Department of Geography and Tourism

A Brief Overview of the Department of Geography and Tourism

The direct predecessor of the Department of Geography and Tourism at the Ferenc Rakoczi II Transcarpathian Hungarian University was the Department of Earth Sciences, which was established in October 2006 when the Geography Branch, previously operating within the Department of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, became an independent academic unit. By rector’s decree in September 2014, the department was reorganized as the Department of Earth Sciences and Tourism, and in 2023 it was renamed the Department of Geography and Tourism.

The department’s academic and educational activities are supported by twenty-one instructors. Among them, one holds a DSc degree and the title of professor, while twelve hold PhD or Candidate of Sciences degrees and the title of associate professor.

The Department of Geography and Tourism provides both theoretical and practical professional training for the students of the Geography and Tourism and Recreation programs at the university.

Infrastructure and Resources

Quality education at the department is supported by a continuously expanding material and technical base, located in the department offices and eight specialized classrooms. Alongside modern geological, geodetic, and meteorological instruments—such as polarizing microscopes, a laser theodolite, and an infrared thermal camera—the department’s research capacity has been significantly strengthened by drones acquired in 2017 and 2019. Combined with specialized software and a dedicated GIS laboratory, these tools enable large-scale, high-precision surface studies.

In partnership with the Department of Biology and Chemistry, the department also operates a modern atomic absorption spectrophotometer and a flame photometer. In 2019, this shared instrument pool expanded further with the addition of an X-ray diffractometer and a voltameter, opening new possibilities in petrological analysis as well as in soil and water pollution research.

An important component of the high-quality training is the mineral and rock collection, which contains over 1,400 items and is continuously growing. In addition, in 2016, we opened the Barkáts Jenő Mineral Collection, which now consists of nearly 1,600 items, including many rarities, and serves not only an educational role but is also a notable attraction.

The equipment of the three specialized classrooms that form the basis of the tourism training has also undergone significant development, accompanied by a training kitchen, a practice bar, and a hotel practice unit. In 2020, the University’s leadership established the “Rakoczi-tours” tourist information center within the department. Its main tasks, in addition to strengthening the professional background of the Tourism and Recreation program, include promoting the tourist resources of Transcarpathia.

Research and Scientific Activities

In addition to their educational duties, the staff of the Department of Geography and Tourism are also engaged in active scientific research. This is mainly focused on the scientific geographical and tourism-related exploration of our region, Transcarpathia. This is well-supported by the more than 600 conference presentations, abstracts, posters, articles, monographs, and educational materials published by the department’s staff, which are grouped around the following themes:

• Ethno- and demogeographic conditions of Transcarpathia
• Environmental problems in our region
• Regional geological and geophysical investigations
• The situation and development prospects of tourism in Transcarpathia
• Tourist resources of Transcarpathia

In addition to, or as part of, its scientific research, the Department also takes on a science-organizing role. In 2021, for the third time (after 2012 and 2016, postponed from 2020), we organized an international conference on social geography, this time in cooperation with the Institute for National Strategy, the Department of Regional Science of Eötvös Loránd University, and the Department of Social Geography and Regional Development of the University of Debrecen.

Partnerships

The Department of Geography and Tourism maintains close and fruitful scientific and educational relationships with similar units of other higher education institutions. Of particular importance to us is the cooperation with the departments of the Faculty of Geography of the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, the Department of Geography of the Ukrainian State University named after Mykhailo Drahomanov in Kyiv, the Faculty of Geography of Uzhhorod National University, as well as the departments of the Institute of Geography and Earth Sciences of Eötvös Loránd University and the Institute of Earth Sciences of the University of Debrecen. The relationships with the Geographical Institute of the Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences and the Institute of Geography of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine are also of great significance to us.

Department staff