Education and Skills in Romania

Executive summary

Romania’s education and skills system is undergoing a period of profound transformation. Backed by an unprecedented level of national and European funding, new legislation adopted in 2023 sets out an ambitious vision to enhance the quality and availability of education and training. These reforms aim to equip all learners with the skills they need to thrive—whether in further study, the workplace, or society more broadly. The reforms come at a time of real opportunity. Poverty is declining and inequality is narrowing, yet sharp divides remain—especially between urban centres and rural communities, where more than half the population is still at risk of poverty or social exclusion. This review examines how Romania can learn from OECD evidence and experience to enhance the role of education and skills in inclusive development.

Quality of programmes and outcomes

While a minority of Romanian students reach levels of excellence comparable to their peers in other European and OECD countries, many more leave school without mastering the basic competencies needed to participate fully in society. According to the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA), nearly 4 in 10 students perform below basic competency in reading and science, and five in ten in mathematics. Weak learning foundations contribute to high dropout, with nearly one in four students leaving school before completing upper secondary education. Challenges are particularly acute in small rural schools serving disadvantaged communities.

Recent reforms have directed significant investment toward improving student learning and reducing dropout. Romania has taken steps to strengthen initial teacher education and in-service training, notably through mentorship and collaboration. It has also begun aligning post-secondary and adult learning with the needs of learners and the labour market, including plans to introduce short-cycle tertiary programmes and “dual” vocational bachelor’s degrees that combine classroom and work-based learning.

This review highlights three considerations to help Romania take forward planned reforms. Prioritising the early implementation of teacher mentorship and collaboration in the schools and sectors that would benefit most—especially rural primary school clusters and nurseries, a sector now expanding and transitioning from a childcare to a care and educational role —would be an important way to ensure these reforms reach those who need them most. Strengthening school leadership, by clarifying the pedagogical responsibilities of school leaders and encouraging more distributed models could support improvements within schools and across school clusters. A clear national vision and coordination mechanisms for new mid-level qualifications, including dual vocational programmes and future ISCED 5 offerings, will be equally important to help align provision with learner needs and economic priorities, and ensure stronger engagement with industry partners in their design and delivery.

Equality of opportunity and access

While Romania has expanded its education system, large disparities in participation and outcomes persist between rural and urban areas. Enrolment remains below the OECD average across all levels, with particularly wide gaps in early childhood and upper-secondary education. Rural students are less likely to attend early childhood education and care (ECEC), more likely to drop out of school, and are significantly underrepresented in tertiary education. Adults in rural areas also participate in training at less than half the rate of their urban peers. Limited provision in rural regions, combined with high levels of poverty and geographic concentration of tertiary education institutions and training providers in major cities, continue to constrain access and opportunity. The Roma community, overrepresented in poor rural areas, remains one of the most marginalised groups, with high dropout rates and low participation in early childhood, school, and tertiary education.

Romania has introduced policies aimed at improving outcomes for vulnerable learners, including expanding social supports to help disadvantaged students complete upper-secondary education and access tertiary education. The Ministry of Education lowered the starting age for compulsory education and is investing in new nurseries and complementary early learning settings. Efforts are also under way to strengthen the quality of upper-secondary vocational education by expanding dual VET programmes that integrate work-based learning—an important step for promoting equity, as disadvantaged students are overrepresented in vocational tracks.

Designing policies with a deliberate focus on expanding quality education and training opportunities in rural communities—such as through careful planning of the ECEC and school network and more flexible forms of provision—could help to bridge the rural/urban coverage of education and training. Strengthening support to help vulnerable students overcome demand-side barriers, including financial and administrative barriers and limited access to information, would be an important step in enabling all learners to take full advantage of expanded provision. Addressing potential implementation challenges for dual VET in rural areas, where schools may face difficulties in offering a diverse curriculum and engaging employers, will be key to ensuring the model works for all communities.

Good governance

Romania's reform agenda is focused on strengthening governance in education across several fronts, from how institutions are funded, evaluated, and supported, to how inter-sectoral policies are coordinated across government. To better coordinate the deployment of EU funds, Romania has taken steps to improve inter-ministerial collaboration, particularly in early childhood education and skills policies. The country also aims to increase public expenditure on education to at least 15% of total government spending, and review quality assurance and support policies to place a stronger focus on improvement.

This review identifies three main areas where Romania might learn from OECD evidence and experience to make the most of these governance changes. It suggests that the country reconsiders the overall funding model for education, by reprioritising public expenditure towards the early and primary years, attracting private funding, and enhancing the efficiency of spending. It also provides recommendations on how Romania could accelerate efforts to modernise the education governance architecture, with the aim of striking a better balance between accountability and institutional autonomy. Finally, it recognises the positive steps taken to improve inter-ministerial collaboration, particularly on ECEC and skills policies, and suggests avenues to build on these efforts and help Romania develop a more coherent inter-sectoral policy framework to advance national goals for child development, poverty reduction, and women’s employment.