This report is the result of an assessment of Romania’s policies and practices in the field of education and skills, informed by international experience and policies and practices from OECD countries. The review draws on various sources, including a background report prepared by the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research (Ministerul Educației și Cercetării) and an OECD visit in October 2023 to scope the main policy issues and interview relevant stakeholders.
The OECD review team is deeply grateful to the Romanian government which, under the leadership of the Ministry of Education and Research, has generously supported this review. We would like to extend our sincere appreciation to the current Minister of Education and Research, Daniel-Ovidiu David, who accompanied us through the final stages of this report’s preparation and publication, and to former Minister of Education, Ligia Deca, who led Romania’s engagement throughout the review process. Romania’s participation in the report was expertly co-ordinated by Camelia Mircea-Sturza, Policy Advisor in the Ministry of Education and Research, with the guidance of Luminita Matei, Director General for International Relations, European Affairs and relations with the OECD. We are also grateful to Secretaries of State Bogdan Cristescu and Gigel Paraschiv, whose contributions greatly enriched this work. Staff across the Ministry and its teams engaged thoughtfully with every request from the Secretariat, sharing valuable perspectives and deep expertise throughout, in particular Liliana Preoteasa, Madlen Șerban and Ciprian Fartușnic who contributed to data collection. We also wish to thank colleagues from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs—particularly Secretary of State Luca Niculescu, Mădălina-Ioana Morariu, and Gabriela Buțu—for their dedicated support over the course of the review.
The OECD team is especially appreciative of the many individuals who participated in the review visit. A wide range of actors at all levels of government and across all education levels provided a wealth of insights. We are very grateful to the many Romanian stakeholders, including the officials from the various ministries, local education authorities, educational institutions and social partners. The warm hospitality extended to the OECD team during our stay in Romania made the review process not only productive, but also a truly rewarding and memorable experience.
The OECD review team was led by Elizabeth Fordham (OECD Secretariat), coordinated by Laura Abadia (OECD Secretariat), and composed by Lucía Alonso (OECD Secretariat), Ricardo Espinoza (OECD Secretariat), Gillian Golden (OECD Secretariat), Andreea Minea-Pic (OECD Secretariat), and Thomas Radinger (OECD Secretariat). Sarah Wildi (OECD Secretariat) provided valuable support to the report. The review team acknowledges invaluable guidance from Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills; El Iza Mohamedou, Head of the OECD Skills Centre; and Paulo Santiago, Head of the Policy Advice and Implementation Division. Andrew Bell, Stéphanie Jamet, Simon Roy and Cassie Hague provided in-depth feedback and advice at critical stages of the drafting process of the report. The team also benefited from the insightful comments of Hannah Kitchen and Cecilia Mezzanotte. In addition, we would like to extend our thanks to the many OECD colleagues in the Directorate for Employment, Labour and Social Affairs; the Economics Department, the Governance Directorate, and the Legal Directorate. Duncan Crawford provided very helpful editorial feedback, and Sophie Limoges and Ameline Besin contributed to the final steps of preparation for the publication.