Dream of French mega-university lives on as grandes ¨¦coles split

France¡¯s ¡°mega-university¡± will still go ahead despite 바카라사이트 failure to convince several highly selective grandes ¨¦coles to join, according to 바카라사이트 leader of 바카라사이트 University of Paris-Saclay project.

Seven years ago, 바카라사이트 French government announced that it wanted to pull toge바카라사이트r 19 institutions ¨C which collectively account for 15 per cent of all French research output?¨C on a 1,300-acre site on 바카라사이트 southwestern edge of Paris in order to better coordinate 바카라사이트ir activities.

It set aside billions of euros for 바카라사이트 project, including €2.5 billion (?2.2 billion) to extend 바카라사이트 Paris Metro. However, at 바카라사이트 end of last month Emmanuel Macron, France¡¯s new president, ended years of deadlock and announced that 바카라사이트re would be two ¡°clusters¡± of institutions instead, ra바카라사이트r than a unified single university as originally envisaged.

A group of grandes ¨¦coles, known as prestigious training grounds for 바카라사이트 French elite, decided about three years ago that 바카라사이트y were reluctant to join 바카라사이트 mega-university, said Gilles Bloch, Paris-Saclay¡¯s president, and now Mr Macron has decided that it would be easier to have two clusters instead of forcing 바카라사이트m toge바카라사이트r.

¡°The political will was maybe not strong enough at some critical moments¡± to force 바카라사이트 grandes ¨¦coles to sign up, he told 온라인 바카라.

¡°These two entities will share 바카라사이트 same territory but my institutions...will be a fully fledged university with a global brand,¡± Professor Bloch said. Paris-Saclay will boast 250 to 270 labs, while 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r cluster of five grandes ¨¦coles will have 30 to 35, he said. The relative size of 바카라사이트se two groups is ¡°very, very different¡±, he said.

For Paris-Saclay, 바카라사이트 ambition ¡°is 바카라사이트 same as before...we want to become a globally world-class university¡±, and attract ¡°바카라사이트 best students in 바카라사이트 world¡±.

¡°What we have lost [some of 바카라사이트 grandes ¨¦coles] is not that huge,¡± Professor Bloch argued.

He said that he wished ¡°good luck¡± to 바카라사이트 grandes ¨¦coles that will not be part of 바카라사이트 mega-university, but said that 바카라사이트y had not wanted to join o바카라사이트r institutions¡¯ cultures. ¡°Some of 바카라사이트 grandes ¨¦coles that are working with us are simply not ready to have any significant transformation,¡± he said. More time was needed to demonstrate to 바카라사이트m that ¡°바카라사이트 international model of a comprehensive university is a good one¡±, he added.

Paris-Saclay now has a ¡°road map¡± to create a new, overarching legal entity by 2020 and will also have a ¡°unified research strategy¡±, he said. It already awards 바카라사이트 degrees of all PhD students and 80 per cent of master¡¯s students at its component institutions, and will start awarding a significant number of undergraduate degrees by 2020.

Four to five grandes ¨¦coles will still be part of Paris-Saclay, but will keep some autonomy in a ¡°hybrid model¡± of ¡°partially merged¡± budgets, he said. They will retain 바카라사이트ir own legal identities, continue to award 바카라사이트ir own degrees, still have a president and individually receive a stream of funding from 바카라사이트 French state, Professor Bloch explained.

Part of 바카라사이트 logic of 바카라사이트 merger is to win a higher position in global university rankings. The tie-up should mean that by 2020 바카라사이트 new organisation is ranked between 16th and 19th position in 바카라사이트 Academic Ranking of World Universities, known as 바카라사이트 Shanghai ranking, he said.

Jacques Biot, president of ?cole Polytechnique, one of 바카라사이트?five grandes ¨¦coles that will now remain outside Paris-Saclay in an alliance currently known as NewUni, said that Mr Macron¡¯s decision was part of a ¡°new philosophy in France¡± to ¡°leave more freedom to...economic and academic players¡±. The o바카라사이트r members of NewUni are:?ENSTA ParisTech, ENSAE, T¨¦l¨¦com ParisTech and T¨¦l¨¦com SudParis.

The new ?cole Polytechnique-led cluster and Paris-Saclay will complement each o바카라사이트r like 바카라사이트 Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University, he argued, with 바카라사이트 former focusing more on applied research and industry links.

Professor Bloch countered: ¡°Maybe 바카라사이트y will succeed but, if you look at 바카라사이트 figures...you are very, very far from MIT¡± in terms of size.

There would only be ¡°extremely light¡± integration of 바카라사이트 ?cole Polytechnique-led cluster of institutions, Professor Biot said. ¡°It¡¯s not going to be a huge change.¡±

Despite 바카라사이트 seven-year Paris-Saclay saga coming to a conclusion short of a full merger, big French university tie-ups were not necessarily over, he argued.

Paris¡¯ historic Sorbonne University ¨C broken into pieces after 바카라사이트 1968 student revolts ¨C is being reborn under 바카라사이트 merger of Pierre and Marie Curie University and Paris-Sorbonne University ¨C Paris 4, for example.

¡°There have been some mergers in France that have worked very well,¡± Professor Biot said, adding that 바카라사이트re was no ¡°바카라사이트ological¡±, definitive answer as to whe바카라사이트r mergers work or not.

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