Planning policy

National educational planning regarding recruitment of the teachers applies only to Pre-academic education.

Entry to the profession

The employment on a teaching or research position can be:

• for a fixed period, or

• for an indefinite period. 

The employment for an indefinite period on any teaching or research position is possible only through a public competition, organized by the higher education institution, after obtaining the title of doctor.

The selection, recruitment and appointment process for teaching positions in higher education is based on an open recruitment procedure.

This means that the accredited or provisory authorised higher education institutions are fully responsible for organising and carrying on the entire selection, recruitment and appointment process for their teaching positions. Nevertheless, the process has to comply with the general provisions of the Law. The open recruitment procedure has to be based on a competition opened to all persons complying with the conditions established for the considered teaching position. The results of the competition are valid only for the organising higher education institution.

The competition is organized in accordance with the Framework Competition Methodology for filling vacant teaching and research positions in higher education, updated in accordance with the Higher Education Law no. 199/2023 (by Government Decision no. 1.339/2023).

The filling of a vacant teaching or research position in higher education institutions is carried out through a public competition. 

Employment for an indefinite period, in any teaching or research position, is possible only for the candidate who obtained the highest score following the public competition.

The higher education institution's own competition methodology for filling vacant teaching and research positions provides for minimum requirements for filling vacant teaching and research positions, in accordance with the national minimum standards approved by law. 

• The standards related to teaching and research positions provided for in art. 200 of Law on Higher Education no. 199/2023, as amended and supplemented, are minimum and mandatory requirements for registration in the competition for the respective positions.

• Higher education institutions may establish additional minimum standards for presentation in the competition, in addition to the minimum standards established in accordance with the provisions of art. 156 para. (1) let. a) and para. (2) of Law on Higher Education no. 199/2023, as amended and supplemented.

The own methodology may not refer to seniority and may not contain discriminatory provisions regarding persons from outside the institution or the country compared to persons from within the institution or the country.

Announcements regarding the competition for vacant teaching and research positions shall be published: 

• in a visible place, on the main page of the website of the higher education institution. 

• on a specialized website, administered by the Ministry of Education, called the website of the competition for vacant teaching and research positions in higher education.

At least the following information will be published on the official website: 

• brief description of the position put up for competition.

• teaching workload and the types of activities included in it, in the case of teaching positions, respectively research workload, in the case of research positions, as well as other specific duties of the position put up for competition.

• the minimum salary corresponding to the position put up for competition.

• competition calendar.

• the topic of the competition tests, including lectures, courses or other similar topics, or the topics from which the competition committee may choose the topic of the tests actually taken.

• description of the competition procedure.

• complete list of documents that candidates must include in the competition file.

• address to which the competition file must be sent. 

The following information will be published on the website of the organizing higher education institution within 5 working days after the end of the registration period, in compliance with the protection of personal data in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation), for each candidate:

• curriculum vitae.

• standard compliance checklist.

• complete list of papers. 

The same data is also uploaded on the competition website, administered by the Ministry of Education.

The competition commission is made up of 5 members, including its president, specialists in the field of the position put out to the competition or in close domains. 

The members of the commission may be from within or outside the higher education institution, from the country or from abroad. 

• For the position of associate professor, university professor, scientific researcher level I or scientific researcher level II, at least 3 members of the committee must be from outside the institution organizing the competition, from the country or from abroad. 

The members of the competition committee must have a higher teaching or research title or at least equal to that of the teaching/research position corresponding to the position put up for competition or, for members from abroad, meet the standards of the institution, corresponding to the teaching/research position related to the position put up for competition.

The professional competences of the candidate are evaluated by the competition commission on the basis of the competition file and, additionally, by one or more competition tests, including different types of lectures, according to their own methodology.

The results of the competitions are approved by the university senate, and the positioning is done from the first day of the semester following the competition.

The competitions are different depending on the methodologies of each university that must comply with the provisions of National Commission for the Attestation of University Titles, Diplomas and Certificates (CNATDCU) and the Government Decision No. 1339/2023 concerning the on the Framework Methodology for filling vacant teaching and research positions in higher education.

Vacant teaching positions can be occupied temporarily, subject to annual re-confirmation, by:

• the permanent teachers of the respective higher education institution or,
• associate teachers.

Appointment of associate teachers is accomplished through competition organised by the chair or the department and consisting of at least an interview and presentation of the CV.

The competition methodology is approved by the university senate.

Appointment of the associate teachers is accomplished through decision of the rector. 

Romanian or foreign citizens may participate in the competition for a teaching or research position, without any discrimination, under the terms of the law.

Employment for participation in research projects in the field of education and vocational training or in national/European/international projects may be made for a fixed period, without going through other prior formalities and/or selection processes, for personnel nominated in the personnel lists as members of the project team, as well as for the personnel of the higher education institution.

• In the case of personnel from the higher education institution, employment within a project is carried out based on the decision of the rector, by concluding an individual employment contract, without affecting the basic norm.

Professional status

Staff in higher education is (Higher Education Law 199/2023, art.198):

• teaching staff, and
• administrative staff in education.

The teaching staff consists of: 

• teaching/research staff and 

• auxiliary teaching/research staff from higher education institutions, university libraries and central university libraries.

Teaching/research staff means staff who legally hold one of the university teaching or research positions provided for by law.

In relation to the working relationships established with the higher education institution, the teaching staff may be: 

• permanent teaching staff, or 

• associate teaching staff.

By permanent teaching staff means teaching staff that holds a teaching function in a university, obtained by competition, for an indefinite period. The teaching and research staff employed for a certain period have the status of associate teacher and research.

The permanent status exists only in relation to a single higher education institution or a single research-development institution; when a teacher carries out didactic or scientific research activities in several higher education or research-development institutions, the permanent status can only be in one of them, and in the other, the quality is as associate teacher or researcher. 

Auxiliary teaching positions are established in the annexes to the salary laws, with the possibility of their completion by order of the Minister of Education and the Minister of Labor and Social Solidarity, depending on the needs of higher education institutions or central university libraries.

• Support staff in order to carry out the educational process through an integrated approach to the student's needs, professionals from other fundamental areas of young people's development, such as health, psychological counseling/evaluation/therapy and social assistance, are included in the higher education system with the status of auxiliary teaching staff.

According to the existing academic needs, the higher education institutions can appoint for a limited period of time specialists with recognised value in the country and abroad as invited associate professor (profesor asociat invitat). 

The hiring of specialists with recognized scientific and professional value in the field, from the country or abroad, who do not hold a doctorate, as invited associate professors, is approved by the department council and approved by the board of directors. 

The hiring and placement of these specialists is carried out based on an own institution’s methodology approved by the university senate.

Salaries

The remuneration of teaching and research staff is made according to the decisions of the board of directors of the higher education institution, in accordance with the legislation in force.

The remuneration of teaching and research staff is made in relation to the teaching/research function and according to its results and performance, according to the law. The criteria for salaries in higher education are:

• teaching position
• academic title
• teaching norm
• quality of the professional performance as established based on the annual individual evaluation
• recognised seniority in education
• specific working conditions.

Teachers in management, guidance and control positions benefit of specific indemnities differentiated according to the position and the working conditions.

Working time and holidays

The attributions of the teaching staff in higher education include the following:

• teaching activities, seminars, practical works, practical training and evaluation activities – according to the frame curricula and the syllabi
• activities for scientific and methodological preparation as well as other activities in the interest of education
• scientific research, technological development, design activities and artistic creation, according to the specialisation.

The concrete activities are established in the job-description for the corresponding teaching position.

Individualized job descriptions are developed at the department or doctoral school level, taking into account the functions list and becomes an annex to the individual employment contract.

The functions list is the legal document, based on which the monthly salary of each member of the teaching and research staff is determined.

The job-description represents the basis for individual evaluation of teachers' professional performances.

The teaching norms for the teaching staff in higher education can include the following: 

• teaching activities: course
• applied activities: seminar, project, practical and laboratory work, internship, guidance of year projects
• guidance of the development of bachelor's theses, as well as diploma projects
• guidance of the development of master's dissertations
• guidance of the development of doctoral theses
• other teaching, practical and scientific research activities included in the curricula
• management of didactic-artistic or sports activities
• evaluation activities
• tutoring, consultations, guidance of student scientific circles, as well as guidance and counseling of students during mobilities
• participation in councils and committees in the interest of education
• activities for the development of teaching materials
• creation of digital content for disciplines in the field of specialization
• participation in committees specific to the activities of the department, doctoral school, faculty, IOSUD or university
• guidance/coordination of students enrolled in a study program as a year tutor
• other specific professional activities in the scientific field of competence. 

The research norm includes:

• scientific research activities specific to the field of specialization
• specific activities for submitting grants in internal, national and international competitions or in collaboration with the private sector
• technological and scientific transfer activities. 

The activities related to a university norm are quantified in the annual individual job description by conventional hours. The minimum weight of each type of activity is established, depending on the mission assumed, by the university senate, depending on the specificity and field of specialization. The sum of all hours accumulated through the activities of a university norm must correspond to an annual norm of 8 hours daily.

The teaching norm is established according to the frame curricula and is calculated as average weekly teaching norm, regardless of the period of the year when is effectively accomplished.

The average weekly teaching norm is calculated as the ratio of the total number of conventional periods in the job-description to the number of weeks established in the frame curriculum for all the teaching and seminar activities of the academic year.

The conventional hour is the equivalent of one teaching hour during seminars, laboratory activities, practical works or other similar activities.

In higher education the lecture-hour for master and doctoral level – the lecture-hour is the equivalent of 2.5 conventional periods, and the seminar-hour (or other similar activities) is the equivalent of 1.5 conventional periods. 

In the case of full teaching in internationally spoken languages, at the bachelor's, master's and doctoral levels, teaching activities, applied activities or other activities may be normalized with an additional multiplicative coefficient of 1.25. The hours of teaching the respective language are an exception to this provision.

Evaluation activities are quantified in conventional periods according to the methodology approved by the university senate.

The minimum weekly teaching norm is established as follows (conventional periods):

• Professor (Profesor universitar): 7 hours per week (minimum 4 hours lecture)

• Associate professor (Conferenţiar universitar): 8 hours per week (minimum 4 hours lecture)

• Lecturer (Lector universitar/Sef de lucrări): 10 hours per week (minimum 2 hours lecture)

• Assistant lecturer (Asistent universitar): 11 hours per week.

For the teaching staff that do not perform scientific research or equivalent activities, the teaching norm is increased, without over-passing maximum periods per week. All the previously exceptions mentioned are approved by the council of the faculties. In the case that a teaching norm cannot be accomplished according to the provisions of the law, the activity of the respective teaching position is completed with scientific research activities at the proposal of the head of the chair and subject to the agreement of the faculty council. The diminution of the can be maximum 1/2 of the respective teaching norm and the research hour is the equivalent of 0.5 conventional periods. Alternatively, a teacher can be transferred, temporarily and upon request, with the entire norm in scientific research within the respective chair or department. In both these cases the considered teacher preserves the permanent status over the teaching position – as obtained following appointment through open competition. 

Full-time teachers whose teaching hours cannot be established according to legal provisions may be temporarily transferred, at their request, to full-time scientific research hours, maintaining their status as full-time teachers in the teaching position obtained through the competition. During this period, the teaching staff has the obligations of research personnel in higher education.

Promotion, advancement

In higher education, successive teaching positions may be considered as stages in the career development.

To advance from one teaching position to the next one, teachers must comply with certain conditions and must pass a competition organised by the higher education institution (open recruitment procedure).

Management structures within university:

• University Senat and administration council
• Faculty council
• Department council.

Management positions in higher education are as follows: 

• the rector, vice-rectors, general administrative director, deputy general administrative director, at the level of the higher education institution
• the dean, vice-deans, at the faculty level
• the department director, at the department level
• director of Council for Doctoral University Studies (CSUD), position assimilated to that of vice-rector
• the branch director at the level of the branch of the higher education institution, position assimilated to that of vice-rector
• the director of university extension, at the level of university extension, position assimilated to that of department director
• the director of the doctoral school, position assimilated to that of department director. 

The duration of mandate for members of the management structures and all management positions is 5 years.

Candidates are expected to have distinguished professional, managerial and moral qualities and to hold high teaching positions in the academic hierarchy.

Retirement and pensions

The teaching and research staff are retired at the age of 65. 

At the request of the teaching staff, the tenure status may be maintained until the end of the academic year in which they reach retirement age. 

The university senate, based on professional performance criteria and financial situation, may decide to continue the activity of a teaching or research staff after retirement, based on a contract for a fixed period of one year, with the possibility of annual extension according to the university charter, without age limit.

The university senate can decide to confer the honorary title of emeritus professor, for didactic and research excellence, to the teachers who have reached the retirement age.