Nearly 200 teachers and carers from Indonesia and Nepal will work from this fall in private kindergartens, schools and nurseries in Romania. This seems to be a concrete solution to the staff shortage that is increasingly affecting private pre-school education.
Csinta left behind the high mountains and rainforests of Indonesia to work more than 10,000km away in the crowded suburbs of Bucharest.
"I have been here for almost two years. It will be two years in July. I'm happy to work here because the pay is good and I can practice English, because in Indonesia it's hard to find people to speak English with," she says.
The most important thing for Csinta is that she can financially support her mother and her 18-year-old son, both of whom are still in Indonesia. So do thousands of women from Asia who work in Romania not only as housekeepers or nannies, but also as teachers or carers in nurseries and kindergartens.
Romania can't seem to find enough candidates, especially for these support, ancillary and cleaning staff, housekeepers, kitchen help.
So more and more private nurseries and kindergartens are turning to recruitment agencies to find English-speaking Asian employees.
"They are patient, they have a special interest in the relationship with the child, in the work, with the child. They are already qualified in that sense. And there are private training centers for caregivers, where they take short courses, between 3 and 12 months," said Elena Larisa Nicolaeascu, a counselor for a recruitment.
Three-step selection: local agency, Romanian agency and employer
Candidates come mainly from Indonesia and Nepal, and the selection process is rigorous, involving several stages.
The recruitment process involves interviews in the countries of origin, followed by assessments by the Romanian agency and, finally, by employers in Romania. All to ensure that those selected are suitable for working with children.
"This is not a first for us. We have brought educators from Indonesia in the past. The difference is that now the demand is higher," explains Yosef Gavriel Peisakh, general manager at Work from Asia, the recruitment company that mediates the hiring.
English is compulsory. Romanian can be learned on the go
The future teachers must have a very good command of the English language in which they will also teach the children. In addition, they will attend training courses on teaching methods, working with children and adapting to Romanian culture and mentality.
The education systems are very different. It's just that we don't bring in people who have never worked in the field. I mean we always focus on finding staff who have experience in the job. If they have the experience, they will take some intensive courses in teaching in English, adapting to the mentality in Romania, working with children, depending on their age, because they are different: some are more caregivers, others are more educators, others teachers. It depends on the age segment," adds Peisakh.
For kindergartens and private schools only
All these recruitments are exclusively in the private sector. The Romanian state, says the agency's manager, neither encourages - nor facilitates - the bringing of non-EU staff into the public system.
"Never for the state. The state doesn't seem open to it. But in the private sector there's a real need for staff and that's when we're frequently contacted to find solutions," he says.
Romanian language courses taught in Nepal and Indonesia
To facilitate integration, representatives of the agency will personally travel to Nepal and Indonesia to provide basic Romanian language courses useful in everyday life.
Future teachers and caregivers working in Romania will be accommodated in training centers in their countries of origin for two to three months, where they will attend daily training and English language classes. Every two months, trainers from Romania will provide intensive Romanian language modules.
Salaries between €750 and €850 plus room and board
Starting salaries range from €750 to €850 net per month, plus room and board provided by the employer. After six months, salaries can be renegotiated, depending on performance evaluation.
But bringing in a foreign employee is not a quick process. "Just processing the paperwork can take up to seven months. That's the best-case scenario," says Peisakh.
Why Indonesia and Nepal?
Although Work from Asia works with staff from several countries - including the Philippines, Sri Lanka and India - the most suitable candidates for this type of work, says the manager, have lately been coming from Indonesia and Nepal.
"They are calm, patient, involved, exactly what you want from someone working with young children. Although English is a challenge in Nepal, we have identified some great candidates. They are enthusiastic and really want to work."
100,000 foreign workers approved in 2025
The case of the Asian teachers is part of a wider context. In 2025, Romania has approved a quota of 100,000 non-EU workers who can obtain work permits. Most come from Nepal, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Philippines.
They join the 150,000 or so Asian workers already working in Romania in construction, transportation, restaurants and services.
