May 15 marked the last day of the 2024 admission orals.

Whatever the era, the day of the orals remains forever engraved in the memory of all ESSCA students as the last step towards the next school year, the first day of the rest of our lives: admission to ESSCA.

Remember the apprehension of arriving on campus, the unfamiliar faces, the unfamiliar or almost unfamiliar place, the different format of the Bacs blancs, the unknown tests themselves...

Of course, some people will have undergone ad' hoc preparation and may feel less anxious... but in any case, after the first written test of the general interest questionnaire, the oral test begins.

First, we meet our "partners/adversaries" in front of the room where thegroup oral will take place (an ESSCA exclusivity).

We observe each other, some trying to make contact, others more reserved. We settle in, the Jury (obviously benevolent today) reminds us of the rules of the game, the timing and distributes the subject to be dealt with: "For or against banning the sale of tobacco for people born after 2006", "Celebrating the millennium of the creation of a town of 200,000 inhabitants", etc... so many more or less easy or inspiring subjects on which we had to work.

The characters quickly became apparent...

The one who absolutely wants to speak first to appear leader, the more composed one who acts in small steps to steer the debate, the organizer/reporter, the empath who seeks the opinion of the shy one... A small company of 8 candidates can be organized in 30 minutes to produce a coherent result.

Then it's theEnglish oral, a mere formality for some, Golgotha for others, and the long day ends with the individual oral.

It has to be said, though, that the atmosphere has changed a great deal (and so much the better) compared to earlier times. We're not here to "break" candidates. The trick phrase, the good cop/bad cop routine to see what the candidate "has in the belly" is no longer used, fortunately.

The aim is to ensure that the student's project is in line with what the School can offer him/her, and that he/she matches the values of excellence, solidarity and humanism that ESSCA has upheld since its creation.

The main thing is to realize this before wasting a year or more on school.

This individual interview is an opportunity to delve deeper into the motivations and character of each candidate. It's a chance to meet some very nice people, and to be surprised by some of the young people you want to say to right away: "Come and join my team!" and who unknowingly go home with the top mark.

Editor's note: After more than 15 years on juries spread over almost 35 years, I have never reversed my judgment of a candidate between the group interview and the individual interview... Refining an opinion, yes, reversing, never.

And then, well, it's over... Confident or regretful, everyone returns home to finish the school year and start preparing for the Bac. The first results will be in at the end of May: admitted in the 1st round? On the list? If so, you'll have to endure the ordeal until the good news is announced.

That's it... our future classmates will soon be joining the ESSCA community.