Babeș-Bolyai University uses cloud-based solutions to strengthen its online education competencies

We needed a unified digital system. We looked at what other major universities are doing and noticed that they have a cloud-based infrastructure. We realized that this was the future.

Adrian Hudrea, Chief Information Officer Babeș-Bolyay University

A descendant of the Major Jesuit College in Cluj, which was founded 500 years ago in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, Babeș-Bolyai University (UBB) aims to promote and support an innovative learning culture. To fulfill its mission in today's world, it needed a new digital infrastructure for students, teachers and staff. UBB adopted Microsoft 365 to provide unified, easily accessible, and more secure digital tools for communication, collaboration, and storage. To create a single sign-in system for Microsoft 365 and its internal platforms, UBB uses Microsoft Azure Active Directory.

Founded in 1959, Babeș-Bolyai University (UBB) is one of the largest and oldest higher education institutions in Romania, with roots dating back to 1578. To form an innovative learning culture for over 40,000 students, turning to digital solutions was imperative. 

UBB emails were stored on site, so the staff also had problems with accessibility and storage. The professors were unable to access their emails during power outages. In addition, they had to regularly delete old emails and save attachments on their devices, since their inbox only had five gigabytes of space. After studying what other universities around the world had implemented, UBB representatives consulted Microsoft for a solution. "Microsoft could offer us the entire package with Microsoft Teams for Education and Exchange through Microsoft 365. We could use all the services together, and our emails and files would also be more secure," says Hudrea.

"Our students were asking teachers for e-learning platforms, so the university had to offer a standard, we needed a unified digital system. We looked at what other major universities around the world are doing and noticed that they have a cloud-based infrastructure. We realized that this was the future." Through the cloud, UBB could streamline its IT services and create a unified experience for students and staff. Adrian Hudrea, UBB's Chief Information Officer

UBB organized training sessions with Microsoft and Net Brinel, a member of the Microsoft Partner Network, to help the professors navigate Microsoft 365. Managing emails has become less of an issue. "With Exchange, we have a centralized email system with unlimited storage. To manage our large database of emails and users, we rely on Microsoft Azure Active Directory and deploy a single sign-in system for Microsoft 365 and all our platforms. This will really simplify access for our staff and university students."

Centralized connection also makes online learning virtually painless. "Professors and students use their email addresses to connect to teams for their online courses, where it's easy to take exams or send files," Hudrea added. The new system has been widely adopted. Hudrea gets excited: "We now have 48,000 active email accounts. In the last 30 days, there have been 500,000 activities on Microsoft Teams."

But the most interesting journey has just begun for UBB. "We have created platforms for course submissions, grade tracking, ratings, and much more so that we can move offline processes online," Hudrea shared. "When they are connected to the cloud, we will hardly have any problems and we will enjoy all the advantages."