"EUROPEAN EDUCATION AREA" – ASPECTS REGARDING THE ROMANIAN HIGHER EDUCATION

Abstract: “Higher education” represents an important dimension of the “European Education Area,” holding a key role within population-centred policies regarding the development of a holistic approach to education, as established in the documents developed at the level of the European Union. Considering the EU-level target according that “The share of 25-34-year-olds with tertiary educational attainment should be at least 45% by 2030,” the analysis of the comparative aspects related to the evolution of higher education, at the level of the member states of the European Union, reveals a constant increase in the share of people having higher education degrees, suggesting that the EU will exceed the objective for 2030 by a considerable margin. In this context, the Report on the condition of higher education in Romania 2022-2023, developed and published by the Ministry of Education, constitutes a complex analysis of the Romanian university education system, rendering a series of relevant aspects regarding the developments and perspectives outlined in the reference fields and as a whole. The rapid adaptation to global challenges requires new approaches of cooperation and mobility, and the Romanian universities have now the opportunity to connect with higher education institutions in the EU and outside it. The mentioned report includes Part I – “Analysis of the supply and demand of the higher education system”, Part II – “Relevant actions and outcomes obtained in the academic year 2022-2023”, and Part III – “Directions for development of higher education 2024.” These actions are drawn in accordance with the new Higher Education Law no. 199/2023 and with the strategic objectives of the “Educated Romania” Project, as well as with the requirements of education beneficiaries. The issue of “increasing the percentage of higher education graduates, in accordance with the provisions of the Europe 2020 Strategy” was analyzed by the Court of Accounts of Romania, as early as 2015, as part of a performance audit mission. Starting from the premise that the increase in the quality and competitiveness of education generates well-being, the need for studies to underlie adequate public policies that respond to current needs and challenges has been emphasized.