Definition of the target group(s)

The education in Romania of foreign citizens is regulated through the law. According to the provisions of the Decision, foreign citizens or Romanian citizens residing abroad can attend education in Romania based on scholarships granted by the Romanian state or on their own expenses.

The following categories of foreign citizens can attend public education in Romania free of charge:

• The personnel of official foreign institutions - embassies, consular offices, international organisations, etc. - as well as their families' members for all education levels. This provision applies only if the similar Romanian personnel and their families' members benefit of free of charge education in the respective countries. The official quality of the candidates in this category as well as the accomplishment of the reciprocity condition has to be confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

• The personnel of non-profit organizations and associations authorized to function on the Romanian territory, as well their families' members - for primary and gimnaziu education.

• The families' members of teachers and researchers that deploy official activities in Romania, and of the beneficiaries of the scholarships granted by the Romanian state to foreign citizens - for primary and gimnaziu education.

Regarding refugees and persons seeking asylum, the authorities apply consistently all the corresponding provisions of the international agreements which Romania is a part of.

Children of the refugees and persons seeking asylum, as well as refugee children are given both special social protection and equal opportunity to access public education.

The Romanian state ensures equal opportunity to the children of the migrant workers in accessing compulsory education. Their schooling during compulsory education is free and is provided according to the provisions of the law.

The Education Law regulates in detail, the specific conditions for organizing and accomplishing education for persons belonging to national minorities.

Study streams in Hungarian and German for students belonging to these national minorities are organised in several higher education institutes.

For some minority languages, specific departments are organized, either in higher education institutes or in pedagogical colleges, in order to ensure the initial training of staff involved in teaching these languages.

Specific support measures

In order to enroll to compulsory education, the children of the migrant workers that do not know the Romanian language have to attend and pass a free course for initiation in the Romanian language.

The children of the migrant workers that know the Romanian language have to sit and pass a free examination organised by the County School Inspectorates. Upon passing the initiation course or the examination, the children of the migrant workers are enrolled in public compulsory education – all their previous studies being recognised without any other examinations. The initiation course is provided in the following conditions:

• The duration of the course is one school year.

• The course is provided in public educational institutions and is free of charge. The necessary costs for the initiation course are covered by the Local Councils.

• The children are organised in 3 age-level groups: 6-12 years old, 12-14/15 years old and 15-18 years old.

• During the initiation course, children can participate, with the agreement of the school management, to other educational activities, without being formally registered.

In the case of the children/pupils that prove an evident inadequacy to the educational standards or evident lack of knowledge of the Romanian language, the head of the school can decide, subject to the agreement of the parents, to enroll the children/pupils in a lower grade or to send them back to the Romanian language initiation courses.

Alternatively, the Romanian language initiation courses can be attended in parallel with the regular courses in order to improve the communication skills of the children/pupils.

Remedial teaching and other forms of support can also be provided, according to the provisions of the educational legislation.

The initiation courses are taught by Romanian language teachers, according to an adapted curricula elaborated by the National Council for Curriculum.

The initial and in-service training of the teaching staff ensuring teaching of the Romanian language as the official language of the Romanian state is ensured by the Ministry of National Education.

Ministry of National Education in cooperation with the similar authorities in the countries of origin of the migrant workers, establishes the necessary measures to ensure teaching of the language and culture of the respective country during the compulsory education.

All the necessary costs for ensuring education of the children of the migrant workers during compulsory education are supported according to the provisions of the law regarding financing of Pre-academic education.

Children of the migrant workers are granted the access to the other education levels according to the provisions of the legislation regarding schooling in Romania of the citizens from other countries.