France pledges university admissions overhaul and education funding to ease protests

France’s government has promised to replace Parcoursup, the university admissions platform, and to invest in schools and student support, offering a package of concessions aimed at defusing weeks of protests over education and the rising cost of living.

Issued on: 27/10/2026 - 11:20Modified: 27/10/2026 - 13:06

Higher Education Minister Philippe Baptiste announced on Monday that the admissions system would undergo “substantial change” next year before being replaced in 2028.

The government also pledged smaller classes, additional teaching posts, higher student grants and billions of euros for school and university renovations.

The measures address grievances that sparked high school blockades in mid-September. But workers demanding relief from the rising cost of living have since joined the movement, broadening the challenge facing Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu’s government.

Student representatives welcomed parts of the package after meeting Lecornu on Monday, but urged protesters to keep mobilising.

“We have managed to address some of the students’ demands,” said Nathanaël Combary of Renouveau Lycéen. “I emphasise the word ‘some’.”

Clément Vieillot, of Mouvement Cachan 94, said students had received “crumbs”, contrasting their demand for 250,000 more university places with the government’s pledge of 15,000.

 

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Towards a more transparent system

Parcoursup, which handles applications to universities and other higher education institutions, has become a central target of protests over unclear selection criteria and unequal access to courses.

A record 1.05 million people applied through the platform this year, according to the Higher Education Ministry.

For the 2027 admissions round, institutions would publish more detailed selection criteria, and the platform would explain its rejections. Applicants could also request the reasons behind admissions decisions.

A committee of students and teachers is due to recommend changes by the end of November. The government said it would legislate if necessary.

The replacement system has yet to be designed. Its planned launch in 2028 means it will fall to whichever government succeeds President Emmanuel Macron after next year’s election.

Ministers promised 15,000 additional higher education places across 2027 and 2028, mainly in vocational and technical programmes. Student grants would rise in line with inflation from the start of the 2027 academic year.

Some classes in the first year of high school would be capped at 28 pupils from 2027, starting in disadvantaged schools. Planned cuts to secondary teaching posts would be cancelled and 500 additional jobs created.

Up to €4 billion in low-interest loans would support school renovations until 2030, alongside a separate €1 billion university renovation programme running until 2029.

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Protests set to continue

The announcements followed two weekends of mass demonstrations, including widespread rioting and looting on 17 October.

Hundreds of thousands marched peacefully, but some groups attacked public buildings and clashed with police. Protesters briefly stormed Marseille’s city hall, and a fire destroyed the roof and clock tower of Limoges’ town hall.

About 2,400 people were arrested in connection with those demonstrations.

Saturday’s rallies were less violent. Authorities estimated turnout at 410,000, while organisers put it at nearly 800,000.

Some 70,000 police officers and gendarmes were deployed. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said on Monday that 1,435 people had been arrested nationwide in connection with the latest protests.

Visiting Marseille on Monday, Macron promised “concrete measures”.

“I have asked the government to address the legitimate demands at the root of this protest movement,” he said.

The government faces criticism over its response to students’ grievances. Police tactics are also under scrutiny, including the use of riot control weapons blamed for life-changing injuries to some teenagers.

Further demonstrations are planned, leaving ministers under pressure to show that promises stretching into the next presidency will bring real improvements.

Far-right leader Marine Le Pen, who leads the polls ahead of the presidential election, has sought to capitalise on the unrest, presenting her National Rally party as a force for law and order.

The government’s room for manoeuvre remains limited, as demands for stronger public services and help with the cost of living collide with record levels of poverty and public debt.

(with newswires)

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