The Educational System in Romania

Any Romanian citizen has the right to education, regardless to social background, sex, political and religious affiliation and any other restrictions that might injure any human right.

Compulsory general education is of eight years. Public education has an open character; any citizen has access to all types and all levels of education and it's free.

The state provides financial support especially to pupils and students that obtain very good grades and prove special abilities in their field education.

Education at all levels is provided in the Romanian language, but all national minorities have the guaranteed right to study and get educated in their mother tongue.

The education system in Romania comprises public educational institutions and units as well as private ones.

The education system has the following structure:

·         Preschool Education: on three levels - small, intermediates, big;

·         Primer Education: 1st - 4th form;

·         Secondary Education:

·         Secondary School: 5th - 8th form;

·         High School: 9th - 12th form;

·         Intermediary Education (post high school)

·         Higher Education

·         Graduate

·         Postgraduate

Preschool Education includes children between 3 and 7 years old and its developed in kindergarten with normal, prolonged and weekly program.

Primer education is organized as day courses, usually in ten mornings with schools for 1st - 4th forms, 1st - 8th or 1st - 12th (13th).

In the 1st form are automatically taken all the children who are seven years old in that year according with the calendar.

The Secondary School comprises education given from the 5th to the 8th form within schools with 8 or 12 form basis. The studies at this level are completed with a "ability examination", structured on the methodology elaborated by the Ministry of Education, for the following subjects:

·         Romanian Language and Literature;

·         Mathematics;

·         Romanian History;

·         Romanian Geography.

Pupils who don't pass the ability exam can not continue their studies but, on request they can be given a grades certificate.

High school education

8th form Secondary school graduates or vocational school graduates with "ability certificate " can sign up for continuing education in high school.

High school education comprises the 9th to 12th form day courses and 9th to 13th form night courses or distance education. At the admission exam for the day courses are allowed to take part secondary vocational school graduates being less than 16 or 16 that year according with the calendar. At the admission exam for the night courses can take part anybody who graduate the 8th form, regardless to age. In Normal Schools and Orthodox Theological Seminaries can only be admitted 8th form graduates having an average higher than 7 points at the "ability exam" and who had a good behavior, no older than 16.

Romanians having studied abroad can apply for the admission exam only after having passed the "difference exams" established by the Ministry of Education.

Documents required for taking part at the admission exam:

·         Inscription form;

·         Birth certificate - original and copy;

·         Medical certificate;

·         For previous years 8th form graduates;

·         Inscription request;

·         Grades certificate for the 5th - 8th form;

Admission exam

It is a written exam Romanian Language and Literature, by all applicant; Maternal Language and Literature, by the applicants for the high school for national minorities; Mathematics, by all applicants. Special tests must be taken by the applicants for bilingual high school or having a special profile: sports, marine, forestry, technical drawing for decorators, normal schools and orthodox theological seminaries.

The special tests are taken before the general exams. The rejected applicant can still apply to other ordinary high school.

High school - leaving examination

In order to graduate high school every student must pass the high school leaving examination. It consists of five exams, three of which are written and two colloquies. The written exam and the colloquy at the Romanian language and literature are compulsory regardless to the higher school's profile.

High school graduates can apply for a job according to their education or can apply for continuing their education in one of the higher education institutions.

Types of high school, profiles, fields of activity:

·         Theoretical high schools

·         real profile (mathematics-physics, physics-chemistry; chemistry-biology; bilingual);

·         Humanist profile (philology, foreign languages, classical language, history).

·         Industrial high schools

Profiles and fields of activity: technical equipment; electronics and electrotechnics; mines; petroleum; metallurgy, energy, industrial chemistry; material for construction, wood industrial processing; light industry; food industry etc.

·         Agricultural high school: agricultural profile

·         Forestry high school: forest profile

·         Economics high school: economic, administrative and services profile

·         Informatics high school : informatics profile

·         Metallurgical high school: metallurgy profile

·         Normal high school: preschool and primer school profile

·         Arts high school: music, decorations, painting, choreography, ambient profile

·         Sports high school: sportive profile

·         Military high school

·         High school of the Ministry of Internal Affair

·         Orthodox Theological Seminaries

Post high school Education

The Ministry of Education organizes specialized post high school education on its own initiative or on the request of companies or other institutions.

It has duration of 1 to 3 years. Post high school education is completed by a school-leaving examination. Passing that examination gives the students the right to obtaining a skills certificate. In case of failure the examination can be taken another two times within 3 years.

The admission is made on an exam of admission. Any high school graduate having or not a high school leaving examination certificate can apply. The only exception is the medical school, which require a high school leaving examination certificate.

Each year, to number of places and the specialization are established by the Ministry of Education on the previous year's admission situation.

Higher Education

In Romania, the higher education is organized in universities, academics and institutes which, on their turn, organized in: faculties, postgraduate schools, colleges and specialization sections.

The higher education is structured in:

·         Graduate education

·         Postgraduate education

1. Graduate education forms

Short duration:

·         in colleges

·         2-3 years duration

·         organized in parallel or in common the long duration form

·         rimed to prepare executive specialists, placed on an intermediate level between high school graduates and long duration higher education graduates

Long duration

·         in universities, institutes, academies, conservatories, faculties

·         4-6 years duration

·         prepares higher executive and conception specialists

It might consist of day courses, evening courses, or distance education courses in state or private institutions.

In order to take part at the admission exam, a high school leaving certificate is required. The exam consists in several written exams on different subjects according to the specialization and the profile of the institutions.

A “license” exam that consists in a final paper or project and three or four written exams on theoretical knowledge complete higher education studies.

Graduates who passed the license exam get the "licensed" status and can obtain on request a study certificate and a grade certificate.

2. Postgraduate education provides specialization in certain fields of specialized education.

Specialization can be obtained through:

·         further education

·         post graduate(PG)

·         postgraduate academic studies

·         specialization studies and courses

Access to postgraduate education:

·         through admission examination - further education, PG and post academic studies

·         in request for specialization studies and courses

Further education studies have from one to three years’ duration and, after graduating, the "licensed" students get the "master" or "magister" certificate (diploma). Students can take several masters simultaneously or successively.

A student can be granted a scholarship for following only one "master" studies.

The highest form of scientific professional education for specialists in various branches of science, technique and culture is the PG

The PG has a duration of 4 years for day courses and of 6 years for distance education. The PG can be organized with 2 coordinators: both from Romania, or a Romanian and a foreign one. The Ministry of Education proposes and accepts the foreign coordinators as well and the possibilities of having the exams and all the papers in a wide spoken foreign language.

The PG preparation program consists of up to two years (4 years) for material gathering and studies.

·         2 years (2-4 years)for elaborating the thesis

The admission exam for the PG takes place the same day, in the same institution for the specialization. It consists of the last two different tests. A PG scholarship is available, but only for the day courses PG. Scholarships

Among the guaranties provided by the right to education, the scholarship system, and all the other forms of material support guaranteed to pupils and students are some of the most important. Pupils and students can be guaranteed praiseworthy scholarships, study scholar social support scholarships.

Praiseworthy scholarships are guaranteed to high school students, having an annual average of 9,80 and the ones whom won prizes at the international competitions.

The study scholarship is guaranteed on the same criteria but the annual average should be more than 9,00.

Social support scholarships are guaranteed to the pupils who are either orphans of either parents, or medical reasons.

For higher education students, undergraduate and postgraduate, praiseworthy scholarships are granted starting with the second year, the minimum semestrial. Annual average being 9,90 for the technical education and 9,80 for the others types of higher education. Study scholarships are guaranteed to students having an average of 8,00 for the technical education and 8,30 in rest.

Social support scholarships are guaranteed to the students who don't fulfill the criteria for obtaining the other types of scholarships on family monthly average income.

Undergraduate and graduate students following any form or type of higher education can beneficiate of a scholarship on a contractual basis: credits from banks or an agreement with companies or any other juridical or physical persons.