Universities in Romania

Higher education in Romania is somewhat flexible, meaning that institutions have been given significant autonomy to structure their programs and admission criteria. This autonomy of institution in Romania, however, comes through a memoranda of understanding with the Ministry of Education, Research, Youth and Sports, which is the central regulatory authority for higher education in Romania. Since 2005, higher education in Romania has been undergoing transformation under the Bologna process to make it compatible with higher education in other EU member states.
 
Higher education in Romania is delivered at universities (universităţi), institutes (institute), academies of studies (academii de studii) and schools of postgraduate studies (şcoli de studii postuniversitare). These higher education institutions in Romania provide either both, education and research, or only education. Romanian remains the primary medium of teaching, although programs may also be offered in other languages such as Hungarian, German, French or English.
 
Under the Bologna process, higher education in Romania is now structured into bachelor – master – doctorate programs. The academic years in higher education studies in Romania, run from the 1st of Oct to end July, and are divided into semesters. Each semester is fourteen weeks long and culminates in an examination session or sesiune de examene.
 
Bachelor degree in Romania
 
Diploma de Licenţă or bachelor’s degree in Romania takes three years for regular programs, and four for technical programs, which require practical work experience for specialization. Admission to bachelor’s degree courses in Romania requires candidates to have successfully completed high school with a baccalaureate diploma or an equivalent diploma. Students, who have earned a distinction in government acknowledged competitions, national or international, can receive special treatment, and may not be required to take the general examination test.
 
Master degree in Romania
 
Diploma de Master or master’s degree in Romania takes one to two years to complete. Master’s degree courses in Romania are designed to take students into finer details of their selected stream. Certain programs, such as those dealing in medicine and architecture, last five to six years and entitle students to receive both bachelor’s and master’s degrees upon successful completion. Admission to a master’s degree course in Romania requires a candidate to have successfully completed the first cycle of higher education, and to have received a diploma or an equivalent degree.
 
Doctorate degree in Romania
 
The doctorate degree in Romania constitutes the third and final cycle of higher education in Romania. Doctoral studies in Romania typically take three years but may be extended by a year or two as need be. Presently, doctoral studies in Romania are of two types:
 

• An academic or scientific program, which requires two to three semesters of practical training and advanced university studies (programul de pregatire). Students are also required to spend three to four semesters conducting advanced research (programul de cercetare stiintifica) and writing a final paper.
• A professional program with a focus on Sport, Music or the Arts. Candidates for this program are required to pass an entrance examination and submit a Diploma de Masterat. However, a student who has earned the Diploma de Licenţă before 2005 can directly sit for the entrance examination.

 
A successful doctorate student can apply for state funded post doctoral studies in Romania.
 
Numerous clausus is applicable to higher education in Romania, wherein the responsible ministry consults with institutions in Romania to decide the number of seats that can be offered in various programs. Some of the seats come under public funding, and tuition is waived for students earning those places. The rest have to pay tuition as mutually decided by the education ministry and colleges in Romania. There are, however, grants and scholarships also on offer to students.