{"id":4704,"date":"2025-09-27T11:03:50","date_gmt":"2025-09-27T10:03:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/?p=4704"},"modified":"2025-09-30T15:55:22","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T14:55:22","slug":"au-universitatile-o-datorie-de-a-fi-intelese","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/au-universitatile-o-datorie-de-a-fi-intelese\/","title":{"rendered":"Do universities have a duty to be understood?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Every week, I read almost a thousand news items from the websites of universities and research institutions in Romania to compile <a href=\"http:\/\/scidigest.ro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Romanian Science Digest<\/a>, so I know how hard it is sometimes to find the information you&#039;re looking for. Now, there&#039;s also a top 10 of the most Internet-friendly universities, by the report <a href=\"https:\/\/universitati-digitale.ro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">https:\/\/universitati-digitale.ro\/<\/a>I want to tell you about it, but let&#039;s also ask ourselves together: do universities have a duty to communicate well?<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Study of digital presence<\/h2>\n<p>The Digital Universities study, conducted by Dorin Spoaller, a university lecturer at Babe\u0219-Bolyai University, systematically analyzes all 87 accredited universities in the country, evaluating not only their websites on several aspects: from search engine optimization to social media presence. The results are divided into three categories, like a traffic light: green for good performance, yellow for mediocrity, red for disaster.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Top universities as a digital presence<\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">West University of Timi\u0219oara (State)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">&quot;1 December 1918&quot; University of Alba Iulia (State)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Partium Christian University of Oradea (Private)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">&quot;Danubius&quot; University of Gala\u021bi (Private)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">University of Bucharest (State)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Sapientia University of Cluj-Napoca (Private)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">University of Petro\u0219ani (State)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">&quot;Transylvania&quot; University of Bra\u0219ov (State)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">&quot;Lucian Blaga&quot; University of Sibiu (State)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Maritime University of Constanta (State)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4709\" src=\"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2638\" height=\"470\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-300x53.png 300w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-1024x182.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-768x137.png 768w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-1536x274.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-18x3.png 18w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-450x80.png 450w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-1360x242.png 1360w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-800x143.png 800w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.45.57-2000x356.png 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2638px) 100vw, 2638px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Universities at the bottom of the ranking:<\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>80. &quot;Henri Coanda&quot; Air Force Academy Bra\u0219ov (State)<br \/>\n81. &quot;Spiru Haret&quot; University of Bucharest (Private)<br \/>\n82. European University &quot;Dr\u0103gan&quot; from Lugoj (Private)<br \/>\n83. &quot;Romanian-German&quot; University of Sibiu (Private)<br \/>\n84. &quot;Mihail Kog\u0103lniceanu&quot; University of Ia\u0219i (Private)***<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-4708\" src=\"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"2794\" height=\"488\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-300x52.png 300w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-1024x179.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-768x134.png 768w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-1536x268.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-18x3.png 18w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-450x79.png 450w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-1360x238.png 1360w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-800x140.png 800w, https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Screenshot-2025-09-27-at-13.32.29-2000x349.png 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2794px) 100vw, 2794px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>What was analyzed:<\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Responsive site (i.e. if it looks good regardless of screen size)<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">News section<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Updated design<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Website menu<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">International version<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Contact details<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Search engine<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Social media<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Disability accessibility<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words\">Visible admission<\/li>\n<li>Cookie banner<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>The best performing universities are not the best communicators<\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>There are a few notable absences from the top 10. First, here&#039;s what it looks like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.edupedu.ro\/cele-mai-bune-universitati-romanesti-universitatea-babes-bolyai-din-cluj-napoca-universitatea-din-bucuresti-si-politehnica-bucuresti-metarankingul-national-2024-clasamentul-oficial-publicat-de-mi\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">latest metaranking<\/a> of universities in Romania, a compilation of various international hierarchies,<\/p>\n<p>1. &quot;Babe\u0219-Bolyai&quot; University of Cluj-Napoca<\/p>\n<p>2. University of Bucharest<\/p>\n<p>3. UNST Polytechnic University of Bucharest<\/p>\n<p>4. &quot;Carol Davila&quot; University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Bucharest<\/p>\n<p>5. &quot;Transylvania&quot; University of Bra\u0219ov<\/p>\n<p>6. &quot;Iuliu Ha\u021bieganu&quot; University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Cluj-Napoca<\/p>\n<p>7. Al. I. Cuza University of Ia\u0219i<\/p>\n<p>8. West University of Timisoara<\/p>\n<p>9. Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies<\/p>\n<p>10. Technical University of Cluj-Napoca<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>From the top 10 digital, only 3 universities are present in Metaranking: University of Bucharest (5th place digital, 2nd place Metaranking), Transilvania University of Bra\u0219ov (8th place digital, 5th place Metaranking) and West University of Timi\u0219oara (1st place digital, 8th place Metaranking).<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>From here I came to a fundamental question: if a university is very good at what it does, education and research, why does it matter whether it has a good website or not? Why should marketing matter or, as I often hear in academia said with disdain, who sells their wares better on the stall? But I think these questions have the wrong lens.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Communication means attitude towards the public<\/h2>\n<p>This data reflects something deeper than technical problems with a website. It reflects an attitude. When a university has a non-functional website, or a design from 2005, or outdated content, or information so obscured that you have to click 10-12 times before you find something, then we are not talking about a lack of resources. We are talking about a lack of respect for the public that finances it. Remember, most universities are public and receive money both from the budget and from students who pay for their studies.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>If you are skeptical when reading this, think of another public institution funded by our money. A city hall. Or ANAF. We have no claims from their websites? We want the information to be transparent, easy to find, so that we don&#039;t click endlessly, so that we don&#039;t find news from 2023.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>So do universities. When they produce knowledge \u2013 whether it&#039;s a new vaccine or a linguistic theory \u2013 that knowledge belongs to all of us. We have the right to understand it, to access it, to use it.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>To answer my own question: yes, I believe that universities have a duty to communicate well, and that means even more than having a good digital presence. It also means making themselves understood about the value and impact they produce in research, because the public deserves that.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>I write about how to better promote science and research in my newsletter Science and Communication. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/newsletter\/\">You can subscribe here.<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"cats\"><span class=\"cats__title\">Categories<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/category\/promovare\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Promotion<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Digital Universities report evaluates the websites of 84 Romanian universities. West University of Timisoara leads the list, but many universities normally considered top do not have the best websites. The question I am trying to unravel: why would we care about communication?<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4705,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4704","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-promovare"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4704"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4704"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4704\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4713,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4704\/revisions\/4713"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4705"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4704"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4704"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comunicarestiintifica.ro\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4704"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}