Romanian as a Foreign Language in Post-Communist Romania
Romanian as a Foreign Language in Post-Communist Romania

Summary/Abstract: Following the collapse of the communist regime, Romania entered a process of globalisation which has greatly influenced many sectors of life, including education. For over 30 years now, researchers, institution leaders and organisations have addressed the issue of the internationalisation of higher education. In this context, an increasing number of foreign students is attracted by the study programmes and courses offered by Romanian universities. Some of these courses are available in foreign languages, but most of them are in Romanian, hence the growing demand for teaching and learning Romanian as a foreign language. The aim of this paper is to analyse the major components of internationalisation and their impact on higher education in Romania, focusing on the latest development of the study programme called The Romanian Language Preparatory Year (Anul pregătitor de limba romȃnă). As a method, we resort to official facts and figures to analyse how the main strategies of internationalisation have been implemented into the Romanian higher education system. Our research concludes that the preparatory year instills international, global, and comparative dimensions not only in the classroom, but in the entire academic life, leading to a higher respect and tolerance for other nations, cultures and life-styles.

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