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Supélec
École supérieure d'électricité

Motto	Une grande école d'ingénieurs au cœur des sciences de l'information, de l'énergie et des systèmes
Motto in English	A "grande école" of engineering in the forefront of Energy and Information Science
Type	Private French Grande École
Active	1894–2015
Founder	Éleuthère Mascart
President	Hervé Biausser
Postgraduates	1,975 (1,549 engineer candidates)
Doctoral students	250
Location	Gif-sur-Yvette, Rennes, Metz , France 48°42′31″N 2°09′50″E / 48.708677°N 2.163996°E / 48.708677; 2.163996
Affiliations	UniverSud Paris, Elles Bougent, CESAER
Website	Official website in English: http://www.supelec.fr/374_p_14603/welcome.html

Supélec was a famous engineering school in France. Its full name was École supérieure d'électricité, which means "Higher School of Electricity". It was known as one of the best schools in France for studying electrical engineering, energy, and information sciences.

In 2015, Supélec joined with another school called École Centrale Paris. Together, they became a new school named CentraleSupélec. This new school is part of a bigger university group called Université Paris-Saclay.

Supélec was started in 1894 in Paris. Later, in 1975, its main campus moved to Gif-sur-Yvette. Over time, two more campuses were opened: one in Rennes in 1972 and another in Metz in 1985. Supélec was also part of important international networks for engineering schools.

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Supélec's Story

Supélec was founded in 1894 by a famous scientist named Eleuthère Mascart. He was a very important person in science. He was a member of the French Academy of Sciences and even a member of the British Royal Society. He also won several big science awards.

From 2004 to 2013, the director of Supélec was Alain Bravo. After him, Hervé Biausser took over in 2013. He was also the director of Centrale Paris at the same time.

When Supélec first started, its main goal was to train engineers. These engineers were needed for the fast-growing electrical industry back then.

Where Supélec Was Located

Supélec first started in Paris. Then, it moved to a place called Malakoff. In 1975, the main campus moved to Gif-sur-Yvette. This is where the biggest campus was located.

Later, two more campuses were added. One was opened in Rennes in 1972. The third campus was set up in Metz in 1985.

About Studying at Supélec

Who Studied There

Supélec had about 1,975 students who were working on their graduate degrees across its three campuses. It also had 780 full-time and part-time teachers.

Historically, more male students attended engineering schools. Supélec had more male students than female students, but this was slowly changing. The school had programs to encourage more young women to study science and engineering. For example, they had a program called "Ingénieure: un avenir au féminin" (which means "Female Engineer: a future for women").

In 2008, about 25% of the students who graduated were from other countries. They came from 22 different nations.

How the School Was Paid For

Supélec was a private school that didn't aim to make a profit. It was overseen by the French government's education and industry ministries.

In 2008, the school's income was about €35 million. About half of this money came from the government. A quarter came from research projects with companies. A small part, about 5%, came from student tuition and fees.

The school spent about 25% of its money on research. Most of its expenses, about 68%, went to paying teachers and staff.

How Supélec Was Ranked

Supélec was always considered one of the top engineering schools in France. It often ranked among the top five.

In 2013, a student magazine called L'Etudiant ranked Supélec as the fourth best engineering school in France. Surveys also showed that Supélec graduates earned some of the highest salaries among all French graduates.

What Students Learned

The education at Supélec covered many different subjects. It usually lasted for three to four years.

In the first two years, students took classes in science, like statistics and quantum mechanics. They also learned engineering skills, such as computer programming. Plus, they studied social sciences, including economics and foreign languages. Students could also choose many other elective classes, from arts to finance.

For their third year, students chose a main area of study from about fifteen options. Half of their time was spent on this major. The other half was used for research and development projects, often working with companies.

Students were also encouraged to study abroad for at least six months. Supélec had about 70 partner universities around the world. Some students even spent two years abroad to earn degrees from both Supélec and a partner university. In 2008, 40% of graduates had earned two degrees.

Supélec partnered with top schools like MIT, Columbia, and Georgia Tech in the US. In the UK, they partnered with Cambridge, Oxford, Imperial College, and UCL.

After graduating, students found jobs in many fields. These included engineering, research, consulting, and banking. Some also chose to continue their studies and get a PhD.

Getting Into Supélec

To get into Supélec as a first-year student, you usually had to pass a very tough entrance exam. This exam required at least two years of special preparation after high school in classes called Classes Préparatoires.

The admission process included a week of written exams in the spring. After that, there were oral (spoken) exams during the summer. This process was shared with the Centrale Graduate School.

About 10% of graduates were admitted after getting a three-year degree from a French university. Another 25% were foreign students who came through international exchange programs.

Research at Supélec

Supélec was very involved in research. It was one of only three schools in France that belonged to two special research networks. These networks brought together private and public research groups and companies to work on specific research areas.

The school did both academic research and research for industries. This was especially important for teaching students through partnerships with companies. Supélec had 14 laboratories and research departments.

Supélec had its own research teams. It also had joint teams with the CNRS (a big French research organization) and other universities. Supélec was part of 5 doctoral schools with its partner universities.

In 2007, Supélec and Centrale Paris received a special award called the label Carnot. This award recognized their excellent research and helped them get funding for it.

In 2008, €8.6 million was invested in research. About €6 million of this came from research contracts with 122 partner companies and institutions.

Working with Companies

Working with industries was always a top priority for Supélec. In 1986, Supélec created a network of special companies called PERCI&S. This network helped graduates find jobs and developed research projects involving students.

Some of the companies in the PERCI network included Accenture, Alcatel-Lucent, Areva, EADS, Hewlett-Packard, BNP Paribas, Siemens, EDF, and Capgemini. There were 36 companies in total.

Students were strongly encouraged to get involved with industry. They had to complete at least three internships during their three years of study. One of these was a five-month project or research contract with a company.

Every year in early December, a job fair was held in Paris. This event was organized by a student group called Forum Centrale-Supélec. It was a great chance for students to find internships and jobs.

Partnerships with Other Schools

Centrale Paris and Supélec signed an agreement in 2005 to share some of their third-year study programs. Both schools already used a common exam for students applying after their preparatory classes. They also shared a common major in Energy.

Since 2005, their cooperation grew stronger, especially in research and industry partnerships. In 2008, they announced their partnership as a "strategic alliance."

Supélec students could choose to spend a semester or even earn a degree from one of the school's partner universities. These partners were in France or abroad. For example, Supélec students could get a Master's degree in Business from ESCP Europe. Other special degrees were available with IFP School or Paris-Sud 11 University.

One of Supélec's goals from 2006 to 2009 was to become more international. They wanted to encourage more students to study abroad or get a double degree. They also aimed to increase the number of foreign students at Supélec.

Imperial College main entrance

Supélec had agreements with many other higher education institutions. This allowed some Supélec students to take courses at these places instead of finishing their third year at Supélec. Successfully completing these studies was necessary to get the Supélec engineering degree.

Agreements existed with many universities in America, Australia, Canada, Japan, and Europe. Some of these included Georgia Tech, Columbia University, Ecole Polytechnique de Montréal, National University of Singapore, Imperial College London, and Technische Universität München.

Supélec had agreements and exchanges with over 70 foreign universities in more than 30 countries. It also ran the Top Industrial Managers for Europe (T.I.M.E) network and was a member of the CESAER Association and n+i engineering institutes. In 2008, 40% of graduates had earned double degrees, and 35% completed their final year of study abroad.

Student Life

Fun Activities

At the Gif-sur-Yvette campus, student groups organized many activities:

The 'Bureau des Eleves' (BdE), which is like a student council, and other groups often held parties.
The 'Bureau des Sports' helped students play sports. The Gif-sur-Yvette campus had a soccer field, tennis court, and a gym. Students could play most common sports there. Also, every Thursday afternoon, competitions were held between different French schools and universities.

Student Housing

All Supélec campuses had places for students to live.

The Gif-sur-Yvette campus had three types of student residences:

Residence 1: This was the oldest residence. Most first-year students lived here. Each student had their own room. Bathrooms were shared by two students, and kitchens were shared by about twenty students.
Residence 2: This residence had four buildings. Each building had several apartments for five or six students. In each apartment, there were three or four bathrooms and a large living room.
Residence 3: This residence had apartments for one person or for two people.

Events at Supélec

Every year, Supélec students organized many events:

In September, first-year students and many second-year students took part in a WEI (a welcome weekend event).
In October, the Gala Supelec took place, which was a big formal event.
In December, many famous companies participated in the Forum Supelec.
In January, the Campagne BdE happened, which was when students campaigned for student council elections.

Forum Supelec

The Forum Supelec was an event that brought together many well-known companies. These included EDF, Renault, BNP Paribas, PSA, CapGemini, Accenture, Mazars, and Logica. This event happened every year at the Gif-sur-Yvette campus. It was a great chance for many students to find internships.

Supélec Campuses

Gif-sur-Yvette Campus

Gif-sur-Yvette was the main and largest campus. It was located on the Plateau du Moulon, which is an important area for French education. Other famous French schools were also building their campuses there, like ENS Paris-Saclay and Ecole Centrale Paris.

Many activities could be done at the Gif-sur-Yvette campus, such as jogging, tennis, basketball, and swimming.

Rennes Campus

This campus was located on the edge of Rennes. It had large green spaces and was well connected to the city center. It took only 15 minutes by public transport, which was great for students who wanted to enjoy the city's lively student life. It was also close to other schools like the University of Rennes 1 and 2 and INSA.

Metz Campus

The Metz campus was located on the Technopole Metz 2000. It was next to other institutions like Georgia Tech Lorraine and ENSAM.

Famous People from Supélec

Many well-known people graduated from Supélec. Some of them include: Pierre Bézier, Pierre Boulle, Thierry Breton, Louis Charles Breguet, Henri Chrétien, Jean Deleage, Maryline Hélard, Jeannine Henaff, Hervé Laborne, Jean-Luc Lagardère, Rene Leduc, Philippe Morillon, Dinh Thuy Phan Huy, Ambroise Roux, Pierre Schaeffer, Dominique Vidal and Jean-Baptiste Waldner.