Campaign in 2021 on social networks with the hashtag
How many are unassigned? At the end of October, 4,281 requests for appeal were made by students without a master’s degree, and deemed admissible by the academic rectorates, according to the Ministry of Higher Education. Among them, 2,198 students received at least one admission proposal, which 919 accepted.
And for the others? The specter of the white year. Unless you take an alternative route such as civic service, entry into working life, or even the resumption of a year of license.
«I applied for 28 masters in clinical psychology and received 28 negative responses. I had been warned that there were few places. But I did not expect to be refused everywhere», slips Juliet Durand , 21, from Le Havre (Seine-Maritime).
– A «plus» before reapplying? –
After an unsuccessful appeal, she turned to eight-month civic service in the minors’ quarter of a penitentiary center where she supports educators, for a salary of 601 euros per month.
«Initially, I did not see myself doing civic service, but in the end, it made me want to specialize in the protection of youth», she underlines, without giving up on getting a master’s degree. «It can be a plus if the universities do not stop at the notes».
For Amélia Henard, 23, going through the civic service option has proven itself. After having suffered refusals at the end of her social science license, she joined for eight months an association which sets up activities for children in Paris.
At the following school year, she encountered no difficulty in integrating a master’s degree in cultural mediation. «I’m sure they accepted me because I did this civic service.»
Master’s refusals, 21-year-old Rose Magnier saw them coming. «From the start of the year, the teachers told us that it was going to be complicated». This Parisian law student has applied for a pro degree in entrepreneurship, in addition to a dozen wishes for a master’s degree in law.
«I had the project to open a bar after a legal career. It will surely be before,» she explains after having seen all of her wishes rejected, despite a good general average. «Today my law degree is no longer of any use to me, I can’t find a lasting job with it».
– Open seats –
For her part, Juliette Henry, 23, has found a temporary job. For a year, she worked on a fixed-term contract as a specialist educator in a child welfare home, before taking a master’s degree in psychology in Lyon at the start of the school year.
«I accompanied young people from 6 to 18 years old almost daily. It was super rewarding, but it’s still not normal that we are allowed to do three years of license without it being able to lead to a master’s degree “, she regrets.
A position defended by student organizations, which refuse to make these alternative routes the solution for those disappointed with the master’s degree.
«Going through a civic service or through a job can be relevant, but it should not be an emergency device for students. Places must be opened up for a master’s degree», insists Félix Bodoulé Sosso, spokesperson for Fage, first student union.
On this point, the site remains open. The Ministry of Higher Education is counting on the establishment of a single application platform in 2023 to best allocate students leaving their license.