Ecole Normale Superieure

At the same time a French grande école and a university, the Ecole normale supérieure provides in Paris, at the heart of the Quartier latin, excellent training through research, leading to various teaching and research professions, and contributes to train through research the senior executives of public administrations as well as of French and European companies. The ENS also defines and applies scientific and technological research policies, from a multidisciplinary and international perspective.

Intellectual freedom, multidisciplinarity in humanities and sciences, individual attention to students, bountiful campus life, gathering students and professors from all disciplines, form the heart of the specificities of the Ecole normale supérieure. Since more than 2 centuries, the ENS prepares its students to the most various openings and the highest responsibilities, while being fully invested in the intellectual, scientific and cultural debates of its time – in particular through the multiplicity of the normaliens’ engagement.

The Ecole normale supérieure maintains close relationships with various partners, in France or abroad, in particular within the framework of international agreements, corporate sponsorship and initiatives taken by private individuals, relying on partner foundations.

The École normale supérieure is a member of Université Paris Sciences et Lettres. This institution has been founded by 25 prestigious institutions established in Paris which have gathered together. All these institutions have in common to train their students through research and are all willing to create disciplinary convergences, make innovation and creativity more dynamic, attract and train the best students and make of research a real growth driver.

The Management team of the ENS has the mission to design and implement the scientific and educational policy of the Ecole normale supérieure. They submit their proposals to the Scientific Advisory Board, which gives an opinion, and the Administrative Advisory Board, which validates the strategic guidelines and budgetary choices. The Management team sets up some consensus and decision-making structures, in order to promote discussion and consensus within the institution. The Management team ensures the preservation of the ENS’ identity and its level of excellence. They take great car of the development and influence of the ENS both on a national and international level.

The Director is appointed, by decree of the President of the French Republic, for a five-year term, immediately renewable once. He leads and coordinates the considerations for the definition of the general policy of the institution. He represents the ENS in France and abroad, and negotiates partnerships. He appoints the jury members for the competitive examinations. Since 2012 Marc Mézard leads the Ecole normale supérieure.

The Ecole normale supérieure aims at varying its students’ profiles and incorporates students to be enrolled in the 3rd year of bachelor (licence 3) or 1st year of master (master 1), coming from all over the world and from all disciplines. The competitive examination of the International selection is intended to young graduates in Arts & Humanities as well as Sciences, who justify at least of one year undergraduate studies in a foreign university and distinguish themselves with outstanding results.

All member institutions have a strong identity, a limited number of students and a strong commitment towards research: these are the right conditions for an academic culture of excellence. They have decided to gather in order to join their forces and build research projects of international reach and high-ranking interdisciplinary trainings. PSL has a global academic training offer, from undergraduate programmes to doctoral programmes, in all disciplinary fields, from life and matter sciences to humanities and social sciences, from art creation to economics and management.

PSL launches now cultural and sports initiatives, in which students and staff from the member institutions take part. Among these projects, the PSL Chorus and Orchestra is particularly noticeable and followed; there is also the Sports association AS PSL or the Revue PSL journal.