Start of academic year: the #MaRentrée2021 plan

Campuses open to everybody

Because “the crisis showed, more than ever, that human bonds are critical on campuses”, institutions will have the opportunity to plan their teachings remotely or onsite, depending on their education strategy. However, the ministry “recommends that institutions maintain as much as possible classes onsite, especially for practical work”. Likewise, since no population limit applies to reception, all activities open on the campus and university libraries “will be accessible again to students”, in compliance with health regulations.

But most of all, a particular attention is put on students’ reception. The ministry said that after several semesters under pressure, greeting days and weeks “will play a critical role to meet all students”, and particularly international students.

Student vaccination encouraged

As the preamble to the #MaRentrée2021 plan points out, “vaccination is the key to a sustainable and general return to campus”. According to data provided by Santé publique France, about 71% of students say they are “committed to the vaccination process or want to do so”. Since vaccination is the best weapon against the epidemic, it is urgent, according to the ministry, that “students make an appointment for the first shot so that they can be vaccinated by the start of the new school year”. For those who are late, during the first weeks of the new school year, “mobile vaccination teams” will be deployed on campuses to enable students who so wish to be vaccinated. To this end, a communication campaign encouraging students to get vaccinated is already deploying to encourage everyone to do so.

As far as the fight against the virus is concerned, the ministry points out that “protection gestures must continue to be strictly observed at the start of the school year”. Wearing a mask is still mandatory maintained, unless the health situation improves. Nevertheless, self-tests will continue to be distributed by schools to facilitate screening and prevention.

New resources for student success

To ensure that the start of the new academic year is as smooth as possible, the government has announced that 34,000 new places will be created and, for the first time, 3,000 to 4,000 new places for Master courses will be opened, mainly in “the courses most in demand by students”. More than 200 million euros in additional funding will also be paid to institutions between now and the end of the year “to help them to support the start of the new academic year while financing their research missions”.

The #MaRentrée2021 plan also stresses that higher education tuition fees “are frozen for the second year running, as are rents in CROUS student residences”. The CROUS network teams also remain mobilised in order to “pay out one-off aid as soon as possible”, knowing that the credits available for this emergency aid have been doubled and that the process of simplifying the examination of these applications will be extended. To be also noted that the 1 euro university meal ticket will be maintained for scholarship holders and students in precarious situations at the start of the next academic year.

Actions to support vulnerable students

In addition to these material resources, the French government is also concerned about the psychological aspects of student life. Based on the principle that “the crisis has revealed more than ever the vulnerable situations experienced by some students”, the French Minister for Higher Education announced that the Santé Psy Étudiant scheme, which allows students to benefit from free consultations by a psychologist, will also be maintained during the academic year. Similarly, the presence of 80 new psychologists recruited in the University Health Services will be maintained.

In addition to the maintenance of these crisis-related measures, a welfare and student life service will be set up within the Ministry’s administration to better respond to the problems that the Covid has brought to light.