With the Paris Olympic Games just seven years away France has a surfeit of would-be sports students. Over 10000 applicants for places on what they call "staps" courses (Science et techniques des activites physiques et sportives") have been refused entry because courses are full.
One imagines that most applicants are sporty types who want to spend three years playing football or whatever, but apparently not so. Universities and higher education institutions want a range of students to validate their courses, which include management, fitness and general subjects as well as coaching qualifications. But many institutions use a "tirage aux sorts" - drawing lots, which seems a fair system, but gives the faculties no guarantee of quality. Bordeaux University's Staps course had 1500 applicants, of whom 1200 were refused. The Minister of Education wants to change the system for next year's post-BAC applications.
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