University admissions report 2025
A complete report of the results and what comes next in 2026
An analysis of international admissions data from the past three years: 2023, 2024 and 2025. Achievements, trends, the profile of the Romanian student applying internationally and the changes we observe for 2026.
2023-2025
growth
annually
world top 100
Almost half of the offers come from elite universities
In 2025, Upgrade Education students gathered over 600 estimated offers from international universities, continuing a 3 year trend of rising quality in Romanian applications worldwide.
This report analyzes the data of the roughly 500 Romanian students we prepare each year, highlights trends in application behavior and offers a starting point for a broader reflection on education in Romania.
The figures are impressive, but what lies behind them matters more: the students' real journeys, the strategic decisions, the changes of direction. You can read them in our student stories.
Why students choose to study abroad
More and more Romanian students strategically choose to study abroad. One explanation lies in the context of local universities: no university in Romania is in the global top 500, according to the QS 2026 World Ranking. We have 2 universities in the top 1000 and 10 in the global top 1500.
| QS 2026 Ranking | QS 2025 Ranking | Institution |
|---|---|---|
| 761-770 | 781-790 | Babes-Bolyai University |
| 761-770 | 801-850 | University of Bucharest |
| 1001-1200 | 1201-1400 | Alexandru Ioan Cuza University of Iasi |
| 1201-1400 | 1201-1400 | Technical University of Cluj-Napoca |
| 1201-1400 | 1201-1400 | Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iasi |
| 1201-1400 | 1201-1400 | Transilvania University of Brasov |
| 1201-1400 | 1201-1400 | POLITEHNICA University of Bucharest |
| 1201-1400 | 1201-1400 | West University of Timisoara |
| 1401+ | 1401+ | Stefan cel Mare University of Suceava |
| 1401+ | 1401+ | University of Oradea |
Source: QS World University Rankings
For students aiming at global careers or specific fields (aerospace engineering, international law, finance, architecture), options abroad become not only attractive but often necessary. See the study abroad options we cover.
A Romanian student can compete at the highest international level
Upgrade Education was founded in 2017 out of the conviction that a Romanian student, with the right support, can compete at the highest international level.
Our model does not rely on templates. Every student has a different path, a different profile, different doubts. Our method (Hyper-Fit Future-Self Mentoring) matches students with mentors who can guide their way because they have walked it themselves, in one form or another. We do not give "correct answers", we help students find their own answers.
We want to prepare students not just for admission, but for a career built on values: rigor, courage, curiosity, and the ability to tell your story authentically.
Three trends that define the past three years
Total number of offers
Over 1,084 cumulative offers in three years. Estimated in extrapolated form, the actual offers may reach ~1,520.
Share of offers from the world top 100
Almost half of the offers received in 2025 come from universities in the global elite.
Average offers per student
A strategic decline: students choose quality over quantity, focusing on more selective universities.
Changes influencing strategy
- The University of Groningen announced that, starting with the 2025-2026 academic year, its Medicine bachelor's program will be offered exclusively in Dutch.
- The University of Amsterdam and Erasmus University Rotterdam intend to discontinue their English-taught Psychology bachelor's programs starting in 2027-2028.
- Post-Brexit effects continue to make UK universities more expensive for Romanian students.
These changes are prompting Romanian students to reassess their options and turn toward stable and affordable destinations.
The offers received, broken down by destination
Share of offers from the US top 100
Ivy League offers stay constant: 3 each year. The drop in average offers per student (from 2.86 to 1.86) reflects the focus on universities with lower acceptance rates.
Offers from the UK top 100
Oxford & Cambridge
9 admissions in 2023 → 5 admissions in 2025 (3 undergraduate, 2 master's).
Top 5 UK universities in 2025
- University College London (UCL)13 offers
- University of Warwick12 offers
- University of Bristol8 offers
- London School of Economics (LSE)8 offers
- King's College London8 offers
Offers from the EU top 100
Popular destinations in 2025
- Bocconi (Italy): finance, economics
- TU Delft & Eindhoven (Netherlands): engineering
- Sciences Po (France): political science
- IE University, ESADE (Spain): business
Details by year
- 2023: NYU Abu Dhabi, Duke Kunshan
- 2024: 2 Asia, 1 Canada
- 2025: 1 Africa, 1 Asia, 4 Canada
Canada is becoming an increasingly visible destination: politically stable, internationally open, with reasonable costs.
Cumulative 2023-2025: the preferred UK universities
- University of Manchester32 offers
- UCL29 offers
- King's College London29 offers
- University of Warwick29 offers
Who is the Romanian student applying internationally
The data from the past three years allows us to outline a profile of the Romanian student who successfully applies to universities abroad:
An increasingly clear trend: Romanian students choose renowned European universities that offer programs in English at a more affordable cost than the UK or the USA.
What the data tells us
For Romania, this wave of educational mobility should not be understood as a loss. It can be an opportunity: to bring back the expertise of these young people, or to turn local universities into hubs of attraction comparable to international ones.
What comes next in 2026
For the 2026 academic year, we already observe:
- →More students applying in the 10th and 11th grade, not just in the 12th. Preparation starts earlier.
- →Growing interest in Canada: politically stable, internationally open, with reasonable costs.
- →A revival of the Career Path Clarity Diploma program: students who want vocational clarity before choosing a specialization. The program with the highest NPS in our portfolio (98% of students and parents).
- →A greater emphasis on personal projects: selective universities want stories, not CVs. Projects with real impact are becoming powerful differentiators.
We will return with the full 2026 report at the end of the academic year.
Who we are and what we do
We are a Romanian edtech company founded in 2017, offering personalized mentoring for admission to recognized international universities in the USA, UK and Europe. Over 1500 students have gone through our programs and together received over 5000 offers from universities in the world top 150.
Our programs
- Career Path Clarity Diploma: for students who want vocational clarity (35 sessions).
- University Readiness Degree: complete preparation for admission to international universities (CoachMe US, UK, EU, Oxbridge, Sciences Po, etc.).
- Specialized programs: SAT, LNAT, Creative Writing, ECL, preparation for high school entrance tests.
Our trust figures
- 4.7/5 on Trustpilot and Google Reviews
- 98% NPS on the Career Path Clarity Diploma
- 10% churn rate
- 100+ mentors from the world top 150 universities
Beyond the numbers
The statistics show the direction, but individual journeys show how you get there. See who the students behind these results are.
Ready to write your own story?
Talk directly with an Upgrade mentor. A 30 to 45 minute conversation about your situation, your needs and whether we can help you, free and with no obligations.
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