SDG 5. Gender Equality

• Centre for the Study of Equal Opportunity Policy, Faculty of Political Science
• The Gender Studies Platform of Research Institute of the University of Bucharest
• Center for Research on the Role of Mass Communication in the Development of the Public Sphere, Reception Analysis, and Advanced Technologies (SPARTA), Faculty of Journalism and Communication Studies

• YOU-DARE – YOUth Debunking the gendered Arguments of far-Right Extremism
• GEMINI – Gender Equality through Media Investigation and New Training Insights
• SEE-ERA – Transforming R&I organisations and advancing the ERA through gender equality and inclusiveness in SEE
• ATHENA – Implementing gender equality plans to unlock research potential of RPOs and RFOs in Europe, Faculty of Sociology and Social Work

The University of Bucharest systematically collects and monitors data on applicants, enrolled students and graduates, including data disaggregated by gender. Student academic records are managed through the University’s digital student-management systems, with MOPAS – Online Management of Students’ Academic Pathways progressively implemented as the integrated platform for managing students’ academic records and related administrative processes. In 2025,  a dedicated admissions module for managing candidate data was tested in several faculties. For example, as of 2024-2025, the existing data shows that 69.47% of the total student population, as well as 71,37% of graduates are women.

The Schooling Monitoring, Reporting and Statistics Service is responsible for producing statistical data on admissions, students and graduates and for managing and reporting these data internally and to relevant national authorities. The resulting datasets enable the University and its faculties to monitor application, enrolment and completion patterns, including gender-related trends, and to use this information in institutional analysis and decision-making.

As of 2022, UB implements a Gender Equality Plan, which for the initial phase included:

• Establishing a flexible but operational institutional structure for the coordination and monitoring of gender equality in the UB (Measure 2.1);
• The establishment of the Gender Equality Office (measure 2.2);
• Improving the process of collecting, processing, and monitoring statistical data at the UB level to monitor and communicate gender equality indicators (Measure 2.4).
• According to Evaluation Report on Gender Equality Plan Implementation: „The GEP-UB is a strategic document that articulates UB’s institutional commitment to the promotion of gender equality and, implicitly, of inclusive policies in all activities within the institution. By implementing the Gender Equality Plan, UB envisages to continue developing an institutional culture based on excellence and respect and promotion of diversity and equal opportunities for all members of the UB community”. GEP has been integrated in the UB institutional infrastructure with special department and official position of GEP coordinator created. The visibility of the gender equality spectrum of issues increased significantly due to a successful virtual network created within the Athena project.
• At UB level, the course “Equality, diversity, inclusion: beyond stereotypes and prejudices in the university environment” was organised as part of the UB Gender Equality Plan (GEP), which benefited around 150 UB employees.
• UB has approved to launch a post university programme on “Expert in Equal Opportunities”, in conformity with the existing legal national occupational standard for this professional qualification. This will support also some UB staff to obtain the national official credentials and implicitly the credibility to work in the area and contribute to better quality and impact of future activities.
• The Faculty of Political Science offers the Master’s Programme in Equal Opportunities Policies in the Romanian and European Context. In 2025, the programme had 12 graduates in this field.

For the 2025-2028 period, the second gender equality plan focuses on five main areas of action and two cross-cutting areas, aligned with the recommendations of the European Commission. The main areas include: work-life balance, inclusive organisational management, gender equality in recruitment and career advancement, integration of the gender dimension in research, and the prevention and resolution of gender-based violence and sexual harassment. The cross-cutting areas address training (including courses, mentoring, and other forms of capacity building) and promotion and awareness-raising. All initiatives under these areas are to be implemented by December 2028.

The University of Bucharest promotes gender equality and, at the same time, respects national legislation and internal regulations, so no gender discriminatory measures are found. Thus, regardless of the status they belong to (candidates, students, employees), women can access the university’s services, such as mentoring through various institutional projects, counselling, extracurricular development, etc.

• The Charter of the University of Bucharest (art. 19, par. 1 ) establishes the conditions of access to the university community as follows: “Access to the university community by admission as a student or by holding a teaching or research position, as well as the exercise of managerial functions, is free, under the conditions of the law, and may not be prevented or restricted for reasons of gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, political or religious conviction. All methodologies for the organisation and conduct of admission contests to undergraduate, master’s and doctoral studies comply with the provisions of the Charter.
• Art. 2, point 1 of the Code of Student Rights and Responsibilities specifies that “the University guarantees all its students accessible and inclusive education in terms of admission, progression through studies, and successful completion of their academic programmes”.
• According to Article 12, point 1 of the Methodology for filling academic positions – „the competition for vacant academic positions is open to all individuals who meet the eligibility requirements and application criteria, without any form of discrimination and in compliance with the applicable legal provisions”.
• According to Article 149, point 1 (a) of the Internal Regulations: „the University of Bucharest prohibits discrimination through the use of practices that place persons of a particular sex at a disadvantage in employment relations, including with regard to the announcement and organization of recruitment competitions or examinations, as well as the selection of candidates for vacant positions”.

The European Strategy for Universities, adopted on 18 January 2022 by the European Commission, identifies the need to address the underrepresentation of women in STEM fields (Science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics). The assessment of the current situation of the student population indicates that:

No	STEM fields	2022-2023	2023-2024	2024-2025
1.	Biology	82,26%	81,49%	79,98%
2.	Chemistry	73,24%	74,91%	75,00%
3.	Physics	50,32%	51,24%	41,18%
4.	Mathematics	52,42%	53,85%	53,03%
5.	Informatics	31,56%	30,82%	29,09%
6.	Systems engineering	26,48%	26,46%	26,03%

* The percentages represent the proportion of women enrolled in each field, calculated as a percentage of the total number of students enrolled in that field.

To support applications by women in underrepresented fields, UB implemented several initiatives:

• The Gender Equality Committee at the University of Bucharest aims, among others, to encourage women to become more involved in academic life and research and to move into less accessible areas.
• Another example is the UB for Women in Science, an initiative of the University of Bucharest that aims to help remove invisible barriers to access faced by women in science, promote the outstanding contributions of women in the UB scientific community and celebrate their success in the scientific field in which they work.
• In May 2023, UB organised a training module for employees focused on gender equality and harmonisation of professional and personal life. This event, part of the ATHENA project, aimed at raising awareness and implementing effective strategies to promote gender equality in academia. The participants discussed the pitfalls of the gender concept, what gender equality is and is not, and the main issues in this field today. In 2024 and 2025, inclusion, gender equality and diversity remained a dedicated training area for administrative staff, with courses addressing equal opportunities, diversity management and inclusive institutional practices included in the yearly peer learning course offer.

 

• The Charter of the University of Bucharest and the Code of Ethics and Deontology prohibit “discrimination, understood as any distinction, exclusion, restriction or preference, based on ” […] sex, sexual orientation ...”. To operationalise this, a procedure has been approved which establishes an effective and transparent mechanism for investigating incidents of sexual harassment and sex/gender discrimination in the academic community. The procedure available here sets out the principles, preventative measures, responsibilities and how to deal with incidents of sexual harassment and sex/gender discrimination.
• Furthermore, the University of Bucharest has developed within the ATHENA project – Implementing gender equality plans to unlock the research potential of RPOs and RFOs in Europe the Gender Equality Plan 2022-2024, which includes measures to combat discrimination against women. Following the monitoring and evaluation of this first cycle, the University adopted a second Gender Equality Plan for 2025–2028, which builds on the measures and lessons developed through ATHENA. Its implementation is supported by the SEE-ERA – Transforming R&I Organisations and Advancing the ERA through Gender Equality and Inclusiveness in SEE (2025-2028) project, ensuring continuity of the University’s institutional approach to gender equality.

UB fully adopted the provisions of the collective labour agreement, which includes the following provisions of interest:

• Art. 22 – Employees who waive the legal parental leave for raising a child to the age of 1, 2 or 3 years, respectively, benefit from a reduction of the regular working hours by 2 hours/day, according to the law, without this affecting their basic salaries and seniority in education/work.
• Art. 24 – (1) Employers are obliged to grant pregnant employees time off for prenatal check-ups up to 16 hours per month, without affecting their pay entitlements […]
• Art. 24 – (3) Based on the recommendation of the family doctor, a pregnant employee who is unable to perform her regular working hours for health reasons for herself or her unborn child shall be entitled to a reduction of one-quarter of the regular working hours, while maintaining her salary income, entirely paid from the employer’s wage fund […]
• Art. 25 – (1) Employees starting from the fifth month of pregnancy, as well as those who are breastfeeding, shall not be assigned to night work, shall not be called for overtime, shall not be sent on delegation, shall not be seconded except with their consent and shall not be dismissed for reasons not related to their person.
• Art. 28 – (1) Employees are entitled to paid days off in case of special family events or in other situations, as follows: […] g) child health care – 2 working day (for families with one child or 2 children), respectively 3 working days (for families with 3 or more children), according to Law no. 91/2014 on granting one working day off per year for child health care.
• Art. 31 – (2) In addition to the paternity leave provided for in Article 28 para. (1) letter b) of this contract, the father shall be entitled to a leave of at least one month out of the total period of leave for the upbringing of the child, under the provisions of Article 11 of GEO no. 111/2010 on leave and monthly allowance for the upbringing of children, as subsequently amended and supplemented. The mother also benefits from this right if the father benefits from parental leave.
• Art. 67 – (2) The termination of an employee may not be ordered:
  a) for the duration of temporary incapacity for work, established by medical certificate;
  b) during quarantine leave;
  c) while the employee is pregnant, insofar as the employer was aware of this fact before the dismissal decision was issued;
  d) during maternity leave;
  e) during parental leave for the upbringing and care of a child up to the age of 2 years, or 3 years in the case of a disabled child;
  f) during leave for the care of a sick child up to the age of 7 years or, in the case of a disabled child, for a recurring illness until 18 years; […]

 

Objective 1 – Work-life balance of the University of Bucharest’s Gender Equality Plan 2025-2028 aims to strengthen institutional practices that enable members of the university community to better reconcile professional, academic and personal responsibilities. The objective builds on measures introduced during the first Gender Equality Plan, including flexible working arrangements and support for employees and students with caring responsibilities, while promoting more inclusive organisational practices. Among the measures already developed by the University is the possibility of partial teleworking for employees with children up to the age of 11, where the nature of their work permits it.

 

According to Article 150, of the Internal Regulations of the University of Bucharest, „Motherhood cannot constitute grounds for discrimination. Any less favourable treatment of a woman related to pregnancy or maternity leave shall be considered discrimination […] and is prohibited at the University of Bucharest”.

According to Article 151, of the Internal Regulations of the University of Bucharest: „Any less favourable treatment of a woman or a man on the grounds that they have requested or taken parental leave, paternity leave, carers’ leave, or have exercised their right to request flexible working arrangements shall constitute discrimination […] and is prohibited at the University of Bucharest”.

 

For students:

According to Article 36 of the Regulation on Students’ Professional Activity:

(1) A pregnant student benefits, based on her application and the supporting documents, from a period of interruption with a duration equivalent to the duration of the authorised sick leave. Students may request an interruption of studies for the upbringing and care of the child under the legal provisions.

(2) Upon resumption of studies, the student shall support any differences arising from the modification of the curriculum (free of charge), and the examinations passed up to the moment of interruption of the period of studies shall be recognised.

Students can similarly benefit from paternity leave.

One way in which student parents are encouraged to continue their studies is through the occasional maternity welfare grant, which is awarded to a student whose spouse has no income or income above the national minimum net wage and consists of a childbirth and maternity grant and a grant for the purchase of clothing for the newborn child, which is awarded once during the academic year for each child born (Art. 43, lit. b of the Methodology for awarding grants and other forms of support for students of the University of Bucharest, bachelor and master).

• The University of Bucharest supports student families by providing accommodation facilities. Thus, according to the Methodology on accommodation in UB dormitories, art. 17, students who have a dependent child and live with him/her have priority in the accommodation process. The same applies to UB employees up to the age of 35.
• One way in which student parents are encouraged to continue their studies is through the occasional maternity welfare grant, which is awarded to a student whose spouse has no income or income above the national minimum net wage and consists of a childbirth and maternity grant and a grant for the purchase of clothing for the newborn child, which is awarded once during the academic year for each child born (Art. 43, lit. b of the Methodology for awarding grants and other forms of support for students of the University of Bucharest, bachelor and master).
• Another measure encouraging students to continue their studies is provided in Art. 46, para. 1, lit. c of the Regulation on students’ professional activity, according to which the Dean of the Faculty may approve the interruption of studies for maternity and childcare.
• UB staff are entitled to parental leave for children up to the age of 2 or 3, in compliance with the law and the provisions of the collective labour agreement described above.

UB’s Department of Career Counselling and Guidance and the Psychological and Educational Counselling and Intervention Clinic offer counselling and mentoring services to all employees and students without discrimination. Available data shows that more than 50% of participants are females.

• The UB Statistics Office collects data on the number of graduates and their career paths and carries out descriptive and explanatory analyses to support student services and access schemes.
• As of 2024/25, the distribution of graduates is the following:
  • Out of 5,656 graduates in bachelor’s studies, 4,034 were female (71,32%);
  • Out of 4,012 graduates in master’s studies, 2,912 were female (72,58%);
  • Out of 265 graduates in doctoral studies, 143 were female (53,96%);
• To identify relevant information about the socio-educational background of UB students to facilitate their successful adaptation and integration into university life and thus prevent drop-out, the Inclusion Service, together with UB Learning Centre, implements an Integration Questionnaire through which students at risk of dropping out are identified and personalized support services are subsequently proposed.
• The UB Statistics Office tracks the professional status of graduates according to the last level of study. The latest available report completed 6-8 months after graduation (reference year – 2023) shows that 80% of female and 78% of male graduates were employed. For 60% of female respondents and 82% of male respondents, the post is in the field of study.
• The guide “Gender-Sensitive Statistics and Data Collection Tools” aimed to support the development of an institutional system for collecting and monitoring gender-sensitive data, a process initiated by the University of Bucharest. This system enables the development of future tailored Gender Equality Plans, adapted to the institution’s specific context and needs. The guide was made possible by the fact that the University of Bucharest already maintains a database containing sex-disaggregated information for most of the indicators it collects, which has enabled the cross-analysis of data.

The University of Bucharest has a policy that protects those reporting discrimination from educational or employment disadvantage.

• A central role in this policy is played by the Ethics Commission, which analyses and resolves deviations from university ethics based on complaints or through self-referrals. Both staff and students can address the commission in case of discrimination or other misconduct, and the university protects the right to confidentiality of its members in all matters concerning their private sphere, which can be provided only under the law (art. 8, Code of Ethics and Deontology).
• The University Ombudsman provides members of the academic community and the technical-administrative staff of the University, under conditions of complete confidentiality, with independent and impartial advice and information on the resolution of disputes and problems, with particular reference to cases of violation of the rights and freedoms provided for by law, the Charter and University regulations (art. 140, Charter of the University of Bucharest).

According to Article 152, of the Internal Regulations of the University of Bucharest: „Violation of the provisions of the Law on Equal Opportunities and Equal Treatment for Women and Men shall give rise, as appropriate, to disciplinary, financial, civil, administrative, or criminal liability for the persons found responsible”..

The University of Bucharest organises events, conferences and awareness activities addressing gender equality, discrimination and the visibility of women in academia and society.

• In 2025, the Centre for Equal Opportunities Policies (CPES) continued its public conference series on gender studies, addressing topics including anti-gender politics, the experiences of women in rural communities, gender-based violence, feminist perspectives and the representation of Roma women. Among these activities, a public round table on “The Influence of Gender Stereotypes in the Media on Young People” brought together students, researchers, gender-equality experts, journalists, psychologists and representatives of civil society to discuss the impact of gender stereotypes circulating through traditional and social media.
• The Humanities Division of the Research Institute of the University of Bucharest (ICUB) organised the seminar “Conceptually Engineering Gender Terms”, delivered by Dr Andreea Popescu. The event was part of the Lunchtime Seminar series, a format in which researchers present their work and discuss research findings in an interdisciplinary academic setting. The seminar examined how gender-related concepts can be analysed and clarified from the perspectives of philosophy and social ontology. It included a presentation followed by discussion, providing a space to reflect on how language and conceptual frameworks shape the understanding of social relations.
• Several activities also happened during the implementation of the University’s Gender Equality Plan. In November 2025, within the SEE-ERA project, the University hosted an international mentoring visit focused on gender equality and inclusion, concluding with a lecture on “Gender Mainstreaming in Research and Innovation” for doctoral students. In May 2024, the University of Bucharest organised an interactive Legislative Theatre activity on sexual harassment in universities, using participatory theatre to help students explore real-life situations, discuss institutional responses and collectively identify possible measures for prevention and support. The awareness campaign on gender equality, diversity and inclusion“Be Part of the Change!” was implemented at the end of 2024.
• In 2024, the conference “Excellence (also) in the Feminine at the University of Bucharest: Towards an Inclusive History of UB Personalities”, dedicated to recovering and recognising women’s contributions to academic life.