István Dobsa was born in Tiszakeresztúr, a border village in Transcarpathia. He earned his degree at the Ferenc Rákóczi II Transcarpathian Hungarian College in Beregszász, where he was an active student council member. He began his career in education in 2010, teaching biology and geography at the Tiszakeresztúr Primary School and the Greek Catholic Lyceum of Karácsfalva. His students achieved national recognition, earning him the "Teacher of the Year" award in 2014.

His public service began in 2010 as a municipal representative in his hometown. By 2013, he became the local president of the KMKSZ, and in 2015, at age 26, was elected mayor of both Tiszakeresztúr and Karácsfalva. That same year, he relaunched the KMKSZ Youth Organization, now the largest of its kind in the region. In 2018, he founded the Transcarpathian Public Leadership Academy, which now operates under the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC).

A committed community leader, István has organized major cultural events such as the ISZ Festival and concerts in Beregszász. He also leads charitable and environmental efforts, including the "Clean Transcarpathia" campaign. For his dedication to preserving Hungarian identity, he received the "Intellectual Homeland Defender" award in 2019 and the "Award for Hungarian National Identity" in 2023.