Studying in Moldova
Education is a national priority in the Republic of Moldova and the major factor in the transmission and creation of new cultural and human values, in the development of human capital, in the formation of national identity and self-determination, the realization of aspirations for European integration. Education is paramount in creating the prerequisites for sustainable human development and building a knowledge-based society. Quality of education to a significant extent describes the quality of life and creates opportunities for the fullest realization of each citizen’s abilities.
The Sectoral Strategy for Education Development in 2013-2020 is the main policy document in the field of education. In order to coordinate in an integrated manner the strategic sectoral design process in the field of education, the provisions of the Strategy were correlated with the documents of relevant policies, with the reforms launched in the education system, with other reforms, which are the operational continuation of those provided by the National Development Strategy “Moldova 2020”.
There were 2,899 educational institutions with a total of 610,437 children/students at the beginning of the 2015-2016 school year in the Republic of Moldova. The number of teachers in the country was 51,558.
Children’s access to preschool education has improved significantly. The number of pre-school educational institutions increased by 91 units as of 01.01.2015, compared to 2009, or by 5.0% more, amounting to 1,453 units.
Currently, there are 118 elementary schools, 794 gymnasiums, 392 lyceums and 17 institutions of special education.
The number of secondary vocational education students amounted to 16.1 thousand students. At the beginning of the academic year 2015-2016, there were 44 vocational schools (colleges), 2 vocational schools, 4 centers of advanced experience and 42 colleges in the republic.
In the academic year 2015-2016, the total number of higher education institutions was 31, including 19 state institutions and 12 non-state institutions. At the beginning of the 2015-2016 academic year, the number of students was 81,669 (excluding international students).
In 2015, the total number of doctoral candidates was 1,751 (excluding international students), an increase of 7.6% over the previous year, reaching the highest number in 10 years.
The total number of postdoctoral candidates in 2017 was 47; 20 postdoctoral candidates were enrolled and 14 graduate candidates were enrolled. The proportion of women in the total number of postdoctoral candidates was 46.8%.
More information on education in the Republic of Moldova can be found at mecc.gov.md