Current issues and future challenges in Education based on the analysis of Human Capital indicators between 2007-2017

The investments in educational capital are a medium and long-term weapon that nations can use to combat poverty and ensure sustainable development. Considering that the future belongs to those states that are aware of its huge potential, an analysis on the Romanian stock of educational capital is a necessity. Thus, the research findings will further facilitate the knowledge that decision makers could use to improve the policies and strategies in order to develop a competitive education in a digitized economy. The analysis will focus on the quantitative and qualitative dimension of human capital. The evolution of enrollment rates by education levels, school dropout rates and the results of international tests will be the pillars of the educational capital analysis between 2007-2017. The study will be based on data from the Eurostat database, Statistical Yearbooks and official data provided by public institutions and international organizations. In fact, the period under evaluation was chosen for reasons that are linked to the economic and political context. The first was to carry out an analysis of the impact on education of the first 10 years after Romania’s accession to the European Union. The second reason was the identification of the existing or non-existing effects on the education system of two different periods of the economy evolution (the crisis and the post - economic crisis). The third reason was to highlight the educational system direction in a decade characterized by major changes in business and labor market along with the evolution of the digitized economy.