In a meeting with the media on October 17, 2024, AmCham Romania launched the Report on the Economic Impact of School Dropout, conducted for AmCham by the University of Bucharest. 

• The overall average dropout rate, including the 2013-2021 cohort, is 23,147 students per cohort. 
• The lifetime costs of all people who dropped out of school during the analyzed period represent approximately 35.67% of Romania's annual GDP (estimated at EUR 300 billion).
• Romania has the lowest rates in the EU in terms of adult education.

The report is one of the first attempts to measure in economic terms a worrying social phenomenon, with the aim of bringing clarity about the costs at the individual and societal level, and to support the adoption of public policies and measures to reduce school dropout in Romania.

"Human capital and education are central priorities for AmCham. After looking at the economic cost of the labor deficit last year, we continued the series of AmCham analysis by addressing  one of Romania's most important challenges – school dropout.  Together with our partners from the University of Bucharest, we wanted to see how much it costs us as an economy and society to have the highest early school leaving rate in the European Union - 16.6% in 2023. According to our analysis, every year, around 23,000 students leave school, and there are long term consequences: a dropout earns on average around €190,000 less over their lifetime than a highschool graduate. This is more than statistics, the figures tell a story of missed opportunities, of unfulfilled potential," said Elisabeta Moraru, Member of the AmCham Romania Board of Directors and Chair of the AmCham working group dedicated to education.

In brief, the report’s main findings are: 

• The general average dropout rate, including the 2013-2021 cohort, is 23,147 students per cohort. Additionally, Romania has the lowest adult education rates in the EU with a participation of 1% in 2020, 5.7% in 2022, and 6.7% in 2023 among people aged 25 – 64.
• Considering differences in active working life, the average lifetime earnings of a dropout amount to EUR 353,736, compared to EUR 544,210 for a high school graduate, reflecting into a significant lifetime economic disadvantage of EUR 190,473.
• Lifetime costs for all individuals who dropped out between 2005-2013 and 2016-2024 total EUR 107 billion, about 35.67% of Romania’s annual GDP (estimated at EUR 300 billion).
• Annual expenditures on dropout costs for the 12 analyzed cohorts amount to approximately EUR 2.3 billion, about 0.77% of Romania’s annual GDP. The costs of dropouts from the 12 analyzed cohorts over the past 11 years amount to around EUR 15.7 billion, about 5.23% of Romania's annual GDP.

The full study, along with a summary of findings and intervention recommendations, is available on AmCham Romania’s website here.

Sharing the study’s approach, the value of the findings, and the challenges related to access to relevant data, Professor Dragoș Iliescu from the University of Bucharest, Coordinator of the report, mentioned: "School dropout has been usually discussed in Romania in descriptive terms, without direct reference to the economic loss in terms of societal costs. The report aims to support solutions to reduce dropout rates. Experience shows that quantitative data provides greater clarity in developing public policies and intervention measures. Education in general, and school dropout specifically, should be viewed through an 'investment-return' lens. This perspective allows for a much clearer analysis of this phenomenon’s consequences, underscoring the need for more substantial budgets for this strategic field, as well as dedicated measures to reduce dropout. The main challenge in preparing this study was the lack of data. Although Romania produces a large volume of statistical data, very little can be used in such studies, which require a research architecture in social, economic, and educational fields that we do not yet have.”