There are approximately 230 engineering schools in France. As the rankings are constructed, ESB regularly appears between 90th and 100th place. Despite the efforts it can make, it is clear that ESB will never be at the head of the pack! We explain why.

Rankings that favour high enrolment schools

The indicators are very often based on numbers and not on ratios, which favours schools with large numbers of students. This is the case, for example, with indicators relating to the number of active alumni or the research budget, which are not very compatible with a small school or a “speciality” positioning.

It is therefore difficult for a small school (420 students and apprentices) to get ahead, as journalists acknowledge. Our ambition is not to increase the number of places in order to artificially increase the number of students but to respond to the needs of the market so that young graduates find a job when they leave the school.

Nevertheless, there are a few indicators on which the BSE performs well:

• 14th school in France on “social” criteria: percentage of apprentices and percentage of students integrated through the parallel route
• 21st school in France on “international” criteria: percentage of international students, number of students by double degree agreement, 2nd foreign language.

Putting the student’s project at the heart of the training

The students who enter our engineering school come from different geographical backgrounds and educational paths: CPGE, University, DUT…

Beyond academic knowledge, the ESB is particularly attentive, when selecting candidates, to identifying aptitudes for curiosity and critical thinking.

The very open educational programme allows for individualisation of paths. By choosing their project subjects and certain courses, students cultivate their strengths and differences.

Choosing wood and biobased materials means locking yourself into a speciality?

Wood and bio-based materials are the beginning of a story. That of a professional career, open, made of projects in companies committed to a sustainable future, at the heart of three major fields of application:

• Wood Science and Forest Resource Development
• Industrial engineering
• Low carbon construction

Once they have graduated, ESB graduates express their talents in a wide range of sectors: housing, construction, boating, furniture, fittings, packaging, manufacturing industries, luxury goods, transport, energy… did you say specialised school?