Tout comprendre du mécanisme de sélection de Parcoursup
TLDRThe transcript discusses the evolution of the French higher education admission system, from queues at universities post-baccalaureate to the current online platform, Parcoursup. It highlights the shift from a lottery system in certain academic licenses due to oversubscription, to a more demand-driven approach with Parcoursup. The conversation emphasizes the complexity of the new system, where each of the 23,000 higher education programs has its unique algorithm for candidate selection, while also addressing the introduction of quotas and the subtle influence of schools like Stanislas in their admission processes.
Takeaways
- 📚 The discussion begins with a comparison between Nicolas de Chamfort, an 18th-century moralist, and the current state of 'parcoursup', a French higher education platform.
- 🎓 Before the digitalization of university admissions, students would physically queue at universities after obtaining their baccalaureate, sometimes waiting for hours or even nights.
- 💻 The introduction of 3614 Ravel in 1987 marked the beginning of a tele-matique process for university admissions in Île-de-France, which was later expanded to other regions of France.
- 🔄 The APB (Admission Post-Bac) system was established in 2007, merging selective and non-selective higher education programs into one centralized platform.
- 📈 The APB system allowed for a mix of selective and non-selective programs, but non-selective university licenses could not differentiate candidates based on academic records, leading to a lottery system for admissions.
- 🎯 The lottery system for university admissions faced criticism and highlighted a paradox: universities recruited students by chance but had a relatively low success rate among those admitted.
- 🔄 The decision to change the admissions system was influenced by the need to better match supply and demand in higher education, leading to the creation of 'parcoursup'.
- 🌐 'Parcoursup' aims to distribute the over 600,000 graduates and those changing courses among 23,000 higher education programs, using an algorithm to match candidates with programs based on their academic records and preferences.
- 🔢 Each higher education program has its own method of ranking candidates, sometimes using algorithms, to create an academic ranking which determines admission offers.
- 🔄 'Parcoursup' adjusts the automatic ranking to respect quotas introduced in 2018, such as those for scholarship holders, and allows institutions to give more weight to their own students.
- 🏫 The example of Stanislas, a prestigious high school, is used to illustrate how the system can favor students from certain institutions, with nearly one in two admitted students coming from Stanislas.
Q & A
What is the historical context of the French higher education system before the implementation of Parcoursup?
-Before Parcoursup, the French higher education system involved a physical queue system where students would line up in front of universities after obtaining their baccalaureate. This process could sometimes take hours or even nights.
What significant change was introduced in 1987 in the French higher education admissions process?
-In 1987, a telematic procedure called '3614 Ravel' was introduced, which allowed for the first time the process of higher education admissions to be conducted via Minitel, a precursor to the internet, in Île-de-France.
How did the admissions process evolve from 1987 to 2007 in France?
-From 1987 to 2007, the automated procedure introduced by 3614 Ravel expanded to other academies and regions in France, leading to a gradual shift from physical queues to a more centralized and automated system.
What were the main features of the Admission Post-Bac (APB) system?
-The Admission Post-Bac system was a centralized platform that housed both selective and non-selective higher education programs, such as classes préparatoires and traditional university licenses. Unlike the licenses, the selective programs could rank candidates based on their academic records, while the licenses could not.
Why was there a need to transition from the APB system to Parcoursup?
-There were two main reasons for the transition: first, the practice of random selection in the licenses due to oversubscription led to controversy and was increasingly applied year after year. Second, there was a recognition of a significant failure rate at the university level, creating a paradox where students were selected by lottery but had relatively low success rates.
What was the impact of the lottery system in APB on students?
-The lottery system led to a situation where some students, particularly those with specific profiles like STAPS (Sports, Technology, and Physical Activities) candidates, faced a lack of natural substitutes in higher education. This resulted in some students discontinuing their higher education after being rejected by the lottery.
How does Parcoursup address the issue of matching supply and demand in higher education?
-Parcoursup addresses this by not necessarily increasing the number of places in certain training programs but by adapting the demand to the supply. It allows students to express their preferences on a national scale, thus providing more opportunities for them to find a suitable program based on their interests and qualifications.
How does the GIB (Groupe d'Information et de Bureau) machine work in Parcoursup?
-The GIB machine does not directly rank candidates; instead, each higher education program has its own recipe for ranking candidates, sometimes with the help of an algorithm. These rankings are then used to formulate pedagogical rankings, which determine the proposals sent to candidates.
What role does Parcoursup play in the final selection of candidates for a program?
-Parcoursup does not decide on the selection of candidates for a program; it is the local algorithms of each higher education program that primarily rank the candidates. Parcoursup is responsible for matching the pedagogical rankings with the candidates' preferences and sending the best-ranked candidates proposals.
How do quotas introduced with Parcoursup affect the selection process?
-Quotas, particularly for scholarship holders, introduced with Parcoursup ensure that certain groups of candidates are represented in the selection process. For example, an establishment like Stanislas could give more weight to its own students to enter the preparatory class, but this is not exclusive to Stanislas or only observed in preparatory or private classes.
What is the obligation for higher education institutions regarding the publication of selection criteria?
-Higher education institutions are required to publish a report from the Commission d'Examen des Vœux, which explains how candidates were ranked. However, they are not required to be as specific about the criteria used in the process.
What was observed in the case of Stanislas and its preparatory economic and commercial classes?
-In the case of Stanislas, it was observed that about one in two students admitted came from the Stanislas high school itself, indicating a significant advantage for students from the institution.
Outlines
📚 Evolution of University Admissions in France
This paragraph discusses the historical evolution of the French university admissions system, highlighting the transition from a manual queue system to an automated process. Initially, students would physically queue in front of universities after obtaining their baccalaureate, sometimes waiting for hours or even nights. The introduction of the 3614 Ravel procedure in 1987 marked a significant shift towards automation, using the Minitel system in Île-de-France for traditional licenses. This procedure was later expanded to other academies and regions in France. The system included both selective and non-selective programs, with a unique feature that non-selective licenses could not filter candidates based on academic records, unlike other selective programs. The paragraph also touches on the reasons for the change to Parcoursup, a centralized national procedure introduced in 2007, which aimed to address the issue of oversubscription and the lottery system that had become controversial and led to some students abandoning higher education after being rejected.
🎓 Current State of University Admissions and Parcoursup
This paragraph provides an overview of the current university admissions process in France, as facilitated by Parcoursup. It explains how the system handles the allocation of over 600,000 graduates and those changing courses, totaling 917,000 registrations, across 23,000 programs. Each higher education program uses its own algorithm or procedure, sometimes with the aid of an automated process, to rank candidates and create an academic ranking. Parcoursup then matches these rankings with students' preferences. However, it's the individual programs that ultimately decide the selection of candidates, with Parcoursup adjusting the automatic ranking to respect quotas introduced in 2018. The paragraph also discusses how some establishments, such as Stanislas, may prioritize their own students, as evidenced by a higher admission rate of students from the school. The data shows that in 2023, nearly half of the admitted students in Stanislas's economic and commercial preparatory classes were from the school itself, indicating a significant advantage for these students.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡France Culture
💡Guillaume Herner
💡Parcoursup
💡Moraliste
💡Égalité des chances
💡Admission Postbac
💡Tirage au sort
💡Établissement Stanislas
💡BTS
💡Classements pédagogiques
💡Quotas
💡Algorithme
Highlights
Introduction to the historical context of the French higher education system before the implementation of Parcoursup.
Description of the pre-informatication system where students would physically queue for admission to universities.
The introduction of the 3614 Ravel procedure in 1987 as a telematic process through Minitel for academic degrees and traditional licenses.
Expansion of the 3614 Ravel procedure to other academies and regions in France.
The establishment of a centralized national procedure, Admission Post-Bac (APB), introduced in 2007.
Coexistence of selective and non-selective programs within the APB system and its particularities.
The issue of not being able to sort candidates for academic licenses based on their academic records, leading to a lottery system.
The growing controversy around the lottery system and its impact on the perception of equal opportunities in higher education.
The paradox of recruiting university students through a lottery system while facing a significant failure rate among students.
The decision to change the system due to the inefficiency of the lottery system and the need for better allocation of resources.
The choice to adapt the supply to demand by expanding the range of student choices and implementing Parcoursup.
The number of students registered for Parcoursup in the previous session and the challenge of distributing them among available programs.
Explanation of how each higher education program uses its own algorithm to rank candidates based on their academic records.
The role of Parcoursup in matching the pedagogical ranking with student preferences and sending proposals to candidates.
The impact of quotas introduced in 2018 on the Parcoursup system and how it affects the ranking of candidates.
The ability for institutions like Stanislas to give more weight to their own students in the ranking process.
The observation that not all institutions behave uniquely in terms of candidate ranking and that there is a broader complexity to the system.
The requirement for higher education institutions to publish a report detailing the ranking of candidates, though not necessarily with explicit criteria.
The notable proportion of admitted students from the Stanislas high school in the economic and commercial preparatory class.