For nearly half a million young
people in Romania this week is all about the start of a new academic year. Some
450 thousand students have enrolled in one of the 54 public universities and 47
private universities in the country. The University of Bucharest, the Academy
of Economic Sciences and several faculties part of the National School for
Political and Administrative Sciences in Bucharest chose to organize opening ceremonies.
President Klaus Iohannis attended the opening ceremony held at the Babes Bolyai
University in Cluj Napoca, founded 100 years ago. On this occasion, the
president decorated the six state universities in Cluj County which have had a
special impact on the community, contributing to its development in the spirit
of multiculturalism and which represent a major pillar for the preservation and
promotion of national values and culture, reads a Presidency release. Ioan
Aurel Pop, the Rector of the Babes Bolyai University and the President of the
Romanian Academy, told Radio Romania about the value of Romanian universities,
considering the institution he is heading is included in a ranking of the top
1,000 universities in the world.
We have prestigious and very valuable universities. But they have to be
well supported by lawmakers and decision-makers, because you cannot get results
without a generous budget. When the
ranking of the top 500 universities was compiled, some 10,000 universities took
part. Now some 30,000 universities are competing to be included in the top
1,000, so to be one of the top 1,000 universities right now is actually better
than it was to be included in the top 500. This means that Romanian universities
are on a par with universities from
Poland, Hungary, Slovenia and Slovakia, namely that part of Europe which
suffered under communism and underwent a process of isolation at global level.
Efforts must be channeled permanently to improve, because the professor’s duty
is to teach his students research skills and the latest trends in their fields,
and this dynamic, with the constant exchange of practices and information, is
very helpful in that respect.
Students enrolled at the Carol Davila
University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest will start classes on Tuesday,
while other universities, such as the Polytechnics University in Bucharest, started
the academic year last week.
(Translated by V. Palcu)