In parallel, these business schools promise to adapt to new requirements: use of artificial intelligence, integration of climate and social issues into teachings, attempts to strengthen social justice among students. However, they are not immune to criticism. They are notably accused of favoring social reproduction and offering low-quality courses for exorbitant tuition fees, as recognized by Emmanuel Métais, General Director of EDEC: “It’s a problem in general of the training of elites that tends to be reproduced in the long term, indeed for someone in positions of responsibility like me, now it’s about how do we stop things.” Furthermore, concerns persist regarding their economic functioning and potential bankruptcy. Do business schools really keep their promises? Do these programs still have legitimacy in the landscape of higher education?
The evolution of pedagogical models in business schools French business schools are undergoing a profound transformation, seeking to integrate contemporary issues such as artificial intelligence and ecological transition while preserving their academic legitimacy. While school administrations emphasize the increasing weight of scientific research in their programs, some analysts highlight a persistent disconnection between the theory taught and the practical reality of management, often acquired through involvement in associative life.
The persistent issue of social reproduction These establishments face the structural challenge of elite reproduction, where family background influences access to top schools as well as future success in the job market. Despite social opening programs and scholarships, the high cost of tuition and inherent social codes in these institutions create barriers that remain difficult to overcome for students from modest backgrounds, as sociologist Marianne Blanchard points out: “In business schools, in fact, we will have a double barrier, since we have the school barrier, which is the one we find in very top schools like polytechnique, because we know to what extent it has been shown, demonstrated, academic success is intimately linked to social origin.”
To go further: – Marianne Blanchard, “Les Ecoles supérieures de commerce: Sociohistoire d’une entreprise éducative en France”, Classiques Garnier, 2015 – Maurice Midena, “Entrez rêveurs, sortez manageurs – Formation et formatage en école de commerce”, La Découverte, 2021
Sound references from the show: – Hélène tells the reasons that led her to integrate a business school – France Culture – Pieds sur terre – February 11, 2021 – Isabelle, the first in her family to pursue higher education, talks about her feelings of imposture at HEC – Excerpt from the documentary “HEC, admitted without the codes” by Camille Poulain and Jules Giraudat (2025)
