ESPCI ParisTech

Coordinates: 48°50′29″N 2°20′49″E / 48.84139°N 2.34694°E / 48.84139; 2.34694

ESPCI Paris
Type Grandes Ecoles
Established 1882
Location Paris, France
Campus 5th arrondissement of Paris
Affiliations ParisTech (Paris Institute of Technology),
IDEA League,
ASTech
Website ESPCI Paris

ESPCI Paris (officially the école supérieure de physique et de chimie industrielles de la ville de Paris; The City of Paris Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution) is an engineer school and a constituent college of PSL Research University specialised in Physics, Chemistry and Biology. It is run by the city of Paris, France and a member of the ParisTech (Paris Institute of Technology) alliance. It conducts high level research in those fields.

Two thirds of the students enter the School after a competitive examination (concours X-ESPCI-ENS) following at least two years of Classes Préparatoires. The others students are recruited by file evaluation. They are called Pécéen or PC1(boys) and Pécéenne or PCN(girls). The School itself is also known as Physique-Chimie or simply PC.

The ESPCI Paris is one of the founding members of ParisTech and more recently of PSL Research University, and a member of the IDEA League and the UNITECH International Society.

ESPCI develops its relations with industrial partners such as Schlumberger, Rhodia, Total, Thales, Arkema, Michelin, Withings, which sponsored each yeargroup of students and signed research contracts with ESPCI laboratories. ESPCI Paris has signed partnership agreements with L'Oréal and Saint-Gobain for the recruitment of their professionals.

History

At the end of the 19th century, following the annexion of Alsace and Lorraine by Germany, France lost the École de Chimie de Mulhouse (Mulhouse Chemistry School), which was at that time the best Chemistry school in the country. One of its professors, Charles Lauth, starting in 1878, obtained from the public administration the creation of a Grande École.

In 1882 the École Supérieure de Chimie Industrielles de la Ville de Paris was established and became the ESPCI, the current name, in 1948. Since its foundation, the founders of the school have been insisting on the pluridisciplinarity of the courses available. Biology was introduced in 1994. Studying at the ESPCI is free of charge as voted by the Counsel of Paris.

After its establishment, the School rapidly became a meeting spot for the best scientists. From 1880 on, Pierre and Jacques Curie started a serie of research on crystal electrical properties that led to the piezoelectricity discovery. At the end of the year 1897, Marie Curie started her work on uranic rays discovered by Becquerel one year earlier. After numerous experiments in the ESPCI laboratories, she found out that pitchblende was 4 times more radioactive than uranium or thorium.[1] In July 1898, the Curies announced the discovery of polonium and in December of the same year that of radium. Pierre and Marie Curie received the Physics Nobel Prize in 1903. After the death of her husband, Marie Curie was granted the Chemistry Nobel Prize in 1911.

Many former students have distinguished themselves, amongst which there are Georges Claude (5th year), founder of Air Liquide, Paul Langevin (7th year), physicist and inventor and Frédéric Joliot-Curie (39th year), founder of the CEA and Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1935 with his wife Irène.

In 1976, Pierre-Gilles de Gennes (Nobel Prize 1991) became Director of the School and remained in this position until his retirement in 2002.

Education

The course of study lasts four years.[2] The two first years are devoted to giving the students a strong basic education in Physics, Chemistry and in Biology. During the third year, the students perform an industrial internship and research projects in laboratories. The students can major in Physics, Chemistry or Physico-chemistry. During the fourth year, the students can either start doctoral studies or do a master abroad. They can also complete their education in various application schools (master for engineers). In 2002 a master program in Bioengineering was created.

The engineering practical training program is based on the industrial internship at the beginning of the third year, the projects in laboratories during the last two years, lectures on recruitment process and social economics at the beginning of the fourth year. The compulsory industrial internship, which lasts from 4 to 6 months, has a huge importance. More than 50% of the students do their internship abroad, in European countries, the United-States, Japan, China, Australia...

The quality of the education given at the ESPCI enables its students to work in any industrial sector (Telecommunication, Computing, Chemistry, Pharmacology, Biology...), mostly in Research and Development (47% in R&D, 10% in Production, 10% in Consultancy, 5% in Environment, 3% in Teaching, 3% in Computing, 22% in other fields such as Marketing, Management...).

In its 2010 edition, the Academic Ranking of World Universities, also known as Shanghai Ranking, lists ESPCI ParisTech (Industrial Physics and Chemistry Higher Educational Institution - Paris) as the first French engineering school, in the same tier (200-300) as the École polytechnique, among the best 75-123 schools and universities in Europe and among the best 8-13 in France.[3]

5 researchers from ESPCI have received the Nobel Prize:

Admission

The primary mode of admission (60 out of 90 students every year) is a competitive examination open to candidates enrolled in the PC (Physics-Chemistry) section of the Preparatory Classes to the Grandes écoles. The written, oral and sporting tests are the same as for the Ecole Polytechnique but the tests are weighted differently.

Candidates to the competitive examination must have their licence or an equivalent diploma. They must be over 17 years old and under 22 years old 1 January of the examination year. Foreign candidates must be under 26 year-old and can attempt this examination only three times.

It is also possible for students from the MP section (Maths-Physics), PSI section (Physics and Engineering Sciences), and BCPST section ( Biology, Chemistry, Physics and Eart Sciences) of the Preparatory Classes or having completed 2 or 3 years in a French University in a Physics or Chemistry major to enter the ESPCI-Paris. Admission is reserved to first class honour students selected according to their academic results.

Directors of the ESPCI

Professors of ESPCI Paris

Notable alumni

Laboratories

ESPCI hosts high levels laboratories:[4]

The ESPCI Paris International Scientific Committee

President:[5]

Members:

References

  1. ↑ Sklodowska Curie, Marie (1898). "Rays emitted by compounds of uranium and of thorium". Comptes Rendus. 126: 1101–1103. Retrieved 21 July 2011.
  2. ↑ Complete curriculum description
  3. ↑ Shanghai Ranking 2010
  4. ↑ (in French)
  5. ↑ The ESPCI ParisTech ISC(in French)
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