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France’s higher education system has undergone significant changes in the past 60 years. The details of these changes, and the contexts behind them, are critical to understanding the challenges that many French universities currently face.
In the 1960s, new universities were created in cities that did not previously have them, and the universities of large metropolises were separated into distinct institutions, each with a disciplinary focus. As a result, these cities no longer had comprehensive universities.
In the 1990s, a dozen large provincial towns were chosen by the government as pôles universitaires Européens (“European university centres”), with the aim to federate their universities. In 2000-01, this led to the cautious suggestion that certain universities merge in several cities, notably in Strasbourg, Grenoble and Montpellier.
These internal discussions in the university sector attracted wider attention following the founding of world university rankings (Academic Ranking of World Universities in 2003 and the Times Higher Education World University Rankings in 2004), with the media highlighting the poor ranking of French universities.
Political leaders launched programmes to facilitate the emergence of universities capable of competing with the world's leading universities: campus plan in 2008, excellence initiative (Idex) in 2010 and Science-Innovation-Territories-Economy Initiatives (I-Site) in 2013. This resulted in several mergers of institutions, including universities, grandes écoles and, in one case (with the establishment of Gustave Eiffel University), a research organisation. Different types of mergers emerged, depending on the nature of existing establishments.
When the grandes écoles were absent or marginal, the merger resulted in the creation of a new university adopting the classic governance principles of French universities, with respect to the nature of councils and boards and the position of elected officials. This is roughly the case in Paris (Sorbonne University, Université Paris Cité), Strasbourg, Aix-Marseille, Lille, Bordeaux, Clermont-Ferrand and Montpellier.
In the Lorraine region and in Grenoble where most of the associated grandes écoles come from the old universities, governance is partly inspired by that of traditional universities (with numerous elected officials) and partly by federalism (with representatives of the different components). While tensions existed – particularly at the beginning, during the initial period of reorganisation and the elections of the president and the management teams – these mergers are no longer fundamentally challenged.
In the mergers with powerful grandes écoles (Université Paris-Saclay, Paris Sciences et Lettres), there were major debates concerning the legal personality of the organisation. The 2018 government order authorising interlocking public-law entities – that of the university as a whole and those of its components – provides a legal solution. However, there are still open questions as to whether certain decisions (for example, recruitment of professors or creation of new courses) should be made by the university versus by one of the internal components. All this must be clearly defined, which is never easy, always questionable and a source of tension.
The mixture of elective and federal principles of governance, combined with an academic culture distinct from that of the grandes écoles, can be unstable, as recent events have shown. The election of the new president of Université Paris-Saclay only took place in June 2024 after six months of tensions; the resignation of the PSL president in the same month arose in part from disagreements within the components.
The difficulties encountered by some mergers, which explain the failures of certain sites, such as Lyon and Toulouse, stem from a range of factors. Disciplinary traditions were evident in several universities of letters, arts or social sciences that have refused such mergers. Differing conceptions of university democracy in connection with the role of external members in the governing boards have also led to friction, with some holding the view that democracy is a necessary condition for academic freedom, while others consider it a disadvantage when seeking to build relations with the economic and social worlds.
Debates also exist about the relative importance of the pursuit of “excellence” versus assuming a mission of public service. These factors are aggravated by the low funding of universities in France. The legal formula chosen by the 15 merged establishments resulting from the 2018 government order rigidifies their statutes because all modifications are subject to government decisions, thus limiting institutional agility. Finally, as the relationships between research organisations and “universities of excellence” have not been seriously reviewed, the latter’s capabilities in terms of strategic action are not comparable to those of their counterparts abroad.
One can only hope that these institutional difficulties will not hinder France’s universities as they face new challenges in terms of training, research and innovation.
Jean-Yves Mérindol is a retired mathematician and university leader. He was president of University Sorbonne Paris-Cité, a former cluster of four universities and four grandes écoles, between 2013 and 2016.
