Posts
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.(February 2009) |
The grandes écoles ("graduate schools", literally in French "great schools" or "elite schools") of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. Unlike French public universities which have an obligation to accept all candidates of the same region who hold a baccalauréat, the selection criteria of grandes écoles rest mainly on competitive written and oral exams, usually undertaken by students from dedicated preparatory classes, although this is not always the case. They do not have a large student body (3,000 at the largest establishment; most have a few hundred students each year). While many are focused on a single subject area, such as engineering or business, others, notably the Écoles normales supérieures, may conduct teaching and research across the sciences and humanities. They have traditionally produced many if not most of France's high-ranking civil servants, politicians and executivesas well as many scientists and philosophers.
Contents[hide] |
- 1 Classification as grandes écoles
- 2 Methods of recruitment for the grandes écoles
- 3 Categories
- 4 Influence in French culture
- 5 See also
- 6 References
- 7 External links
[edit]Classification as grandes écoles
[edit]Origins
[edit]After the French Revolution
The expression "grandes écoles" came after the French revolution, in 1794 with the creation of the École Normale Supérieure by theConvention and the École Polytechnique by the mathematician Gaspard Monge and Lazare Carnot. In fact, the model was probably Mézières' military academy of which Gaspard Monge was an alumnus. It should be noted that some schools included in the category are older than the expression. For example the École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris (Mines ParisTech), the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées(Ecole des Ponts ParisTech), the École Nationale Supérieure des Techniques Avancées and the École d'Arts et Métiers were founded during the 18th century. Other prestigious schools such as the Ecole Supérieure de Commerce de Paris (today ESCP Europe, founded in 1819), the Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC Paris), the École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures (Centrale Paris), the École nationale supérieure des télécommunications (TELECOM ParisTech), the École supérieure d'électricité (Supélec), and the École Centrale de Lyon (Centrale Lyon) were established during the 19th century[1].
Since then France has had a unique higher education system, where small and middle size specialized schools are totally cut off from the university system yet fully integrated within the national education system. Some fields of study are nearly exclusive to one system, like engineering in the grandes écoles, or medicine in universités.
[edit]Today
There is no standard definition or official list of grandes écoles. Legislation involving grandes écoles generally uses the term "classe préparatoire aux grandes écoles". The term "grandes écoles" is not employed in the Code of Education, with the exception of a quotation in the social statistics. It generally employs the expression of "Écoles supérieures" to indicate higher educational establishments which are not universities.
The Conférence des Grandes Écoles (Grandes Écoles Confederation) is a non-profit organization (under the French law 1901). It uses a rather broad definition of the concept of "grandes écoles", not restricted to the school's selectivity or the prestige of the diploma. The list of the members of CGE does not draw up an official or even an "accepted" list of "grandes écoles". For example some engineering school members of the CGE cannot even deliver state recognized engineering degrees.
The "G16+", however, is a group of 23 grandes ecoles which cooperate on work placement matters. Its membership includes engineering, business, and government service schools that are generally considered to be the most prestigious in their fields. The G16+ thus represents France's closest equivalent to the American Ivy League or Britain's Russell Group.
[edit]Methods of recruitment for the grandes écoles
The method of recruitment between the “Grandes écoles” and “French universities” is very different. Public universities are obliged by law to admit any student with the baccalauréat and living within the university's area.
To get into one of the French "Grandes écoles" most students will take a very competitive national exam at the end of the two-year program in one of the CPGE. This national exam includes written tests during several weeks that will challenge the students on what they have learned for the past two years.
Then, most of these students will be ranked accordingly to their results but each year a certain percentage of students do not make this ranking.
These failing students will generally be allowed to repeat their second year or will continue their studies in one of the local universities.
The successful students from across the country sit a final selective exam (which may be in Paris or anywhere in France) at the school of their choice during the summer. This usually consists of oral exams (1 hour/oral exam) during which they are given a problem to solve. After 20 min of preparation, they present their solution to a teacher who then challenge the candidate on their results and the assumptions being made.
At the end of this stressful selection process, candidates will receive their final ranking which will allow them - if ranked - to finally apply to the "grandes écoles" of their choice.
Their national ranking determines whether they are admitted to the "grandes écoles" of their choice.
Below is a description of the classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles:
[edit]Preparatory classes to the Grandes écoles (CPGE)
No comments:
Post a Comment