As we previously reported, a freshman camp was held between August 14 and 17 for the newly admitted students of the Faculty of Electrical and Informatics of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BME VIK), which gained national fame because condoms were banned from the camp organized on Bodajko.
Due to the banning of condoms, several politicians and public figures also expressed their displeasure, while the rules of the freshman camp were developed by the University and the security service in addition to the Student Representation – according to their hope, students will not have sex without condoms. As Kristóf Radácsi, the president of the University Student Representation (EHK), said, this is the only way “they can ensure that every freshman leaves the camp having had a value-creating, enjoyable and safe recreation”.
At the same time, it deals exclusively with educational topics Eduline published an article on August 21 about not exactly value-creating, good-humoured and safe recreation,
several participants described to the paper that even worse things happened at the freshman camp.
According to the newspaper, among other things, the students had to walk for an hour in the hot sun to reach the camp, and they even had to carry rolling suitcases in their hands.
Upon arrival, all bags were unpacked, and then items prohibited according to the policy were taken, so in addition to condoms, which became national news, medicines, food and drinks were also taken. For the paper, several people considered it rude that they could only have sex, and that they were only allowed to eat late at night on the first day.
Upon arrival, all the bags were unpacked and each of your clothes was shaken out: t-shirt, pants, underpants, panties, bra, even your socks. (If you were lucky, you could shake it, or if you weren’t, one of the older ones). The food (sandwiches, coffee) had to be thrown away, the medicine was confiscated (including painkillers). You had to ask for it in the evening if you needed it. Everyone is required to have a physical examination, which was carried out by the security service. On the first day, we only got food late at night.
– the paper reports the report of one of the participants, who also revealed that there were co-educational rooms where there were one or two girls for every 13 boys.
in addition, a separate rule also applied to the use of the washroom.
As it is written, older people slept on the floor in every room to “block” access to the bathroom with their bodies, because – according to the paper’s description – everyone had one minute to use the bathroom three times a day, while boys got two and girls five minutes to bathe. which they say they measured with a stopwatch while beating the booth wall with a baseball bat.
According to the unnamed person,
freshman camp was more like a boot camp than a freshman camp.
For example, the seniors did not allow spontaneous groupings, while at other times they allegedly projected pictures of the sleepers to the freshmen. According to the report, several people left the camp, which was considered their first university experience, prematurely because of the treatment.
The freshman camp could have been similar in the past
The Eduline according to him, this could not be the first time that the camp for helping the integration of new university graduates was like this. In another article, several letters from readers are summarized, and in these they claim that the camps were conducted in a similar way already in the 2000s.
According to a former student who spoke anonymously, even then the freshman camp was full of “work camp style”, with gendarmerie and orders. According to the paper, for example, permission was required for someone to go to the bathroom or eat a sandwich, which was only given if they earned it with something.
He recalls that the goal was, in principle, that “then the common enemy would unite the company” and at the closing party, the upperclassmen, who had developed a “labor camp style” until then, behaved normally, so they already “accepted” the freshmen. However, he sees the freshman camp instead of getting together
it seemed more like just good old standard net power flaunting.
Another participant at the freshman camp in 2017 talked about how they also had to walk to the camp in the hot sun while carrying rolling suitcases. Even then, the seniors shook out their clothes, and even then there were 10+ boys and 1–2 girls in the coed rooms.
At the programs that year, we received water by handing out a few 1.5-2 liter bottles to each group, the caps of which had been drilled out, so that when we pressed them, the water squirted out. The point of this was that we could drink from it without having to put the bottle in our mouths. Of course, there were participants who put the cap in their mouths and then passed the bottle on, as a result some of the campers had to go home due to diarrhea
– wrote a student who reported that the camp was a very bad experience.
A third speaker, who participated in the BME VIK freshman camp last year, also described similar circumstances. In addition to the condom, they took away the drink, the medicine, and any food – if they had a sandwich, they had to eat it right there, at the entrance.
He not only reported that using the bathroom and bathing were time-bound and humiliating – for example, there were no curtains at the showers – but also recalls similar experiences during meals. Every day they were given 2-3 minutes to eat, which if they did not finish in that time, they simply had to leave it there, it was not possible to put it away.
All of the stories have in common that the seniors were like this only until the last night, the farewell party, after which it turned out that they were “just sucked in”, then it was possible to hang out and drink.
This is why the camp was a positive, lasting experience for one of the newspaper’s speakers. As he writes, he believes the camp was run by “non-smooth sociopaths” and reports that the goal was to humiliate him are exaggerated.
It was thoroughly figured out what they wanted and how they would achieve it. I think anyone who says they were humiliated is exaggerating. He didn’t feel at all that this was their goal. They were strict with us, but quite fair
he said to the paper.
The university is reviewing its freshman camp regulations
Following the scandal, the BME’s Communications Directorate issued a statement on August 21, in which they announced:
the university created a task force to review the regulations for their freshman camps.
As they write in their announcement, the safety of the students is above all else, and the university’s duty is “not only to educate students and put them on a professional path, but also to protect their safety under all circumstances. This goal particularly applies to the freshman camps,” they say in the announcement, adding that several years ago, using their experience in other freshman camps, they created a policy on the basis of which the camps were organized this year as well.
The University of Applied Sciences – with the participation of the university management and student representatives – has set up a working group which will launch an investigation into the freshman camps, review the regulations so far and, based on experience and challenges, develop rules that provide reassurance, safety and dignity for everyone
– promises the current university, whose first predecessor was II. It was founded by King József of Hungary in 1782.
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