Philanthropy and the vision for the progress of Bulgarian science and education define the development of higher education in the country. One of the greatest and most significant benefactors in Bulgaria's history was Evlogy Georgiev, a man with an entrepreneurial spirit and unwavering patriotism, despite spending decades outside the country. He donated the money to build Sofia University. 

Almost a century and a half later, another Bulgarian followed the example of the banker from Karlovo. 

Early this year, it was announced that an anonymous benefactor had made the largest single donation to the university's Faculty of Economics: one million leva (511,000 euros). The money will be used to fund scholarships for the faculty's students over the next ten years. The donor remains anonymous, saying only that he is an alumnus of the faculty. 

In fact, economics was taught a few years after the establishment of the first Bulgarian higher education institution in Sofia (1888). Political economy, finance and statistics were introduced in the Faculty of Law, which opened in 1892. 

Today we present the bachelor programmes of the Faculty of Economics and Finance and Business Administration, which are taught in French.

The studies in these programmes last four years, with a compulsory internship in the third year and a semester of the European mobility programme Erasmus in a French university. The courses are taught in Bulgarian and French by Bulgarian lecturers and guest lecturers from abroad, we learn from Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sonya Georgieva, head of the programme. 

"This is a programme whose foundations were laid in 1995 with the support of the French Institute at the French Embassy in Bulgaria. Later, based on this experience, in 2009-2010 we created a joint bachelor's programme "Licence" in Economics and Business Management with the University of Lille in France, which is still the main partner of the Faculty of Economics. Since the 2018-2019 academic year, this programme has also been implemented with the University of Poitiers. I highlight these two French universities as partners, although we have many more, because we have an agreement with them that allows students to obtain two diplomas simultaneously - one in Bulgarian and one in French." 

The double degree in the Francophone programme requires that the curricula and programmes are in line with both Bulgarian standards and those of the French partner universities, explains Assoc. Prof. Georgieva. 

I would like to draw attention to the fact is interdisciplinary, integrating economic, financial, managerial, and legal disciplines along with STEM fields such as applied mathematics, statistics, computer science, and information technology. This ensures a truly specialised education.

Proficiency in French is enhanced as students study it as a specialised language, mastering professional jargon and terminology. This is the added value of their education and gives them a competitive edge in the labour market.

The French branch of the programme at the Faculty of Economics of Sofia University is open to all applicants. However, Assoc. Prof. Sonya Georgieva notes that the most successful applicants come from language and mathematics high schools in Bulgaria and abroad.

Over the past 14 years, 246 Bulgarian students have successfully obtained double major diplomas. Currently, 67 future graduates are enrolled, almost 30 of them foreigners.