The Preparatory course for Humanities studies of the Maison d’éducation of the Legion of Honor offer students a pathway to prepare for the entrance examinations to the most prestigious higher education establishments in an exceptional, studious and tranquil environment.
For more than twenty years, the Maison d'éducation of Saint-Denis has welcomed students to its Preparatory course for Humanities studies (CPGE) in the humanities, supervised by an enduring team of teachers, all of whom are “normaliens” (graduates of Ecole Normale Supérieure) or “agrégés” (holders of the university teaching qualification). The small class sizes ensure personalized attention and excellent studying conditions. The school's unique living environment also contributes to the quality of the instruction provided.
The preparatory pace of study
Throughout these two years, or three years for those who choose to repeat the second year, students work diligently, consistently and rigorously.Excluding optional subjects, students attend 23 hours of classes per week in hypokhâgne and 20 hours in khâgne.
The expected workload means that students must be able to organize themselves as efficiently as possible, and be self-reliant in order to make the most of what their teachers have to offer. Particular emphasis is placed on regular, steady individual work. In each class, in addition to the two half-yearly mock exams, students take tests every Saturday, under the same conditions as the written exams of the Ecoles Normales Supérieures. Orals of competitive entrance exams in all subjects are prepared by personalized practice (“colles”). Preparation for specific business school entrance exams is also systematically covered, and particular attention is paid to foreign languages.
Curriculum
Hypokhâgne (Lettres Supérieures)
The “Lettres Supérieures”/Hypokhâgne class is a year of general, multi-disciplinary humanities without competitive examination. It is the first level of preparation for the competitive entrance exams before khâgne.
The pace of work required is considerably higher than in upper secondary school. Through intense, constant effort and systematic training in method, students must acquire a sustained capacity for work, the ability to analyze and synthesize, effective writing skills, the ability to handle ideas both in writing and orally, a thorough general culture and maturity.
This class cannot be repeated.
Khâgne (Première Supérieure)
The “Première Supérieure”/Khâgne class is the second year of preparation, culminating in the competitive entrance exams to the Grandes Ecoles and affiliated schools.
In addition to the core subjects, students prepare for the exams specific to their option (modern literature, English, Spanish or history & geography), by taking specific courses.
Highly esteemed preparation
The work required during these two years of preparatory classes is sizable and demands serious motivation on the part of the students; the resulting training is recognized as having no equivalent and opening numerous pathways.
Former Hypokhâgne and Khâgne students stand out as the best students at universities, and very often win major competitive examinations (CAPES, agrégation, ENA, etc.).
The next steps
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The students are prepared to enter these competitons:
- The competitive exam to enter the Ecole Nationale Supérieure of Lyon (ENS-LSH), in the modern literature, English and history & geography tracks. Some students choose to take a third preparatory year in order to retake the ENS entry exam and gain access to additional exams to enter schools that recruit at the Master’s level.
- The Ecole Nationale Supérieure Paris-Saclay entrance exam (for those who chose the English option) ·
- All competitive entrance exams in liberal arts programs (BEL, battery of liberal arts exams): ENS-Ulm, Ecole des Chartes, École Spéciale Militaire (Special Military School) of Saint-Cyr, leading business schools (HEC, EHDEC, ESSEC), interpreting and journalism schools, ISMaPP, and political studies institutes.
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The other students continue their studies at one of the major Parisian universities with which the Maison d'education has signed a transfer agreement: Sorbonne University, Paris Nanterre.
The university equivalency system enables students who have satisfactory results in all disciplines to earn, at the end of the year and on the advice of the class council, the equivalent of a bachelor's degree’s first year (L1) or second year (L2); and for those who have been allowed to take the competitive entrance exams again, a third-year bachelor's degree (L3).
The Maison d'education has also signed specific agreements for records-based admissions with the Institute of Intercultural Management and Communication (ISIT) and for oral exam preparation with the Rennes School of Business (RSB).
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Following the preparatory curriculum, an exchange program allows students to continue their studies for one year at Lesley University (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA), with a waiver of university tuition fees.
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ENS competition
- ENS Lyon (ENS-LSH) : 52% “under-admissible” (have not won a competition but can present their dossier to the ENS)
Competition of the BEL (banque d’épreuves littéraires, battery of liberal arts exams)
- Business schools: 17% of students admitted in at least one of the following: EDHEC BS, NEOMA BS, Audencia, KEDGE BS.
- Other Grandes Ecoles: 10% of students admitted to an IEP (Institut d'Etudes Politiques, aka Sciences Po), 5% to CELSA (Centre d'études littéraires et scientifiques appliquées, Center for Applied Literary and Scientific Studies).