IS HYBRID EDUCATION A SOLUTION FOR THE FUTURE OF THE ROMANIAN ACADEMIC SYSTEM?

The Covid crisis has profoundly shaken classical teaching models, society has become more receptive to digitalization and hybrid activities. The question that arises is whether the hybrid education system will persist and whether it will benefit, or negatively affect, the educational system. To answer this question from a local perspective, we conducted online research in which one of the central themes was the future of education, hybrid or classical. The research methodology was based on a survey performed through a questionnaire containing 15 questions and applied on 595 students of the University of Petrosani, during 31st October 2023 and 2nd November 2023. This managerial research was based on the answers provided by 595 students of the University of Petroșani, that represent 15% of the investigated students. The 15 questions of the survey were organized into 3 sections that could support the future development of the University of Petrosani in the author opinion for the next 5 years. The main conclusion of the investigation was that a year and a half after UPET gave up online education, 90% of the students surveyed want a hybrid education option. The question that the investigation could not answer is whether the efficiency of the hybrid system is at the level of the classic system, or rather how much less impact distance education has on students compared to face-to-face education, and to what extent this reduced impact leads to a reduced quality of the educational process.