  We show that the notion of partial dynamical symmetry is robust and founded
on a microscopic many-body theory of nuclei. Based on the universal energy
density functional framework, a general quantal boson Hamiltonian is derived
and shown to have essentially the same spectroscopic character as that
predicted by the partial SU(3) symmetry. The principal conclusion holds in two
representative classes of energy density functionals: nonrelativistic and
relativistic. The analysis is illustrated in application to the
axially-deformed nucleus $^{168}$Er.
