Hello everyone,
I am going to share with you some advice on how to study Management ( my field of study) in France.
First of all avoid applying to universities for those two fields. Why? As an international student the most important thing is supervision, in particular the ratio of teacher to student. I have met during high school other african students who quit university because of a lack of motivation , nervous breakdown, solitude, etc. As an international, you want to be in a small community for at least a couple of years. It will help with the integration process, and you will meet long lasting friends.
Apply to IUT( institut universitaire de technologie) or to preparatory classes. Applications are done online on admission postbac http://www.admission-postbac.fr/ , there is a guideline as to how to use it on the website.
-The strenght of IUT(s): you can apply to any IUT you want , actually i think the smaller the town the better. Why? Because first at the end of the two years program you will have to pass an exam to enter a renowned business school or you can go back to universities such as Sorbonne or ASSAS or Toulouse School of Economics which is in a university. Secondly the fees are cheap ( like 600 euros a year with social security included): so in the first two years you can save some money, which brings us to the second reason why you should pick an IUT in a small town. Housing is cheaper in small towns and much more available. And last in small towns when you have to do your "permis de sejour étudiant" the people are nicer , there are usually no waiting lines, no need to make an appointment or whatsoever. I have personally experienced the delights of small towns " administration hassle free" before i came to business school in a much larger town with much complications.
The plus? you get to study accounting, financial analysis , etc. before others . They usually get by easily in business school. With hindsights, i think i should have done an IUT, because you actually get to do internships!! which is quite a big deal here in France.
Downsides? You can't apply to top schools straight after an IUT in particular: HEC,ESSEC, ESCP,EMLyon , for the first three you need a M1 so after the IUT you will go to university for 2 more years. For the last one an L3 is enough so you will have to go to university for a year and during that year take te exam.
For those top schools an IUT probably won't be enough. They like people with a non-management background , like a bachelor degree in Languages, mathemathics, physics and others.
It is commonly know that the exam is easier from an IUT then taking preparatory classes.
Next i will discuss the way I took to enter B-School ( preparatory classes). So stay tune!!
Hi ! I just want to add to your article that you only need a M1 if you want to get into ESSEC.
ReplyDeleteFor other schools such as EM Lyon, Audencia, HEC or ESCP you only need a L3.
However, you can apply for this exam with a higher degree.
yes you are right but most of the time those admitted have an M1 too, unless they are holding a foreign bachelor degree. In this case there is a separate admission process.
Delete