This year again, our Foundation announced a call for applications for students of higher education in wildlife management to support their compulsory or voluntary internships. Within the framework of the application, a total of three locations hosted students for a two-week summer internship; in Nagybajom, the South Transdanubian Fauna Hunting Society, in Szántód, SEFAG Zrt. and in Transylvania, the Hertan Hunting Association.

This year, a total of six students from the University of Sopron and the Hungarian University of Agricultural and Life Sciences gained practical experience in Nagybajom in two rounds. During the internship, the students participated in the maintenance and construction of game management equipment in the hunting area, early morning and evening game observations, trophy scoring and learned about big game capture and methods of game damage control.

"When I applied to the Foundation for this internship, I wondered if it would be a good idea to go so far away, if there would be things and experiences that would make it worth spending two weeks there. Now that the internship is over, I know full well that it was worth coming here, because I gained so much. I have had a lot of new experiences and work in these two weeks and I have also met a lot of people with a huge knowledge and commitment to this profession. From here I would like to thank them for their time."
(Bozzai Bence)

"During the two weeks, the most interesting experience for me was the construction of the bridge, the catcher and the pig feeder. My best experience was the wild boar hunt last Saturday night, which was very exciting all the way through. The biggest learning was yesterday's predator hunt, which showed how territorial the jackal is and how difficult it is to hunt and that it takes even more patience to catch it than other game species. And the most useful knowledge I gained was during our trip to Bőszénfa, which I'm sure will be useful to me in the future."
(Dávid Rosta)

"I can honestly say that I had a great time during these two weeks. I learned a lot of new things about game management, the profession, game, nature, trophy judging and I could go on and on. I gained a lot of new experiences, successfully participated in my first hunt, got to hear deer bellowing up close, watched several times how the wild boar trapping is done in the feral hog pens, helped build equipment in the field, practiced disc shooting. I could not highlight one experience from these two weeks, as I learned and experienced so many new things every day. I am very happy that I was able to participate in this internship and I am sure that I will be able to use what I learned here in the future."
(Kata Sörös)

We hope that the two-week summer internship provided students with experiences and knowledge that will accompany them throughout their studies and careers. The following short film gives an insight into the students' experiences.