The right of students to call extraordinary meetings of the university senate and an increase in discounts for domestic rail and sea student transport from 50% to 65% are among the proposals agreed to be included in the new higher education law after consultations between Minister Sorin Campeanu and student organisations.

Education Minister Sorin Kimpeanu says in a Facebook post that on Monday he held consultations with representatives of student organizations on the draft law on higher education, after which several proposals were approved.

One of them concerns the right of students to call extraordinary meetings of the University Senate.

• “Convocation on student issues, for the first time in specific legislation, can be carried out by a group of all student representatives in the University Senate, as an exception to the rule of convening one-third of Senate members. The university senate,” the minister explains.

Another agreed proposal seeks to increase discounts on domestic rail and sea transport for students from 50% to 65%.

• “Full-time students, including students enrolled in short-term full-time courses at accredited institutions of higher education, will receive a 65% discount on domestic rail transport on all train categories, class II and sea, throughout the calendar year. Students who are orphans or children of orphanages use free transport for these categories.”

It was also proposed to “increase the subvention of dormitory-canteens by 50% to reduce the cost of living in a dormitory per student, as well as the cost of providing food in student canteens.”

What other proposals regarding the draft Law on Higher Education were approved by the Ministry of Education and student organizations:

• Strengthening the legal framework so that universities can provide social assistance and special scholarships, especially for participation in volunteer actions, but not only. Encouraging and supporting volunteering is a great opportunity for students to gain new skills, the report said.
• An increase of at least 30% in base funding for students studying in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) fields, due to the adoption of a proposal submitted by the Romanian Alliance of Technological Universities (ARUT) to establish a National Science, Engineering, Technology Education Program and mathematics PN-STIM (Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics – STEM) to encourage young people to participate in university programs in STEM-related fields, which will be supported by an increase in budgetary allocations per student.
• Clarification on the provisions in the field of higher medical education, in the context of the new provisions of the Law on Higher Education, according to which the organization of residency training as a specific form of postgraduate education is carried out by the Ministry of Education through accredited higher medical and pharmaceutical institutions and higher educational institutions that have accredited medical, dental and pharmaceutical faculties.
• Development at the level of each higher education institution of a special strategy to ensure the applied integration of measures contained in the Strategy of the Government of Romania on the inclusion of Romanian citizens belonging to the Roma minority for the period 2021-2027.
• Ensuring the representation of each of the 5 national representative student associations by appointing one member with the status of a permanent guest in each of the 6 National Advisory Commissions of the Ministry of Education.

Representatives of several student associations participated in consultations with the Ministry of Education regarding the draft law on higher education: the National Union of Students of Romania (UNSR), the Union of Students of Romania (USR), the National Alliance of Student Organizations of Romania. (ANOSR), the Federation of Medical Student Associations of Romania (FASMR) and the League of Romanian Students Abroad (LSRS).