Students starting the 8th grade in September 2026 can take an additional high school entrance exam. High schools can organize their own competitions for a maximum of 50% of places, with unique subjects developed by the National Center for Curriculum and Evaluation, from the common core. The National Assessment will decide who takes the rest of the places, and the additional exam is optional, in which only students who obtained a minimum grade of 5 in the National Assessment can enroll.
High schools are not required to organize such competitions, and for the remaining seats, secondary school graduates can participate in the computerized allotment, which will take place after the completion of separate admission.
The Secretary of State in the Ministry of Education, Sorin Ion, explained for “The Truth” the way in which the subjects for the admission tests will be carried out. He emphasized that the tests will be selected exclusively from the subjects that are part of the common core, and the National Center for Curriculum and Evaluation is the institution responsible for their development.
“Subjects for the additional high school entrance exam will be selected exclusively from subjects that are part of the common core, which means that no optional or non-existent subjects will be used, and the National Center for Curriculum and Evaluation is the institution responsible for their development. For example, if a high school with a social science profile wants to organize a history exam, the center will provide a national set of history subjects, which can be used by all high schools that opt for this type of its own competition, so that, in essence, the subjects are the same at the national level, but each school chooses its discipline and determines the weight that the respective test will have in the final admission grade”explained the secretary of state.
The National Assessment retains its importance
Asked what the purpose of the National Assessment will be, if the high schools will be able to organize their own admission competitions, the state secretary replied that the law clearly states that the high school can fill up to 50% of the total number of places through its own competition, and the rest of the places remain allocated based on the results of the National Assessment.
About the relationship between the own competition and the National Evaluation, Sorin Ion stated:
“The law is very clear about these aspects, because it provides that the high school can fill up to 50% of the total number of places through its own competition, and the rest of the places remain allocated based on the results of the National Assessment, so that each form of admission has its well-defined role. Moreover, the own competition represents, in fact, a second chance for students who failed to be admitted to a certain high school through one of the methods, since they can try the other option, provided that the National Assessment should also be supported, and this was the main purpose of the law, that of giving students an additional opportunity to get to the desired high school.”
Teacher: The supplementary exam provides a beneficial challenge
Ruxandra Achim, teacher of Romanian Language and Literature at the National College “IL Caragiale” from Bucharest, explained for “The Truth” why this additional exam is needed. She pointed out that the National Assessment does not lose its usefulness because not all students are interested in going to high schools with high requirements.
“The National Assessment does not lose its usefulness, because not all students are interested in going to high schools with high requirements, and it is important to think about the vast majority of 8th grade graduates who can opt for profiles that do not require an additional entrance exam.
For these students, the National Assessment remains a solid basis, and the most correct approach would be that, when calculating the admission average for a desired high school, to take into account both the results from the National Assessment and the marks obtained in the specific testing within the second competition, thus achieving an average between the two”the teacher pointed out.
She added that an additional exam can be helpful for students: “It is useful for students to have the possibility of an additional exam, because usually they focus exclusively on the exam subjects, Mathematics and Romanian Language, and omit other subjects, and a test based on general questions could be of great help, showing them that in high school they will not only have these two subjects.
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On the other hand, for many students, an extra exam will be an additional challenge and the logistics of admission will become more complicated, because after taking the National Assessment for all candidates, the exams specific to each high school will follow, and all participants will have to wait until the results are completed and communicated, especially since if a student gets a high grade in the National Assessment, but not good enough to enter the national college or the desired high school, he will have to participate in the computerized distribution, if this mechanism will continue”, says the teacher.
Candidates, at least grade 5 in the National Assessment
The admission competition consists of two tests, established at the level of the educational unit, which target disciplines related to the profile or specialization.
The subjects are developed by the National Center for Curriculum and Assessment and are standardized and unique at the national level. Students who obtained at least grade 5 in each test of the national assessment can participate in the admissions competition. Candidates are admitted in descending order of the admission average, within the limits of available places, provided that each test is passed with a minimum grade of 5. The date of the admission competition is established by order of the Minister of Education and is public at the beginning of each school year.
The introduction of the additional high school entrance exam has generated debates since the legislative draft phase.
In May 2025, the Minister of Education at the time, Daniel David, declared that he supports the provision in the law, considering that decentralization at the high school level and customization by specialization are beneficial. In January 2025, he considered that the separate exam is, in essence, a form of compensation for the fact that the education authorities have not found a way to properly assess students, who come from schools of different levels.
Regarding the need for this exam, Daniel David had declared at the time: “I’m not so against that, if we think about the average kid who takes the National Assessment, has a bad day and gets really low grades, even though he’s really good in math, chemistry, physics. He just had some bad moments on the test. If we put that contest in the high schools where he excels, on the real profile and so on, I’m all for it.”
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Students and parents opposed the additional exam
The introduction of the additional high school entrance exam has caused controversy in society.
The Secretary of State in the Ministry of Education, Sorin Ion, explained at the time that the exam is not mandatory neither for high schools nor for students. He had declared: “If the child went to the National Assessment and got a satisfactory grade, he will certainly no longer be interested in entering the competitive places, because he will enter without any emotion the computerized places.”
Parents opposed this exam, citing added pressure on students and favoritism “meditation industry”. In 2022, Iulian Cristache, president of the Parents’ Federation, declared that he was against the exam and requested that the Ministry take into account the OECD recommendations regarding the problematic level of private training. Likewise, Simona Crisbășanu from the Coalition for Education brought as an argument an OECD study on successful models for entering high school.
The students did not support the introduction of this exam either. The president of the Constanța Students’ Association at the time, Adriana Dudună, had suggested that, in the event that it is proven that the National Assessment is not representative, it should be modified, instead of introducing an additional exam. Initially, in the first version of the Cîmpeanu law, from the summer of 2022, the exam would have been given only in the case of national colleges and for 90% of the places. Later, the percentage was changed to 80%, then dropping to 60% in the draft form of the Deca League and finally reaching 50% in the current form of the law.
