In everything it does, “ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest has always worked, and continues to work, to promote a plurality of views and critical debate, upholding the scientific standing of Romanian culture and developing international cooperation.
The curricula and programmes of “ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest provide specialist training comparable with that of public economics universities. Our graduates are therefore as competitive as public-university graduates in the same fields and can work in any sector.
Our teaching, education and research – through the bachelor’s programmes in Finance and Banking, Accounting and Management Information Systems, Management, Marketing, and Economics of Trade, Tourism and Services, and the master’s programmes in Financial, Banking and Insurance Management, Management of the Financial-Accounting Information System, Organisational Management, Marketing and Business Communication, and Business Administration in Trade, Tourism and Services – meet a real social need: preparing people to lead businesses and organisations in every field.
The main reasons for founding “ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest, and for its work today, are:
- A long tradition that began in 1919 with the founding of the School of Cooperative Studies, continued in various forms under successive laws until 1967 and resumed after 1992
- The need for university-level education for managers of Romania’s small and medium-sized enterprises, as an alternative to public higher education
- The prospect of employing a significant number of graduates in their fields of study in cooperatives, small and medium-sized enterprises and other organisations over the next 10–15 years
- The need for university-level education for managers across the whole national economy
- Our graduates are as competitive as public-university graduates in the same fields and can work in any sector. More than 90% of our over 15,000 graduates have completed their degree, and most work in their field of study, in SMEs or other organisations. Every graduate who has asked the university for help has been offered a job in craft, consumer or credit cooperatives.
- “ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest owns extensive facilities on its campus in Economu Cezărescu Street: teaching spaces, lecture and seminar rooms, a sports hall and sports ground, a library, spaces for cultural activities, a student residence and a cafeteria.
- A good balance between the demand for and supply of university graduates, based on market studies that support realistic long-term enrolment planning.
- The university has adopted a research programme, delivered through grants and research contracts, that responds directly to today’s economic and social issues.
Under the University Charter, teaching and research at “ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest are based on the following key principles:
- University autonomy
- Academic freedom
- Public accountability
- Quality assurance
- Equity
- Managerial and financial efficiency
- Transparency
- Respect for the rights and freedoms of students and academic staff
- Independence from ideologies, religions and political doctrines
- Freedom of national and international mobility for students, academics and researchers
- Consultation of social partners in decision-making
- Student-centred education
“ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest upholds the values of Romanian and world science and culture, especially in economics, law and public administration. Drawing on its expertise and its responsibility towards Romanian society, the university’s mission is to educate and develop qualified professionals with university degrees for economic and social life, to promote free and critical thinking and the renewal of knowledge, and to develop programmes for entrepreneurship.
In teaching and research, these goals translate into:
- High-quality education at both bachelor’s and master’s level
- Bachelor’s programmes that increase our students’ mobility and attract international students
- Partnerships for bachelor’s and master’s studies and for research with leading universities and research institutions in Romania and the European Union
- An optimal ratio between permanent academic staff and the total number of students
- Tuition fees aligned with the real cost of each programme
- Greater use of active teaching methods
- Lasting partnerships with the outside world that showcase our academics and students
- More flexible decision-making and operations, with greater individual and institutional responsibility in education, management and research
- Continuing the quality strategy for teaching and research, in line with national standards and academic criteria for evaluating universities
- Closer alignment of our programmes with European higher-education systems and more mobility for both students and academic staff
- A stronger internal quality-evaluation process covering everything the university does
- Stronger support for research through the right measures on staffing, management and funding
- Continued investment to bring the university’s facilities up to the standard of the best European universities
- More and better student services and a more attractive university in terms of cost and service quality, including through the Career Counselling Centre
- Closer working relationships with the local and national social, economic, administrative and cultural community through partnerships and research and development projects
- Raising the profile of economists in national and international public management, as economic analysts, strategists and creators of value
“ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest seeks the right balance between teaching, research and service to society. It works constantly to make its activities more efficient and to keep a collegial, high-performing working environment, with an academic and administrative structure that uses modern, flexible management methods and strengthens decentralisation, autonomy and the direct involvement of everyone concerned. The university’s leadership attracts and retains excellent academic staff and supports each of them in their professional and teaching development and in their academic careers.
Interdisciplinary research and the resources allocated to each field aim for a balanced representation of all our disciplines in the university’s work and results. Our academic community strives to improve every field, so that these efforts are reflected in better positions in future rankings.
The university continues to grow, as confirmed by evaluations from the European University Association and the Romanian Agency for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ARACIS). It has a distinctive academic identity within Romanian and European culture and looks to a future founded on educational and cultural values.
Prof. Alexandru-Lucian Manole, PhDRector of “ARTIFEX” University of Bucharest
