French students press government over school staffing and admissions
Student groups have issued 10 emergency demands as protests spread across the country. Ministers are due to propose responses by the end of October.
Hundreds of thousands of students joined the biggest day of protests so far on Tuesday, France 24 reported, as demonstrations over school conditions and university admissions spread across France.
The protests began in late September at Saint-Exupéry high school in Créteil, where teachers had struck over staff shortages. Student groups have since published 10 emergency demands, including more teachers and support staff, repairs to school buildings, manageable timetables, financial help and an end to police violence.
Staffing shortages are a central concern. France 24 cited a public school staff union finding that more than half of the country’s middle and high schools lack at least one teacher, while 69 per cent lack at least one teaching or support staff member.
Students also want clearer decisions from Parcoursup, France’s online higher education admissions platform. A February 2026 report said the system may perpetuate sociocultural inequalities. Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has asked ministers to propose changes to make decisions more transparent for the 2027 admissions round, which opens in January.
Lecornu has asked ministers to send proposals on the wider demands by the end of October. The report says funding reforms could be complicated by debate over France’s strained 2027 budget; it does not establish that new funding or reforms have been approved.
