The baccalauréat (; ), often known in France colloquially as the bac, is a French national academic qualification that students can obtain at the completion of their secondary education (at the end of the lycée) by meeting certain requirements. Though it has only existed in its present form as a school-leaving examination since Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte's implementation on 17 March 1808, its origins date back to the first medieval French universities. According to French law, the baccalaureate is the first academic degree, though it grants the completion of secondary education. Historically, the baccalaureate is administratively supervised by full professors at universities.
Similar academic qualifications exist elsewhere in Europe, variously known as Abitur in Germany, maturità in Italy, bachillerato in Spain, maturita in Slovakia and Czech Republic. There is also the European Baccalaureate, which students take at the end of the European School education.
In France, there are three main types of baccalauréat, which are very different and obtained in different places: the (general baccalaureate), the (technological baccalaureate), and the (professional baccalaureate).
Overview
Much like the European Matura, English A levels, or the North American high school diploma, the baccalauréat allows French and international students to obtain a standardised qualification, typically at the age of 18 (end of the lycée). It qualifies holders to work in certain areas, go on to tertiary education (universités), or acquire some other professional qualification or training. Even though it is not legally required, the vast majority of students in their final year of secondary school take a final exam.
The word bac is also used to refer to one of the end-of-year exams that students must pass to get their baccalauréat diploma: the bac de philo, for example, is the philosophy exam, which all students must take, regardless of their field of study.
Within France, there are three main types of baccalauréat obtained in different places, and which are completely different:
the (general baccalaureate), specially made to enter university and continue studies; the (technological baccalaureate), specially made to work or continue short technical studies; the (professional baccalaureate), specially made to enter professional life.
For entrance to regular universities within France, however, there are some restrictions as to the type of baccalauréat that can be presented. In some cases, it may be possible to enter a French university without the bac by taking a special exam, the "diploma for entrance to higher education".
Though most students take the bac at the end of secondary school, it is also possible to enter as a candidat libre (literally, "free candidate") without affiliation to a school. Students who did not take the bac upon completion of secondary school (or did not manage to pass it) and would like to attend university, or feel that the bac would help them accomplish professional aspirations, may exercise that option.
Baccalauréat général (post-2019) From 2019, the S, ES and L streams of the general baccalaureate have been replaced by three specialty streams, taken during the penultimate year (Première), only two of which are kept in the final year (Terminale). There are 13 subjects specific to the three spécialités (majors, litt. "specialities") : arts, history, geography, political science & geopolitics (HGGSP), humanities, languages, literature, mathematics, computer science, physics & chemistry, economic & social sciences (SES), engineering sciences, biology & geology, and Physical education sport practices & cultures (EPPCS ) . These subjects are added to a set common to all : French, philosophy, history & geography, languages (LVB and LVC), sciences and sport. A large part of the tests is now in continuous control but the students also have a final oral test or written exam. +Spécialités (majors)Weight (total 100)Format of examDurationArts163h30 written + 30min oral examEPPCS (Physical education, sport practices and cultures)163h30 written + 2 x 15min oral examHGGSP (History, geography, geopolitics and political sciences)16essay and commentary on text or image4 hours (written)HLP (Humanities, literature and philosophy)164 hours (written)LLCER (Local and foreign languages, literature and cultures)163 hours 30 minutes (written), 20 minutes (oral)LLCA (Antique literature and cultures)164 hours (written)Mathematics164 hours (written)NSI (Digital and computer sciences)163h30 written + practical examPhysics and chemistry163h30 written + practical examSVT (Earth sciences)163h30 written + practical examSI (Engineering sciences)163h30 written + practical examSES (Economics and social sciences)16three-part exam (course-based questions) or essay4 hours (written)Biology and ecology163h30 written + practical exam
Baccalauréat technologique
The technological baccalaureate is one of the three tracks of the French baccalaureate. It is obtained in a Lycée technologique. The teaching of the lessons is based on inductive reasoning and experimentation. It allows the student to work or to pursue short and technical studies (laboratory, design and applied arts, hotel and restaurant management, etc.).
It currently has eight sections : STMG (Sciences and Technologies of Management), ST2S (Sciences and Technologies of Healthcare), STI2D (Sciences and Technologies of Industry and Sustainable Development), STD2A (Sciences and Technologies of Design and Applied Art), STHR (Hospitality Industry and Business), STL (Science and Technologies of Laboratory), STAV (Science and Technologies of Agronomy and Living Organisms), S2TMD (Science and Technologies of Theatre, Music and Dance).
Baccalauréat professionnel The professional baccalaureate allows rapid integration into working life. It is obtained in a Lycée professionnel.
The professional baccalaureate includes nearly 100 specialties like : leather crafts; building technician; maintenance of industrial equipment; cook; road freight transport driver; butcher; etc.
Format The examination takes place in the two last years of the lycée: première and terminale. From 2021 a large part of the tests is now in continuous control.
Most examinations are given in essay form. The student is given a substantial block of time (depending on the exam, that is from two to five hours) to complete a multiple-page, well-argued paper. The number of pages varies from exam to exam but is usually substantial considering all answers have to be written down, explained and justified. Mathematics and science exams are problem sets but some science questions also require an essay-type answer. Before the 2019 reform, foreign-language exams often have a short translation section as well. The Mathematics and Earth & Life Sciences examinations may occasionally contain some multiple-choice questions (choix multiples), but this is rare and, when it occurs, does not constitute the majority of the exam.
Students of the also have to work on an oral research project (travaux personnels encadrés or TPE). It focuses on their specialties, under the supervision of a faculty member. The oral examination takes place in front of a jury of teachers. There are also several oral exams in languages; practical work in science or arts; or physical evaluation in sport.
When taken in mainland France, the baccalauréat material is the same for all students in a given stream. The secrecy surrounding the material is very tight, and the envelopes containing the exams are unsealed by a high-ranking school officer (usually a principal or vice-principal) in front of the examinees only a few minutes prior to the start of the examination. The procedure is the same for each subject, in each stream. Students usually have an identification number and an assigned seat. The number is written on all exam material and the name is hidden by folding and sealing the upper right-hand corner of the examination sheet(s). That way, anonymity is respected. The papers are usually marked by a member of the teaching staff in the same district or, at a larger scale, in the same académie. To avoid conflicts of interest, a teacher who has lectured to a student or group of students cannot grade that exam. Also, to ensure greater objectivity on the part of the examiners, the test is anonymous. The grader sees only an exam paper with a serial number, with all personally identifying material stripped away and forbidden from appearing, thus curbing any favoritism based upon sex, religion, national origin, or ethnicity.
Students generally take the French Language & Literature exam at the end of première since that subject is not taught in terminale, where it is replaced with Philosophy. It also has an oral examination component, along with the written part. The oral exam covers works studied throughout première. However, in L, students do have a literature exam in terminale.
Weighting system Each baccalauréat stream has its own set of subjects that each carry a different weighting (coefficient). That allows some subjects to be more important than others. For example, before the 2019 reform, in the ES stream, Economics & Social Sciences carries more weight than the natural sciences and so the former is more important than the latter. Students usually study more for exams that carry heavier weightings since the grades that they obtain in these exams have a bigger impact on their overall grade. Whether or not one passes the bac and/or receives eventual honours is determined by the calculation of that overall grade.
Today, each subject is weighted according to a specific coefficient. Subjects considered as specialties receive a higher coefficient of 16, while core subjects such as French, History-Geography, foreign languages... usually receive a lower coefficient.
Le baccalauréat français international The general baccalaureate offers several additional variants. The best-known subset is the baccalauréat français international, BFI (named option internationale du baccalauréat, OIB, until 2022). Sometimes translated as the "French international baccalaureate", it is unrelated to the International Baccalaureate (IB).
The BFI/OIB adds additional subjects to the French national exam. Before the 2019 reform students used to choose one of the L, ES or S streams. It differs, as students take a two-year syllabus in literature, history, and geography in a foreign language. That syllabus and the way that it is examined is modelled on the national exam of the target nation. For instance, the British Section (administered by the University of Cambridge) models the programmes on A-levels in English, History, and Geography. It is therefore necessary to be fully bilingual to complete this qualification. To date there are 16 different sections supporting 14 different languages: American, Arabic, British, (mainland) Chinese, Danish, Dutch, German, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Brazilian, Russian, Spanish and Swedish."les sections Internationales au lycée" Education.gouv.fr Retrieved 2021-08-13