Parcoursup 2021: a more attractive website and chats!

Students, Researcher

The new Parcoursup website has just opened! All applicants interested in studies in France can access the website to gain information on training courses using the search engine. To complete their project, students may also use tutorials and chat to discover the agenda of registration and understand better how processes work.

To register to the French higher education system, admission conditions differ depending on the nationality, country of residence, secondary school graduation, and level and type of studies under consideration. Note that in some cases, the Parcoursup process is mandatory.

A catalogue with 17,000 education programmes

The Ministry in charge of higher education notes that starting on January 20, 17,000 training courses acknowledged by the French government will be accessible on the Parcoursup platform with an augmented training course offer this year. Several courses are now available on the platform, such as:

another access route for veterinary studies;
a new multidisciplinary scientific preparatory class (improved teachings in computer science);
a new “Bachelor Universitaire Technologique” (BUT, Technological University Bachelor), a 3-year course at Licence level in an IUT institution.

Clearer training courses

The Parcoursup website improves year after year! The Ministry rightly points out that the information provided is thus “more complete and readable”. It is to better meet students’ expectations that each course is now developed as an updated detailed factsheet, with a clearer presentation that makes it possible to explore “essential information before making a choice”. Selected criteria are thus more readable: this is the case with regard to the expectations (skills and knowledge required to succeed in the course) and the procedures for examining applications. Note that additional information is also provided about professional opportunities available on completion of studies and on the access rate to a given training course in 2020.

Online services

In the current and particular context of the sanitary crisis, where information is not always easy to provide, the Ministry of Higher Education is this year offering new online services, the Tchats Parcoursup in particular, which have been in place since early December to provide better support and guidance for students. A detailed programme of these chats is available on the site, but among other possible choices, the session on Wednesday 13 January 2021 can already be selected. This chat, organised in partnership with Onisep (French guidance organisation), will focus on the overall preparation of the study project with the exploration of the courses search engine. Other information systems will be opened in January, notably via the messaging system attached to the Parcoursup file and the Parcousup accounts on all social networks (Twitter, Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram).