site.btaSofia University Master's Programme Receives Official Recognition from International Atomic Energy Agency

In early 2025 Sofia University received official confirmation and a certificate of accreditation of its Master's programme on Nuclear Technologies, Management and Innovations, taught entirely in English, from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The certification of the programme and its graduates with an international annex to the IAEA diploma is issued within the framework of the International Nuclear Management Academy (INMA) programme, which currently includes only a dozen leading universities in the world, said by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Vladimir Bozhilov, Vice Dean of the Faculty of Physics of Sofia University.

In order to receive the IAEA INMA accreditation, each such master's programme must have a certain set of competencies related to both technical knowledge and in the field of management, leadership and process management in the nuclear sphere. The two-year master's programme at Sofia University in English is offered jointly by the Faculty of Physics and the Faculty of Economics, and its graduates will receive a Bulgarian diploma in the professional field Administration and Management and an international certificate from the IAEA.

The director of the programme from the Faculty of Physics is Assoc. Prof. Dr. Plamen Petkov, who has extensive academic and practical experience in the nuclear field. . Petkov was also the first member of the team that began preparations for the creation of the accredited programme at Sofia University more than five years ago.

The programme also receives strong support from employers in the nuclear industry, with some students being financed for their training in this way. The official opening of the programme in March 2024 was attended by Tsanko Bachiyski, Chair of the Nuclear Regulatory Agency, Valentin Nikolov, then-Executive Director of Kozloduy NPP, and Martin Georgiev, Executive Director of the National Electric Company. The opening was also attended by the Vice-Rector of Sofia University, Acad. Prof. Dr. Sc. Toni Spassov.

This year, the master's programme will accept candidates until January 31, and more information can be found at: https://bit.ly/energy-su. The official opening of the academic year and the first lectures for the new class will be on March 10. The training is in several one-week modules with an intensive workload during each semester, which allows for combination with the students' work schedule and the enrollment of candidates from both Sofia and other cities, such as Kozloduy.