is the best communication"
Geréb Ildikó
„The foundation helped us continue our studies...”
My name is Geréb Ildikó, I was born on 17 December 1992 in Odorheiu Secuiesc, and I grow up in Fâncel. My mother is Geréb Ágnes, my father was Geréb Imre, who died in 2000, since then my mother has been taking care of me, and my twin brother, Geréb Attila, and our younger sister, Geréb Noémi who is in 11th grade in the Tamási Áron High School. I finished elementary school in Fâncel, then from 2004-2007 I was a student of the Dr. Palló Imre Art School. Later I enrolled in the Tamási Áron High School; I studied Mathematics and Computer Science. I spent the first two years of high school in a student residence, but then I started to go to school from home again. In 2011 I enrolled in the University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Târgu Mureș, and since then I have been studying dental science.
Q: Why did you choose this university?
Geréb Ildikó: It was a sudden decision. In high school I studied Computer Science and Mathematics, but I didn’t like either of the two. I choose the Math because in the Art School they didn’t really put emphasis on the theoretical education. I wanted to study Science in the Tamási Áron High School, but I didn’t get admission, so what was left was Math. What I liked was Biology and Science. I didn’t choose Medicine because it would be a lot of time to graduate. All together it would be ten year if I liked to specialize in something, and it’s a lot of time. As a dentist I am going to have a profession at the age of 25, and it’s related to what I like. I am also keen on Literature. I was in a theatre group, and I was also thinking about becoming an actress, but it didn’t seem a bright future.
Q: But you have got potential...
Geréb Ildikó: I know… It doesn’t matter anymore. I also considered that getting admission to the university at Târgu Mureș was very hard. I have got butterflies in my stomach even though I got a part in several play. I liked to be on the stage, I also took place in competitions. I can thank to the theatre group that I travelled around half of Europe: Krakow, Auschwitz, Budapest, Passau, Cologne, Austria, Frankfurt, Belgium and Luxembourg. It was a six-day trip, during which we have seen a lot of wonderful places. I like traveling; there are a lot of places I would like to visit. I would like to go to Barcelona, Paris and Rome. I couldn’t live my life in one place, I always move around. I don’t want to put up with seeing those places on a postcard.
Q: What do you do beside university?
Geréb Ildikó: I do sport every day. I would like to go swimming; I could take some time for it. At the moment I am doing a prevention course, which is about drawing the attention of young people to eat and live healthily. We are going to do presentations in various topics, for example drug prevention. We had classes where we learnt how to make a presentation. There are some games to control the stress. If I finish this course, and I get my diploma, I can volunteer. Apart from this, I don’t really have time for anything else. In the three years I had exams every week, and it took time to study for them. I took place on a dental expo in Bucharest, where different companies presented their modern equipment. It was very interesting.
I don’t often go to parties. I would like to join the MMDSZ (student organization) to be part of the organisers of the Scientific Conference of Hungarian Students, and I would like to do a two-week training in Hungary. It’s a student mobility program, similar to the Erasmus, but it lasts two week. 5-6 member groups can go, and they participate on the courses. It’s a lot of work to get there but it’s worth it.
Q: Do you work beside the university?
Geréb Ildikó: Since ninth grade I have been working in a pension every summer. I really like there, because it’s very friendly, we have regular customers. I worked there for New Year’s Eve as well, I served seventy people. One summer I worked in Germany, in a vegetable processing factory. It was worth it, because with my brother’s and my salary we bought a car and we get the driving licence.
Q: Do you like in Târgu Mureș?
Geréb Ildikó: I would have preferred Cluj-Napoca, but the courses are in Romanian. At Târgu Mureș the theoretical part is in Hungarian, only the practice is in Romanian. We do our best to convince them to make the practice Hungarian, but unfortunately the university doesn’t want it. Actually, I wouldn’t like if the education was in Hungarian, because we live in Romania. More and more Romanians are living in Odorheiu Secuiesc, and you need to know the terminology.
Q: Would you like to work in Odorheiu Secuiesc?
Geréb Ildikó: Yes. I would like to have my own dental clinic, if not in the city, then in one of the villages, where there isn’t one yet.
Q: Do you need to by the equipment for the university?
Geréb Ildikó: This year we study dental plaque removal, and we can use the equipment at the university. Next year we are going to do dental filling, and we need to by the tools and the materials.
Q: What did they tell you at home when you chose it? Can your mother support you financially?
Geréb Ildikó: My mother never disagreed with my decision; she let me choose the university. They always supported us; my mother wanted us to continue our studies, because she didn’t have a chance. I was seven years old when my father died of brain tumour. He worked in Hungary and he was diagnosed with brain tumour. He was operated but it didn’t help. His immune system weakened, and two years later he died. Attila, my twin brother is studying Geography at Cluj-Napoca. We think very alike. We are not similar physically, but the way we think is. If we are together, we observe the same things; we look at each other and know what the other thinks. Only we understand what we are talking about, sometimes our mood is the same too. We guess each other’s thoughts. We don’t speak every day when he is in Cluj-Napoca, but when he is at home, it feels like he didn’t go anywhere. The money I get from the foundation is enough for the rent and I still have some pocket money left. The money I would get from my mother goes to Attila. That’s how we both can afford to go to university. I thank to the foundation that I can finish my studies, because without it we could manage somehow, but it would be very hard, especially for my mother. This way we can both graduate, and neither of us needed to give it up for the other’s good.
