Forty years after first stepping onto the campus of Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iași (TUIASI), graduates from Burundi returned in September 2026 to the city that had been their home during their student years. Their reconnecting with the Polytechnic Institute of Iași, the former name of TUIASI, and the city was an emotional one, but also a proof to the fact that the bond between a university and its graduates does not end with the awarding of a diploma.
For TUIASI, the visit holds particular significance. The Burundian engineers who received their education here are now part of an international Alumni community with which the university wishes to reconnect and which it seeks to develop. They can also become important advocates and ambassadors for TUIASI among young people in their home country who are looking to pursue careers in engineering and architecture.
A Warm Welcome
The guests were warm welcomed by Prof. Irina Lungu, PhD. Eng., Vice-Rector for International Relations, who emphasized that such return visits are always welcome at TUIASI.
“Our graduates represent the university’s finest credential. The fact that, after forty years, they choose to return to TUIASI and Iași says so much about what the university offers during their student years, and beyond.”
Prof. Irina Lungu
During the meeting, the Vice-Rector outlined the university’s remarkable evolution over the decades, highlighting the continuous transformation and modernization of the institution in line with the contemporary engineering standards.
The visit programme also included a tour of the Rectorate building, a visit to the Library of Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iași, and a visit to the Carmen Sylva Great Hall — all landmark locations of the TUIASI.
Iași, the City where it all began
For these graduates from Burundi, the university and Iași represent the starting point of their professional development, the places where they formed friendships and discovered a new culture. They also left these places carrying memories that they have treasured for four decades.
Their return gave them the opportunity to walk once again along the paths of the university campus, through lecture halls and the Rectorate building, and revisit the places where they spent their youth. Much has changed since then: the university has modernized, and the city has grown. Yet the feeling of being “at home” has remained the same.
An Alumni Community Without Borders
Over the decades, TUIASI has educated engineers and architects who now work across several continents. The Burundian graduates belong to a generation of international students who chose Iași for a solid technical education.
For the university, this network is a valuable resource. Graduates bring the perspective of careers built on the foundation of their studies in Iași, can pave the way for partnerships, and can support today’s students through mentorship and personal example.
For this reason, TUIASI aims to maintain active ties with its international graduates through its Alumni community and a dedicated platform: https://alumni.tuiasi.ro/, as well as through reunions, online events, and the involvement of graduates in programmes for international students, among other initiatives. The visit of the delegation from Burundi represents a concrete step in this direction.
Ambassadors for TUIASI in their home country
No one can speak more convincingly about university life than those who have experienced it firsthand. For a young person from Burundi considering studying abroad, the story of an engineer who graduated in Iași and subsequently built a career in their home country is worth more than any brochure.
The TUIASI graduates from Burundi were invited to become ambassadors for the university within their communities by sharing their experiences as students at TUIASI and guiding young people in their country towards information about admission and study programmes at TUIASI. As international students who studied at TUIASI, they can reassure families that their young people will be in good hands, in a welcoming and safe city.
Young people from Burundi interested in studying at TUIASI can find information about English-taught study programmes and international student admissions at https://study.tuiasi.ro/.
A Journey that begins here
By hosting this visit, TUIASI sends a message to students from around the world: wherever they come from, those who choose to study at Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iași can build the future they aspire to through dedication and hard work, and they will always be welcome to return, no matter how much time has passed.
The Burundian graduates left Iași with their memories renewed and will inspire a new generation of young people from Burundi to choose TUIASI as the place where they begin their own journey.
