Institute of Mathematics of Romanian Academy

The Institute of Mathematics "Simion Stoilow" (IMAR) is one of the research institutes of the Romanian Academy, founded in 1949 and represents one of the most significant centres of the Romanian mathematical life. During its 50 years of activity virtually all leading Romanian mathematicians where members or associated somehow with this research unit.
IMAR is organized on research groups, each group having its own research agenda for periods of 1-3 years. Each group has a staff of senior researchers and some young researchers at master, PhD or postdoctoral level and organizes at least one weekly seminar. Each group has permanent collaborations with many Universities from Romania and with different important research centers from abroad (Europe, USA, Japan).
In order to have a permanent contact with the younger generation, IMAR encourages teaching activities of its members at different Universities (especially SNSB) and the integration of graduate students in the existing research teams. Some seminars are organized for students from the Bucharest University. IMAR organizes PhD research on different problems in fundamental and applied mathematics under the supervision of some of its senior members.
IMAR also collaborates with "Scoala Normala Superioara" in Bucharest in organizing research oriented master programs in mathematics addressed to top level students from Romania and abroad. In March 2000, The "Simion Stoilow" Institute has been nominated as an European Centre of Excellence, following the Call for Proposals for Support for Centres of Excellence (Fifth's Framework Programme of the European Commission).
IMAR is a Centre of Excellence of the Romanian Academy.

Spiru Haret University in Romania

The Spiru Haret University is a private university in Bucharest, Romania, founded in 1991.

In 2009 enrollment was reported as 311,928 students. Referring to the number of its students, a Romanian newspaper mistakenly called it the largest university in the world. It is the second-largest private university in the world, after Islamic Azad University (with 1.3 million students).

Although it received accreditation from Romania's National Council of Academic Evaluation in 2002, step by step its accreditations were canceled for a large number of specializations. Also, there are many voices which dispute the level of the education offered.The scandal peaked in the summer of 2009, when the way license diplomas are obtained becomes the object of an inquiry of the Romanian public prosecutors.

A number of Romanian newspapers have called the Spiru Haret University "a diploma mill" (literally translated, "a diplomas factory"). This viewpoint has been confirmed by the Austrian Der Standard and by the Swiss Neue Zürcher Zeitung. The German Consulate in Romania (Timişoara) mentioned worries in respect to the legal situation of the university in its press review.The French journal Le Monde has confirmed the viewpoint of the quoted newspapers.Some English language sources (e.g. from the Romanian newspaper Evenimentul Zilei and Radio Romania International) express the same view. Therefore, the Spiru Haret University is increasingly considered in Romania and outside it as a diploma mill. Its lawyers seek to circumvent Romanian education laws, and this implied the consequence that new laws are discussed by the Romanian Department of Education, Research and Innovation, which may lead to the prohibition of all Spiru Haret's activities.

A little history of romanian education

For the year 2000, adult illiteracy was estimated at 1.8% (males, 0.9%; females, 2.7%). In 1948, the government established compulsory education for at least four years in rural areas and for seven years in urban areas, with the hope that the seven-year school would be general. A decree of 30 September 1961 provided for the transition to an eight-year general, compulsory, and free education for children between 7 and 15 years of age; since 1968, the compulsory span has lengthened to 10 years. According to the Education Law of 1978, Romania's educational system consists of preschool (ages three–six), primary school (grades one–four), gymnasium (grades five–eight), lyceum or college in two steps (each consisting of two years), vocational schools and schools for foremen, higher education, and postgraduate education. The number of years of primary school was reduced from eight to four in 1989, and the number of years of secondary school was correspondingly increased from four to eight. As of 1999, public expenditure on education was estimated at 4.4% of GDP.

In 1997, there were 6,188 primary schools with 1,405,308 students and a total teaching staff of 71,829. Student-to-teacher ratio stood at 20 to 1. At the secondary level in 1997, students numbered 2,212,090, and teachers totaled 175,958. The pupil-teacher ratio at the primary level was estimated at 19 to 1 in 1999. In the same year, 93% of primary-school-age children were enrolled in school, while 76% of those eligible attended secondary school. Institutions of higher learning had 263,310 students and 26,310 teachers in 1997.

Admission to an advanced institution depends on a variety of factors, including the student's social background. Over half the students receive government assistance. Yearly quotas are established by the Ministry of Education according to manpower needs. Students in some fields must first complete six months of practical work in industry or agriculture.

In 1959, the Romanian Victor Babes University (founded 1919) and the János Bolyai University (1945) for Hungarian minority students, both in Cluj-Napoca, were merged into the Babes-Bolyai University in order to strengthen "socialist patriotism." There are six other universities—in Bucharest (founded in 1864), Brasov (1971), Craiova (1966), Galati (1948), Iasi (1860), and Timisoara (1962).

Like the other formerly Communist countries, Romania has emphasized polytechnic education in recent years. This "link of education with life" in the early grades means studying practical subjects; however, beginning in the upper grades there are work programs, often directly in enterprises, in workshops, or on collective farms, depending on the locality.

Sourse : National Encycopedia