as a Network: A Memoir”
“Building and sustaining democracies is a long-term effort, at the heart of which is the education of open minds.”
John Shattuck, 2009-2016 CEU President and Rector, in the "Open Minds, Open Societies" article for the Boston Globe written after Vaclav Havel’s passing in December 2011
CEU is Not a Place – It’s a Global Community That Endures
The strength of CEU lies first and foremost in the resilience of its community, which continues despite the strong resistance to the ideas of an open society.
Already in 1993, two years after its founding, CEU had to begin relocating some of its facilities and departments from Prague to Budapest and Warsaw in response to political pressure from the nationalist right. Budapest became the university’s permanent location in 1995 with the grand opening of the CEU Campus at Nádor Street on October 20 marking the occasion. Budapest remained CEU’s home until 2017, when the university was once again uprooted by the opposition through the controversial amendment to Hungary's Higher Education Act, now infamously known as “Lex CEU”. The rise of the #IstandwithCEU movement truly demonstrated the tangible impact of the university and the definitive pro-democratic stance of its community in Europe and beyond.
Eventually, in a move to protect its faculty, students and staff, and to continue its work, CEU moved its main campus and administration to Vienna in 2019, where it still resides today.
“When universities are constrained, societies lose the ability to understand themselves – and to resist authoritarian backsliding.”
Interim President and Rector Carsten Q. Schneider addressing new students at Orientation Week 2025
“Each one of us should take pride in what we have achieved, not just for ourselves, but for the cause of academic freedom and institutional autonomy in Europe.”
Michael Ignatieff, 2016-2021 CEU President and Rector, after Lex CEU was struck down by the European Court of Justice in 2020
Building a Strong Network of Transnational Collaboration
In its early years, CEU focused on closing the gap between research and policy to advance Hungary’s transition to a democracy.
The university built partnerships with the leading actors of change, such as the Hungarian Scientific Research Fund (OTKA) through the Center for European Neighborhood Studies (CENS), the European Association for Gender Research, Education and Documentation (ATGENDER), and the largest foreign policy think tank in Hungary, the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs. CEU has also been actively working to create a collaborative network of practitioners and academics from renowned organizations all over the world with the goal of addressing real-life problems through teaching and research. In 2019, CEU joined CIVICA - The European University of Social Sciences, an alliance of ten leading European higher education institutions focused on tackling global societal challenges.
Today, CEU is part of a strong collaborative network of 169 academic partners in 34 countries and countless institutional partners that work with CEU to create new knowledge, connect research and practice and build opportunities for students and faculty to get involved in driving a positive change.
"At the heart of a rights based order, of free speech and of intellectual freedom are centres of higher learning that promote these values to its future leaders. The CEU is a case in point and its importance to present and future generations can hardly be overstated."
Kofi A. Annan, 1997-2006 Secretary-General of the United Nations, in a letter to Michael Ignatieff, on April 6, 2017
At the Forefront of Interdisciplinary Research
CEU faculty and students have earned recognition for their groundbreaking research that brings new insights to the most debated social, political, and economic issues. Their work reflects CEU’s core belief in interdisciplinary and comparative approaches to academic inquiry.
The university and its scholars have received numerous grants and awards, including the competitive Starting Grant of the European Research Council (ERC), John von Neumann Theory Prize, the World Society Foundation Award of Excellence, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation grant, NASDAQ Foundation Grant, Marie Curie Career Integration Grant, Széchenyi Prize, the National Humanities Medal, to name a few. Since 2016, Central European University students, faculty, and academic units have been awarded more than 130 Open Society Foundation’s educational and scholarship grants in recognition of their efforts to cultivate and uphold the values of democratic societies.
CEU expressed its support for advancing scholarship in the fields of social sciences and humanities at European universities by establishing the European Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2011. The first and only one of its kind in Europe, the award continues to recognize academics whose outstanding research, teaching and service contribute to the promotion of social sciences and humanities at higher education institutions within the European Higher Education Area.
“CEU is not just a place of academic excellence and disciplined hard work. It is, above all, also an ethos, an unflinching ethical commitment to the values of an open, tolerant society we all hold dear.”
Shalini Randeria, 2021-2025 CEU President and Rector, in the opening remarks at CEU’s 32nd Graduation Ceremony
Read All Anniversary News
CEU Hackathon for Social Impact Showcases Innovative Solutions for Vienna’s Future
Central European University (CEU) successfully hosted the Hackathon for Social Impact, a dynamic, interdisciplinary event organized as part of the university’s 35th anniversary celebrations.
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Share Your #CEU35 Story on Social Media
Join the conversation and celebrate CEU’s 35th anniversary online. Share your memories, reflections, and photos on social media using the official anniversary hashtag, #CEU35.
The multifaceted support of CEU donors, including many dedicated alumni, has been and is essential to the University’s academic mission and institutional growth. We extend our sincere appreciation to those whose generous contributions have strengthened our research, teaching, and student support initiatives.
If you would like to make a difference in CEU’s anniversary year and beyond by empowering a promising student, enhancing teaching and research, and advancing democratic principles, please make your donation today.
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