Planning to study in Budapest? Imagine attending classes in Hungary's most sustainable educational building atop Gellért Hill. Corvinus University has unveiled its latest addition – a cutting-edge campus featuring innovative educational, research, communal, and dormitory spaces. Check out what it looks like.
Corvinus University Budapest is one of Hungary's most prestigious business schools, welcoming students since 1948. Its oldest and most gorgeous building stands at the foot of Liberty Bridge (next to the Great Market Hall), but the university has some other campuses too. The latest addition, Gellért Campus, has been recently inaugurated and instantly snatched the crown for the country's most sustainable educational building. Located on the Buda side, along Ménesi út on Gellért Hill, the future-oriented campus is designed to accommodate 681 students.
The new campus features a massive lecture hall for 300 people, multifunctional spaces for educational and research purposes, sports centres, a one-hectare park, and a four-storey dormitory. With 2-3 bed-equipped rooms, the complex provides affordable living spaces for 180 students and also has apartments for professors.
Exciting additions to the campus include a Data Experience Lab for supporting data analysis and visualization, a Media Studio fostering storytelling skills, and a Makerspace for honing design skills. The sports centre consists of both outdoor and indoor team sports fields, complemented by a fitness room, exercise studios, and a climbing wall.
The cutting-edge campus was designed by PLANT – Atelier Peter Kis and Lean Tech Engineering Office. What makes it truly special is not just its innovative architecture, but the collaborative community effort that shaped it. Sustainability was a key focus during development, making it the country's most sustainable university building with its energy supplied by solar panels and geothermal heat pumps. During the development, 82% of the demolition and construction waste from the old building was selectively collected for later recycling.
Gellért Campus features intriguing elements, including a Hungarian lamp installation in the entrance hall inspired by exchange rate charts, a retro network switch cabinet from the 70s integrated into the DataSpace, a green roof connecting the two buildings, and a modern Hungarian sculpture installation titled 'Imperfect Cubes' by sculptor Attila Csörgő.
(Cover photo: Bielik István)
