École Normale Supérieure
Encyclopedia
The École normale supérieure (ekɔl nɔʁmal sypeʁjœʁ; also known as Normale sup’, Normale, and ENS) is one of the most prestigious French
grandes écoles
(higher education establishments outside the mainstream framework of the public universities system). The ENS was initially conceived during the French Revolution
, and it was intended to provide the Republic with a new body of teacher
s, trained in the critical spirit and secular values of the Enlightenment. It has since developed into an elite institution which has become a platform for many of France's brightest young people to pursue high-level careers in government and academia.
Its alumni have provided France with scores of philosophers, writers, scientists, statesmen and even churchmen. Among them are 12 Nobel Prize
laureates, 10 Fields Medalists
, 1 Gauss Prize laureate, and 2 recipients of the John Bates Clark Medal in Economics.
For a long time, women were taught at a separate ENS. The two were merged, after some heated debate, into a single entity, with its main campus at the historic site at the rue d'Ulm in Paris
.
The ENS system is different from that of most higher education systems outside France, although it has been copied since Napoleonic times, for instance in Italy. Nevertheless, the university was ranked 33rd in the 2011 QS World University Rankings
. THE-QS World University Rankings (from 2010 two separate rankings have been produced by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings
and the QS World University Rankings
) ranked it the best higher-education institution in Continental Europe in 2006 and 2007.
The historic Paris ENS campus is located around the rue d'Ulm, the main building being at 45 rue d'Ulm) in the 5th arrondissement of Paris. The ENS-Ulm has annex campuses on Boulevard Jourdan (previously, the women's college) (48.822439°N 2.331312°W, elsewhere in Paris
), and in Montrouge
(a suburb; 48.820742°N 2.315180°W), as well as a biology annex in the countryside at Foljuif.
2 other écoles normales supérieures were established in the 19th century: the École Normale Supérieure de Lyon
(sciences & humanities); and the École Normale Supérieure de Cachan
(pure and applied sciences, sociology, economics and management, English language) in Cachan
. All 3 together form the informal ENS-group.
The École Normale Supérieure is a member of Paris Sciences et Lettres - Quartier latin
, a union of five higher education institutions, all located in Paris, which aims at achieving cooperations and synergies in the academic field.
The École Normale Supérieure cooperates in Atomium Culture
, the first Permanent Platform for European Excellence that brings together some of Europe's leading universities, newspapers and businesses.
Originally founded to train high school teachers through the agrégation
, it is now an institution training researchers, professors, high-level civil servants, as well as business and political leaders. It focuses on the association of training and research, with an emphasis on freedom of curriculum.
Its alumni include ten laureates of the Fields Medal
(all French holders of the Fields medal were educated at the École Normale Supérieure), as well as several Nobel Prize
winners in both science and literature.
Like many other grandes écoles
, the ENS mostly enrolls its students two or three years after high school. The majority of them come from prépas (preparatory classes, see grandes écoles
) and have to pass France's most selective competitive exams. Studies at ENS last four years. Many students devote the third year to the agrégation
, which allows them to teach in high schools or universities. ENS-Ulm annually enrolls about 100 students in science and the same number in the humanities.
The normaliens, as the students of the ENS are known, are expected to maintain a level of excellence in the various disciplines in which they are trained. Normaliens from France
and other European Union
countries are considered civil servants in training. As such, they are paid a monthly salary (about 1300€), in exchange for an agreement to serve France for 10 years, including their studies. Although it is seldom applied in practice, this exclusivity clause is redeemable (often by the hiring firm).
Apart from the normaliens, ENS also welcomes selected foreign students ("international selection"), as well as selected students from neighboring universities, to follow the same curriculum but without a stipend. It also participates in various graduate programs and has extensive research laboratories.
The fictitious mathematician Nicolas Bourbaki
's "association of collaborators" is based at ENS.
was founded in 1810 as a branch of the École normale supérieure and later gained independence.
The ENS group has opened a branch at the ECNU in Shanghai
.
About fifty books are in free access on the "Éditions Rue d'Ulm" site, all in French.
Alumni of the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure faculty
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
grandes écoles
Grandes écoles
The grandes écoles of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. The grandes écoles select students for admission based chiefly on national ranking in competitive written and oral exams...
(higher education establishments outside the mainstream framework of the public universities system). The ENS was initially conceived during the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
, and it was intended to provide the Republic with a new body of teacher
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
s, trained in the critical spirit and secular values of the Enlightenment. It has since developed into an elite institution which has become a platform for many of France's brightest young people to pursue high-level careers in government and academia.
Its alumni have provided France with scores of philosophers, writers, scientists, statesmen and even churchmen. Among them are 12 Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
laureates, 10 Fields Medalists
Fields Medal
The Fields Medal, officially known as International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics, is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of the International Mathematical Union , a meeting that takes place every four...
, 1 Gauss Prize laureate, and 2 recipients of the John Bates Clark Medal in Economics.
For a long time, women were taught at a separate ENS. The two were merged, after some heated debate, into a single entity, with its main campus at the historic site at the rue d'Ulm in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
The ENS system is different from that of most higher education systems outside France, although it has been copied since Napoleonic times, for instance in Italy. Nevertheless, the university was ranked 33rd in the 2011 QS World University Rankings
QS World University Rankings
The QS World University Rankings is a ranking of the world’s top 500 universities by Quacquarelli Symonds using a method that has published annually since 2004....
. THE-QS World University Rankings (from 2010 two separate rankings have been produced by the Times Higher Education World University Rankings
Times Higher Education World University Rankings
The Times Higher Education World University Rankings is an international ranking of universities published by the British magazine Times Higher Education in partnership with Thomson Reuters, which provided citation database information...
and the QS World University Rankings
QS World University Rankings
The QS World University Rankings is a ranking of the world’s top 500 universities by Quacquarelli Symonds using a method that has published annually since 2004....
) ranked it the best higher-education institution in Continental Europe in 2006 and 2007.
The historic Paris ENS campus is located around the rue d'Ulm, the main building being at 45 rue d'Ulm) in the 5th arrondissement of Paris. The ENS-Ulm has annex campuses on Boulevard Jourdan (previously, the women's college) (48.822439°N 2.331312°W, elsewhere in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
), and in Montrouge
Montrouge
Montrouge is a commune in the southern Parisian suburbs, located from the center of Paris, France. It is one of the most densely populated municipalities in Europe...
(a suburb; 48.820742°N 2.315180°W), as well as a biology annex in the countryside at Foljuif.
2 other écoles normales supérieures were established in the 19th century: the École Normale Supérieure de Lyon
École Normale Supérieure de Lyon
The École Normale Supérieure de Lyon is a highly selective grande école located in Lyon, France. As one of France's three Écoles normales supérieures, ENS Lyon is associated with a strong French tradition of excellence and public service...
(sciences & humanities); and the École Normale Supérieure de Cachan
École Normale Supérieure de Cachan
The École Normale Supérieure de Cachan is one of the most prestigious French Grandes Écoles. Like all the other Grandes Écoles, this higher education institution is not included in the mainstream framework of the French public universities...
(pure and applied sciences, sociology, economics and management, English language) in Cachan
Cachan
Cachan is a commune in the southern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris.The prestigious École Normale Supérieure de Cachan is located there.-Name:...
. All 3 together form the informal ENS-group.
The École Normale Supérieure is a member of Paris Sciences et Lettres - Quartier latin
Paris Sciences et Lettres - Quartier latin
Paris Sciences et Lettres - Quartier Latin, also known as PSL - Quartier Latin, is a French higher education and research institution. It was founded in April 2010 by five prominent French institutions : the École Normale Supérieure, the Collège de France, the Paris Observatory, the École...
, a union of five higher education institutions, all located in Paris, which aims at achieving cooperations and synergies in the academic field.
The École Normale Supérieure cooperates in Atomium Culture
Atomium Culture
Atomium Culture AISBL is an International Non-Profit Organisation thatbrings together major European universities, newspapers and businesses in ashared platform for the selection, exchange, and dissemination ofparticularly significant European research,...
, the first Permanent Platform for European Excellence that brings together some of Europe's leading universities, newspapers and businesses.
Overview
Agrégation
In France, the agrégation is a civil service competitive examination for some positions in the public education system. The laureates are known as agrégés...
, it is now an institution training researchers, professors, high-level civil servants, as well as business and political leaders. It focuses on the association of training and research, with an emphasis on freedom of curriculum.
Its alumni include ten laureates of the Fields Medal
Fields Medal
The Fields Medal, officially known as International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics, is a prize awarded to two, three, or four mathematicians not over 40 years of age at each International Congress of the International Mathematical Union , a meeting that takes place every four...
(all French holders of the Fields medal were educated at the École Normale Supérieure), as well as several Nobel Prize
Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
winners in both science and literature.
Like many other grandes écoles
Grandes écoles
The grandes écoles of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. The grandes écoles select students for admission based chiefly on national ranking in competitive written and oral exams...
, the ENS mostly enrolls its students two or three years after high school. The majority of them come from prépas (preparatory classes, see grandes écoles
Grandes écoles
The grandes écoles of France are higher education establishments outside the main framework of the French university system. The grandes écoles select students for admission based chiefly on national ranking in competitive written and oral exams...
) and have to pass France's most selective competitive exams. Studies at ENS last four years. Many students devote the third year to the agrégation
Agrégation
In France, the agrégation is a civil service competitive examination for some positions in the public education system. The laureates are known as agrégés...
, which allows them to teach in high schools or universities. ENS-Ulm annually enrolls about 100 students in science and the same number in the humanities.
The normaliens, as the students of the ENS are known, are expected to maintain a level of excellence in the various disciplines in which they are trained. Normaliens from France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and other European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
countries are considered civil servants in training. As such, they are paid a monthly salary (about 1300€), in exchange for an agreement to serve France for 10 years, including their studies. Although it is seldom applied in practice, this exclusivity clause is redeemable (often by the hiring firm).
Apart from the normaliens, ENS also welcomes selected foreign students ("international selection"), as well as selected students from neighboring universities, to follow the same curriculum but without a stipend. It also participates in various graduate programs and has extensive research laboratories.
The fictitious mathematician Nicolas Bourbaki
Nicolas Bourbaki
Nicolas Bourbaki is the collective pseudonym under which a group of 20th-century mathematicians wrote a series of books presenting an exposition of modern advanced mathematics, beginning in 1935. With the goal of founding all of mathematics on set theory, the group strove for rigour and generality...
's "association of collaborators" is based at ENS.
Influence abroad
The Scuola Normale Superiore in PisaPisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
was founded in 1810 as a branch of the École normale supérieure and later gained independence.
The ENS group has opened a branch at the ECNU in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
.
Free online content
Some lectures are in free access on the "Transfer of knowledge" site of the ENS.About fifty books are in free access on the "Éditions Rue d'Ulm" site, all in French.
See also
- École Normale Supérieure de CachanÉcole Normale Supérieure de CachanThe École Normale Supérieure de Cachan is one of the most prestigious French Grandes Écoles. Like all the other Grandes Écoles, this higher education institution is not included in the mainstream framework of the French public universities...
- École Normale Supérieure de LyonÉcole Normale Supérieure de LyonThe École Normale Supérieure de Lyon is a highly selective grande école located in Lyon, France. As one of France's three Écoles normales supérieures, ENS Lyon is associated with a strong French tradition of excellence and public service...
Alumni of the École Normale Supérieure
École Normale Supérieure faculty
- École PolytechniqueÉcole PolytechniqueThe École Polytechnique is a state-run institution of higher education and research in Palaiseau, Essonne, France, near Paris. Polytechnique is renowned for its four year undergraduate/graduate Master's program...
- École nationale supérieure des mines de ParisÉcole nationale supérieure des mines de ParisThe École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris was created in 1783 by King Louis XVI in order to train intelligent directors of mines. It is one of the most prominent French engineering schoolsThe École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Paris (also known as Mines ParisTech, École des Mines de...
- École Centrale ParisÉcole Centrale ParisÉcole Centrale Paris is a French university-level institution in the field of engineering. It is also known by its original name École centrale des arts et manufactures, or ECP. Founded in 1829, it is one of the oldest and most prestigious engineering schools in France and has the special status...
- Paris UniversitasParis UniversitasParis Universitas was an alliance of six institutions of higher education in Paris, France, that existed from 2005 to 2010. Paris Universitas offers a wide range of disciplines, from medicine to the humanities, engineering, law, management and the social sciences...
- Atomium CultureAtomium CultureAtomium Culture AISBL is an International Non-Profit Organisation thatbrings together major European universities, newspapers and businesses in ashared platform for the selection, exchange, and dissemination ofparticularly significant European research,...
- École Normale de Musique de ParisÉcole Normale de Musique de ParisThe École Normale de Musique de Paris is a leading conservatoire located in Paris, France. The school was founded by Auguste Mangeot and pianist Alfred Cortot in 1919...
External links
- ENS Cachan
- A. J. Ladd, École Normale Supérieure: An Historical Sketch (Grand Forks, North DakotaGrand Forks, North DakotaGrand Forks is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Grand Forks County. According to the 2010 census, the city's population was 52,838, while that of the city and surrounding metropolitan area was 98,461...
: Herald Pub. Co., 1897)