A slew of good news. Last week, the Minister of Higher Education, Sylvie Retailleau, unveiled the contours of the reform of student grants. With a first positive point, since “35,000 additional students” will benefit from a scholarship from the start of the next school year and thus join the 720,000 current scholarship holders. At the same time, existing scholarships will see their amount increase, and some scholarship holders will change level.
For those who have questions, 20 minutes organized this Wednesday an Instalive with the Minister of Higher Education, Sylvie Retailleau. These are some of his answers. The others are in our video, posted on Instagram.
How do you know if you will be one of the 35,000 new scholarship recipients?
You can go to the Crous website to simulate your situation, and thus find out if you can benefit from a scholarship and when. Applications for scholarships are due until May 31.
The trade unions demanded 100,000 new scholarship holders. Why did you limit yourself to 35,000?
We have put 500 million additional euros on the table for the start of the school year, which represents a 20% increase in the envelope devoted to scholarships. We wanted to increase the number of beneficiaries, but also increase the amount of scholarships: all levels have been increased by a minimum of 37 euros (+ 34% for the lowest level).
You have announced that 140,000 current scholarship holders will switch to the higher scholarship level. Can you give us some examples?
This corresponds for them to a gain of 66 euros to 127 euros per month.
You have announced that you will put an end to threshold effects. Can you explain to the students what this entails?
If there was a change in family income of 20 euros, this sometimes resulted in a decrease of 90 euros in the student grant. Which was an injustice. As of this year, we are erasing these threshold effects.
According to Fage, the amount of the scholarship should not depend on the family situation of the student. What do you answer him?
A student who is independent, we must also provide him with assistance in relation to his income. But we are on a model with social criteria, that is to say redistributive. Parents who can help their children get an education do. The state focuses on helping those who need it most. And the autonomous income at the same level for all, we are not in favor of it.
You also announced that the 1 euro university meal would be made permanent for all scholarship students. But is it also accessible to certain non-scholarship holders?
They can benefit from it by contacting the Crous. Their files will be studied by social workers. A meal at 1 euro represents 100 euros in savings per month.
What aid is provided if you are not a scholarship holder?
You may be entitled either to one-off aid or to annual aid, depending on the situation. You have to contact the Crous. Non-scholarship holders may also be entitled to APL (personalized housing assistance).
What will your next scholarship announcements be about?
We will resume the discussion on the stepped scholarship model. In particular, we will work on taking into account a certain territoriality. We will also discuss other topics related to student life, including university health services.