Inauguration of “Ioan Bogdan” amphitheater of the Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures of the University of Bucharest

On Monday, May 22, 2023, the Faculty of Foreign Languages ​​and Literatures of the University of Bucharest, together with Deloitte, one of the largest global audits, financial consulting, risk management and tax companies, organized the inauguration ceremony of “Ioan Bogdan” Amphitheater.

The event was held in the presence of several members of the board of the University of Bucharest, teaching staff from FLLS, representatives of the company and students, including prof. Marian Preda, PhD, rector of UB, prof. Laura Sitaru, PhD, dean of FLLS, Jan Verhoven, operational director of GES & TLDC (Global Employer Services & Tax, Legal Delivery Centre) Deloitte, and Cătălin Iorgulescu, Head of Center Deloitte.

In the opening of the event moderated by prof. Laura Sitaru, took the floor prof. Marian Preda and Jan Verhoven, who emphasized the necessity and importance of inaugurating such an area within the Faculty of Foreign Languages ​​and Literatures of UB.

Prof. Marian Preda thanked the investors and emphasized that it is normal to have a partnership between the University, public institutions and employers, considering that the university generates highly qualified human resources for both public and private institutions in Romania.

“The University of Bucharest bought the building of the Faculty of Foreign Languages ​​and Literatures, spending over 32 million lei a year and a half ago, and without the UB’s effort to purchase the building and renovate some areas, it would probably have been more difficult to operate this investment because, in about two years, we should have transferred the building to the previous rightful owner, an educational association of the Catholic Church. Now the building is ours, and out of the 49, the FLLS building is the third largest. UB is a national institution that produces highly qualified human resources for Romania, and thus it is normal for the state to contribute where it would have been extremely difficult, with current funding, for UB to cover all these expenses. In addition, by using other people’s material resources, it is normal to create for you – students, first of all, and professors – normal conditions, similar to those in any Western European country. This is a very good example of what FLLS, and the entire University should look like”, pointed out prof. Preda.

He further emphasized the high degree of employability among UB students and graduates, pointing out that the renovation of FLLS represents an example for the entire University, and the modernization of UB and the creation of optimal conditions for members of its community is both an ongoing process and prospectively.

“It is a first step in the collaboration between the University of Bucharest and Deloitte, we will continue and try to put resources together for the next projects, all for the benefit of our students and professors, because the University of Bucharest is the most important higher education institution in Romania”, said the UB rector.

“It is a pleasure to be part of initiatives of this kind, which encourage and support the education of talented young people. Through the investment we made in this amphitheater, we contributed to the development of a future generation of young professionals. They are the ones who will help us maintain our title as the best employers in our field. […] Who are we and what is our activity? We are part of the department called Global Employer Services, which mediates multinational clients when it comes to the relationship with their employees. Deloitte is looking for nine types of skills. One of them is knowledge of the fields: fiscal law, social law, labor law, etc. In each country we have experts in these domains, where our clients are active. We also need people with communication, coordination, organization skills, which we have found every time among the students and graduates of the University of Bucharest”, stated Jan Verhoven.

At the same time, the dean of FLLS, prof. Laura Sitaru, pointed out in front of the audience the significance of the existence of the renovated amphitheater for students and professors.

“In the FLLS building, we tried to constantly make arrangements. In this sense, Martin Luther King Amphitheater, completed with a substantial donation from the Embassy of the United States of America – is an example of what is happening here today. Also, last year, in autumn, we managed to set up the Korean corner with the support of the Embassy of the Republic of South Korea and the Korea Foundation. We also have investments made by Turkish government foundations. At the same time, at FLLS we renovated three rooms with our own resources, of the University of Bucharest. They are small steps, but very important because they give a signal of normality”, emphasized the dean of FLLS.

Cătălin Iorgulescu, Head of Center Deloitte, presented to the students the specifics of the company, the multiculturalism that characterizes it, the opportunities it offers, highlighting the fact that education is the most important thing it possesses, being the most important resource and investment.

In the second part of the event, diplomas and prizes were awarded to the winners of the FLLS Student Scientific Communication Session, a scientific meeting that took place on May 5-6, 2023.

In the end, Deloitte representatives presented the career opportunities within the company, and FLLS alumni, Deloitte current employees, shared with students their professional experience.

With a capacity of 126 seats, “Ioan Bogdan” Amphitheater of FLLS has new furniture and electric system, as well as other state-of-the-art equipment: laser video projector, projection screen, sound amplifier and speakers, wireless microphone, magnetic board, splitter HDMI and digital monitor.