Central European University

  • Overseas
  • 1991

After the Berlin Wall fell, George Soros decided to found the first American-style university in Eastern Europe to help encourage the democratic transition of the region. The school, which offers only graduate degrees, opened in Budapest, Hungary, in 1991 with a charter from the State University of New York and full U.S. accreditation. Instruction is provided in English to 1,381 students from 93 countries, about half of them on a full scholarship.

Thanks to the $880 million Soros provided to endow the university (instantly making it one of the wealthiest in the world), it is highly competitive. Its MBA, political science, and legal degrees are rated as some of the best in Europe. George Soros was chairman the CEU board for a decade and a half, and remains a trustee.