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Higher education in France is provided by two types of institutions: universities and "grandes écoles". The university curriculum begins directly after a student receives his/her secondary school diploma (the "Baccalauréat"). The first three years of study lead to the delivery of a Licence degree, the fourth and fifth years to the degree of Master. Completing a research oriented Master is a prerequisite to continue in a doctoral program. By contrast, degree courses in a "grande école" cover three years of study. A student only enters a grande école after at least two years of intensive study in a "classe préparatoire", beginning just after her/his Baccalauréat. Selection for entry to a grande école is based on the results of highly competitive national examinations, consisting of both written papers and orals, which candidates take two or more years after obtaining the Baccalauréat. Upon completion of their studies in a "grande école", students have reached a BAC + 5 standard, which is equivalent to that of an English or American student who has completed the first year of preparation for a PhD. Although the French system of higher education remains dual, some connections have been established over the years between "grandes écoles" and universities: universities admit students who do not succeed in the competitive examination for admission to a "grande école". Conversely, most "grandes écoles" now accept a limited number of university graduates provided that their academic records are excellent. Every year, for example, about 20 students who have completed outstanding "maîtrises" (first year of master) in mathematics, mathematics applied to social science, economics, or econometrics, are admitted to ENSAE. "Grandes écoles" students may also enrol in a university. Third year ENSAE students are encouraged to prepare a Research Master in a university with which ENSAE has a formal agreement, so as to obtain the prerequisite for continued enrolment in a doctoral programme.
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