Are you planning on working during your studies? Many students decide to earn some pocket money while they are studying.

This is absolutely possible in Hungary, and students can choose from a lot of options depending on availability, salary and so on. If you are a citizen of a country that is not part of the EU (EEA), you can be employed during your studies with a residence permit for study purposes and work 30 hours a week during your study period, or 90 days or 66 working days outside your study period (e.g. summer break).

Most popular work options:

1. 1. Catering and Food service
      Working in restaurants, bars or food delivery is a very popular option for international students. It’s no surprise: these jobs are usually flexible and pay pretty well, so you can schedule your working hours around your studies and even earn well with it.
   2. Language-related jobs
      This is great for students who speak English and at least another language, for example Russian, Chinese, Spanish or other sought-after languages. Jobs include translation, sales assistance and customer service. These jobs normally pay very well, and you can use your mother tongue to earn money.
   3. Tourism-related jobs
      Hungary and especially Budapest is a popular touristic destination, thus students can always find jobs in tourism, such as tour guiding, hotel assistants etc.
   4. Tech-related jobs
      If you study engineering or IT, it’s ever easier to find jobs related to your uni program. Helping out in factories or interning with development offices is a great way to go if you want to practice your skills while studying.
   5. Tutoring
      The first few semesters of most university programs are harsh. Math, Physics, Statistics etc. often seem harder that did in high school. But if you are acing these subjects, you are double-lucky. Not only passing these exams are gonna be easy for you, but you can also help your peers (and even students from other programs/unis) while earning a little money.

With an average part-time student job you can earn 300-700 EUR per month, depending on the field and hours worked. This is enough to cover most or all of your living expences in Hungary.

Important technical info

To be able to legally work in Hungary, you’ll need to pieces of documents: A Tax ID card and a social security (TAJ card) Your TAJ card and tax ID number go hand-in-hand. To get a TAJ number, you must first get a tax ID. Find the tax office (NAV) nearest you. If you already have a job offer, your employer can request both the tax ID and the TAJ number as a part of your employment process. Read more about getting these documents here.

How should you start searching for your student job?

Most universities and many student job agencies can help you find a job that suits your schedule. If you want to work in catering or food service, sometimes it is enough just to ask on the spot: most bars and restaurants are usually short-staffed. If you would like to work from an office, big multinationals or tech startups could be the best way to go, as they work with many internationals already.

Also remember: if your first choice doesn’t work out, don’t worry. Applying for jobs is difficult sometimes everywhere in the World. Apply for as many as you’d like, and soon enough your ideal job will come!