Bacau County’s most established academic institutions dominate the preliminary rankings of the 2026 National Evaluation examination, but the results also highlight strong performances by several middle schools and rural schools, according to an analysis of scores released before appeals.
Leading the county is „Gheorghe Vrănceanu” National College in Bacau, with an average score of approximately 9.14 among its 29 candidates. It is followed by „Vasile Alecsandri” National College in Bacau, with an average of about 8.99, and „Dimitrie Cantemir” National College in Onesti, where students posted an average close to 8.97.
The data, however, suggest that academic excellence extends beyond the county’s elite high schools.
Among middle schools, No. 10 Secondary School in Bacau achieved an average score above 8.4 despite having 117 candidates, one of the largest graduating classes in the county. „Nicolae Iorga” Secondary School recorded an average of approximately 8.40 among 74 students, while „Alexandru Ioan Cuza” Secondary School posted an average above 8.17 with 124 candidates.
Education analysts note that maintaining such high averages across large student cohorts is statistically more challenging than achieving similar results in smaller graduating classes.
Several rural schools also outperformed expectations.
No. 1 Secondary School in Orbeni recorded an average score of around 7.30 for its 20 candidates, while No. 1 Secondary School in Sărata achieved an average of approximately 7.29 among 16 graduates. Traian Secondary School also exceeded the 7.0 threshold, placing these schools above the county average.
The results also indicate that school performance cannot be measured solely by the number of perfect scores. Bacau County recorded no perfect overall average of 10 this year, yet many schools distinguished themselves through consistently strong results across large groups of students rather than producing only a handful of top-ranked candidates.
The analysis further reveals significant differences in score distribution among schools. While some institutions achieved consistently high marks across nearly their entire graduating class, others combined outstanding individual performances with a substantial number of failing grades, suggesting that overall school quality is better reflected by broad academic consistency than by a few exceptional students.
The figures are based on preliminary results released before appeals are processed. Although individual scores may change following the appeals process, the overall picture remains clear: alongside Bacau County’s long-established academic institutions, several middle schools and rural schools delivered results that exceeded expectations.
