For each teaching position the legislation establishes the initial training requirements in the form of appointment conditions. These refer to the education level and the professional training that have to be completed and passed by the prospective teachers. Only persons compelling with these requirements are considered qualified for the considered position. However, under special circumstances, teaching positions in pre-university education can be occupied for a limited period of time with unqualified personnel. In most cases this works as a postponement of the qualification and is applied only when and where qualified teachers are in short supply (e.g. for certain subjects – like ICT or foreign languages, or in certain areas, etc.).
Teaching positions (also referred to as didactic functions) in Pre-university education are established within the legislation by education level, and are as follows:
- Early childhood education: early childhood educator
- In pre-primary education: educator; institutor, teacher for pre-primary education
- In primary education: învăţător; institutor, teacher for primaty education
- In secondary education: teacher, psycho-pedagogue-teacher, social pedagogue-teacher, practical training teacher,
- In special education and in complex evaluation services (for evaluation and selection of the children with special educational needs): educator, teacher suppor/assistantr, itinerant teacher, special education teacher, psycho-pedagogue-teacher, school psychologist-teacher, social pedagogue-teacher, teacher-psycho-pedagogue, teacher-school psychologist, speech therapist, psychologist, psycho-pedagogue, kinetotherapist
These are completed with the following teaching positions set for the Pre-university education complementary units:
- In centres and units for psycho-pedagogical assistance: psycho-pedagogue-teacher, psychologist-teacher, sociologist-teacher, social pedagogue-teacher, school counselor
- In logopaedic inter-school centers and logopaedic school units: speech therapist teacher qualified in special psycho-pedagogy, psychology or pedagogy.
- In Teaching Staff Centre (in-service teacher training center): methodologist-teacher, associate-teacherm mentor for professional development
- In sports clubs: teacher, sports-trainer.
- In extra-school activities units: educator, institutor, teacher, sports-trainer.
- In the educational units that ensure the initial training and professional induction of teachers: mentor for continuing professional development;
- In the documentation and information centers: documentar teacher.
Auxiliary teaching positions (also referred to as auxiliary didactic functions) in Pre-university education are established within the legislation and are as follows:
- librarian
- ICT assistant
- laboratory assistant
- technician
- school-pedagogue
- animator-instructor
- instructor for extra-school education
- social assistant
- music assistant
- school mediator
- secretary
- financial administrator (accountant)
- asset administrator.
The Ministry of Education and Research can establish other auxiliary teaching positions, according to the dynamics of the education system in cooperation with the Ministry of Labour, Social Solidarity and Family.
For higher education the legislaslation establishes the following teaching positions:
- assistant professor
- lecturer
- associate professor
- professor
The initial teacher training for all teaching positions in Romania is based both on a concurrent model – meaning that the education and training in the specialisation of studies is combined with the education and training for the teaching career within the same educational sequence and also on the consecutive model - meaning that education and training for the teaching career is realized after the education and training in the specialty However, for certain teaching position a supplementary professional training is required that may be considered as part of the initial training but is actually finalised after the graduation of the required education level (e.g. specific training for teaching positions in special education, graduation of doctoral studies for lecturer, associate professor and professor in higher education etc.).
For Pre-university education, the initial training provided within formal education is completed with an induction year, carried out in a school unit, usually under the coordination of a mentor for induction with a duration of at least 1 year. During the insertion period debutant(e) teachers are employed based on labour contracts identical with the ones for the fully-flagged teachers, containing the same responsibilities, rights and obligations (including teaching norm, salary, etc.). The insertion period comprises an important supportive and supervising dimension as well as a final formal evaluation – the on-the-job confirmation exam. Only after passing the on-the-job confirmation exam teachers’ entry their professional life as fully-flagged teachers. Persons that do not pass the exam in the conditions set by the law cannot work anymore as qualified teachers.
Selection, recruitment and appointment of teachers in public and private education have to be based on competitions.
For public Pre-university education selection, recruitment and appointment of the teachers is accomplished through competitive examination, whilst in private Pre-university education and higher education is accomplished through open recruitment.
Basic work conditions for the teachers are established within the legislation. These refer to the teachers’ responsibilities, rights and obligations, appointment conditions, dismissal and retirement conditions, evaluation and in-service training, criteria for establishing norms and salaries, types of and criteria for awarding incentives, distinctions and prizes and for applying sanctions.
Following the on-the-job-confirmation, further professional development of the teachers in Pre-university education is a 2-stage process. Each stage is accomplished through specific evaluations and leads to certification of a higher professional-degree. The professional-degrees that can be obtained by teachers working in Pre-university education are, in this order: the didactic level II and the didactic level I. Professional-degrees are rewarded with higher salaries for the same teaching position, level of the initial training and seniority, and entitle the holder to compete for management or guiding and control positions.
Regarding higher education, each successive teaching position is assimilated to a higher professional-degree, the highest being profesor universitar.
In-service training is a right of the teachers in Pre-university education. Educational institutions have to ensure all the necessary conditions for the teachers to participate to in-service training programmes. At the same time, the legislation states that that the teaching staff, as well as the management, guidance and control staff in pre-university education are required to participate periodically in continuing education programs, so as to accumulate, every 5 years, considered from the date of passing on-the-job confirmation exam, a minimum of 90 transferable professional credits.
Teachers in higher education are not compelled to undertake in-service training programmes. The law establishes only the types of in-service training programmes available.
All management and guiding and control positions in Pre-university education are appointed based on competitive examination opened only to the teachers. In order to be admitted in the competitive examination teachers have to comply with specific criteria set by the law and the Ministry of Education and Research (professional degree, seniority, overall performance, etc.). Specific salary-incentives are established according to the position held and are added to the salary corresponding to the level of the initial training, the professional-degree and seniority.
All the management structures and positions of higher education institutions are elected through secret suffrage for a 4-year period, according to the provisions of the law and of the University Charter.
Management position and structures in higher education are chosen either by contest or by secret vote for 4 years, according to the provisions of the law and the University Charter of each higher education institution.
The rector of state and private universities is designated by one of the following methods:
• based on a public contest, based on a methodology approved by the newly elected university senate, in accordance with the present law; or
• by the universal, direct and secret vote of all the tenured teaching and research staff within the university and the student representatives from the university senate and the faculty councils
The deans are selected through a public contest organized by the new rector and validated by the university senate.
The members of the university senate, without exception, will be established by the universal, direct and secret vote of all the teaching staff and the researchers, respectively of all the students. Each faculty will have representatives in the university senate, on the quota of representation stipulated in the University Charter.
The head of department is elected by direct and secret vote of all teaching and research staff in the department.