New setback for the reform of health studies. Fifteen universities will have to open additional places in the second year of health studies before October, to admit students adversely affected by the reform that came into force last year, according to a decision of the Council of State consulted by AFP on Friday.
Despite the overall increase in the number of places in the second year of medicine, dentistry, pharmacy and midwifery, some universities have not played the game enough.
Objectives not achieved
On request by fifteen student associations in the new PASS (“specific course” with a predominantly health-oriented) and LAS (license with option “health access” option), the Council of State partially annulled the decree setting the admission quotas in the second year at the start of the 2021 school year. Indeed, this text gave too good a place to repeaters from the former Paces (“common first year”), who represented 30% of those enrolled but took almost half of the places .
The reform voted in 2019, however, provided for a “temporary increase, of the order of 20%” in the number of places in the second year, so as “not to create inequalities to the detriment of new students in PASS and LAS”.
But most of the 31 universities concerned have not reached this objective, and for 15 of them this represents “at least ten places” not created: Aix-Marseille, Antilles, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Caen, Clermont, Lille-2 , Lorraine, Montpellier, Poitiers, Rouen, Saint-Étienne, Strasbourg, Toulouse-3 and Tours.
A “manifest error of assessment”
A “manifest error of appreciation” that these faculties will have to correct by September 30 by creating the missing places “for the benefit of only students from LAS and PASS”, starting with those “appearing on the complementary lists” established depending on the results of the end-of-year exams.
“The government takes note of the decision of the Council of State”, reacted in a press release the ministers Olivier Véran (Health) and Frédérique Vidal (Higher education), who “will be alongside the universities” concerned to support them “in the ‘execution of (this) decision’. “Our fight was fair”, reacted for her part Muriel Brajon, of the Collective PASS / LAS of Montpellier, hailing “a form of moral victory”.
“But on arrival the mess is there”, told AFP this student mother, who intends to “continue to fight” to “save as many students as possible” and is still awaiting a decree promised in early June by the Prime Minister, Jean Castex, and reorganizing the distribution of places in the 2nd year, to “guarantee students the best chances of success”.