At the same time foreign students are not numerous in Bulgaria, although they come from a variety of countries. As of 1972 only 1,240 foreign students had been graduated from Bulgarian universities. Among these graduates were 174 from Albania, 129 from Syria, 126 from East Germany, ninety-four from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea), fifty-seven from Kenya, and fifty from the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam). In the academic year 1969/70 alone, 1,882 foreign students attended Bulgarian institutions of higher education. These students came from ninety-two countries; they include 430 students from North Vietnam, 393 from Syria, 106 from the Sudan, forty-five from Iraq, and twenty-two from Cuba. Although the focus in foreign student exchange is definitely on the developing countries—for both economic and political reasons—in 1971 foreign student exchanges with Western countries were being increased.

Although higher education is tuition free in Bulgaria, financial assistance is still required by a large number of students. The percentage of students on governmental scholarships varies from year to year, generally ranging between 30 to 40 percent. In 1965 over 39 percent of the student population received scholarships, whereas in 1970 only 30 percent received them. There are two basic conditions for scholarships as stipulated by the state: acceptable grade averages and a family income—per family member—that does not exceed 70 leva per month.

There are still severe difficulties in the field of higher education in Bulgaria. One problem is the acute shortage of professors in the areas of engineering and technology in institutions of higher education. At some times the shortage is so extreme that advertisements are placed in the newspapers in order to recruit personnel.

Another difficulty in higher education is overcrowding in the schools and in the cities where the institutions are located. This dilemma is particularly acute in Sofia, where most of the major universities and institutes are located. In school year 1969/70 there were 82,573 students enrolled in higher educational institutions; of this number, 59,130—roughly three-fourths—were in Sofia. As many of the students come to Sofia from other areas of the country, the influx of students has created a severe housing shortage. One solution, which has been explored to some extent in recent years, has been for students to enroll in institutions in major cities to study in their regional areas during the year and come to Sofia only when examinations are given. Approximately one-third of the total student population have studied on this basis.

A more serious problem is the issue of student preferences versus the demands of the economy. Since the government requires trained scientific and technological personnel, there are more admissions in these areas than in the arts. Students, however, have indicated a greater interest in the humanities, but admissions in these areas are few. In 1973 for every place available in the humanities, there were six applicants. For every place available in the sciences, there were only four applicants. The inevitable result of such a policy is the creation of a group of young people who are engaged either in a study not of their choice or who have been dissuaded from the field of higher education altogether.

The most serious problem is the fact that only a small proportion of applicants are accepted in universities and institutes because there are simply not enough facilities available to them. In an average year there are generally 70,000 applicants and only 15,000 acceptances. Thus, roughly 80 percent of all applicants are rejected by the institutions of higher education in Bulgaria. Although students are allowed to reapply at a future date, because they are not generally permitted to study abroad, this overflow has resulted in the problem of the so-called idle youth. At the beginning of 1972 authorities estimated that there were approximately 50,000 of these people. Although the government has attempted to deal with this problem by forcing the idlers to either work or be trained for work—and they have been quite successful, as idlers were estimated to be down from approximately 51,000 to 9,000 in less than six months—they have failed to deal with the root cause of the problem, that is, insufficient places in higher education.

TEACHER TRAINING

Between 1921 and 1932 all primary and progymnasium teachers had to complete the normal school section of the gymnasium. In 1932, however, all normal schools were abolished, and teachers were trained in two-year pedagogical institutes that demanded completion of the gymnasium for admission. The pedagogical institutes were subdivided into three sections: the humanities, the sciences, and arts and crafts. Gymnasium teachers, in turn, had to have a university degree. Vocational-school teachers generally were vocational-school graduates themselves.

In 1944 two new forms of teacher training, both based on the Soviet model, were established. Teachers in the kindergartens and the four-year elementary schools, who had already completed seven years of elementary school, attended five-year teacher training schools. Teachers of grades five through seven, who had completed their secondary education, trained at two-year institutes. As before the communist takeover, teachers of secondary education and university professors had to complete their training at a university. Teachers of physical education, fine arts, and music were trained at the appropriate section of an institution of higher education.

In 1953 the government established the Institute for the Improvement of Teachers for the purpose of providing refresher courses for teachers. This institute also provided teachers with the proper ideological orientation. The government stated that the objectives of this institute were to provide the "dogmatic ideological improvement of teachers ... and ... the study and application of [the] Soviet teaching experience." The institute offered such courses as pedagogy, psychology, Bulgarian language and literature, Russian language and literature, Bulgarian history, the Bulgarian constitution, mathematics and physics, natural science and chemistry, and geography.