France pledges university admissions reform to ease student protests

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 26 Oct, 19:38 · Archive

France's government pledged to replace its national university admissions platform by 2028 following weeks of mass student protests.

France's government pledged on Monday to replace its national online university admissions platform, Parcoursup, by 2028 following weeks of student protests over education and living costs. Higher Education Minister Philippe Baptiste announced 'substantial change' to the platform for 2027, with full replacement the following year. The system handles applications to universities and other higher education courses and has been a focus of protests, with students criticising unclear selection criteria and unequal access to preferred courses.

The demonstrations escalated into France's worst unrest in years on 17 October, when protests descended into rioting and looting across the country. Groups of protesters set fires, stormed public buildings including Marseille's City Hall, looted shops and clashed with police. A second round of nationwide demonstrations on Saturday saw less violence, with authorities estimating turnout at more than 400,000, while organisers put it at nearly 800,000.

Two high school student groups welcomed some concessions but called for protests to continue after meeting with Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu on Monday. French President Emmanuel Macron promised 'concrete measures' to address students' demands during a visit to Marseille, saying he had 'asked the government to address the legitimate demands at the root of this protest movement'.

How it is being reported

• France pledges new university admissions for students to quell anger after violent mass protestsFrance’s government has pledged to replace its national online university admissions platform in 2028.Clickorlando · 26 Oct, 13:47
• France pledges new university admissions for students to quell anger after violent mass protestsFrance’s government has pledged to replace its national online university admissions platform in 2028.News4Jax · 26 Oct, 13:47

In this story: France · Emmanuel Macron · Philippe Baptiste · Sébastien Lecornu · Parcoursup · Marseille

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem