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Accueil > Employment & training > Upper Secondary School Open Competition

Upper Secondary School Open Competition

Excellence in academic achievement

Established in 1744 at the University of Paris, this prestigious annual competition recognizes the most brilliant upper secondary school students.

Excellence in academic achievement

The candidates, who have been selected by their teachers on the basis of the quality of their work prior to the competition, are evaluated through various tests relevant to official school curricula. These tests are however longer and more demanding than the usual school leaving certificate tests.

In 2016, the young candidate could compete in 48 fields (30 for the upper secondary high school open competition and 18 for the technological and vocational education open competition). 17,372 nominees tool part to the tests this year, in France and abroad.

Today’s winners follow in the footsteps of their most distinguished predecessors:

politicians: Jean Jaurès, Léon Blum, Georges Pompidou, Jean-Pierre Chevènement, Jean-Louis Bianco, Alain Juppé
scientists: Marcellin Berthelot, Louis Pasteur, Laurent Schwartz
philosophers, high officials and entrepreneurs: Jules Michelet, Jorge Semprún, Régis Debray, André Miquel, Jacqueline de Romilly, Charles de Croisset, Laurence Giovacchini, Eric-Alexandre Hennekine, Daniel Bouton, Philippe Camus, Raymond Lévy
writers: Charles Baudelaire, Victor Hugo, Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt

Who can participate?

Pièce réalisée par les candidats au Concours Général 2017

The contest aims at honouring outstanding students and underlining the excellency of their work, as it can set a shining example for all students. It is open to students during the two last years of upper secondary education coming from public or state-agreed private schools, to graduating students coming from professional and vocational public or state-agreed private schools, as well as to graduating apprentices attending apprentice training centers.

Want to learn more about this contest? We kindly invite you to visit the website of the French Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Research:
http://eduscol.education.fr/pid23173/concours-general-des-lycees-et-des-metiers.html.

2017 winners:

Lauréats du Concours Général des Métiers 2017 - Fonderie

1st prize: M. Patrick CERVOISE, from Lycée Gustave Eiffel, in Armentières
2nd prize: M. Romeo GRAVEZ, from Lycée Hector Guimard, in Lyon
3rd prize: M. Jules QUENARD, from Lycée Henri Brisson, in Vierzon

Each year, several schools preparing students to casting careers suggest candidates, who were selected by their teachers beforehand. After running first tests, only the most outstanding students can perform in the final competition, which is organized by a different school from one year to the next.

The 2016 Awards Ceremony was held in the Sorbonne’s grand amphitheatre, in Paris, in attendance of the French Minister for Education, Higher Education and Research, Mrs. Najat Vallaud Belkacem, who congratulated the laureates and awarded them their prizes. In return, she was presented with the part executed by the students during the final competition.

The Fédération Forge Fonderie, which fully supports the competition, pays tribute to these brilliant young professionals each year in September with an awarding ceremony organized during the graduation ceremony at the Ecole Supérieure de Fonderie et de Forge (ESFF).

Watch a video reportage about the 2012 edition: "Concours Général 2012: un lycéen ardennais 1er au Concours Général"

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News

March 3 2026

The European Foundry Industry Sentiment Index (FISI) in January 2026

The European foundry industry has begun a new year of 2026 with a slight correction of the
European Foundry Industry Sentiment Index (FISI), published monthly by European Foundry
Federation, which decreased by 0.3 point in January 2026 and reached a level of 95.5 points.
In the countries participating in the monthly survey, the situation on the cast iron market is
stable. On the other hand, there is a negative assessment of the situation in the area of nonferrous
metal castings at the main EU producer, which mainly affected the value of the FISI
indicator. Nevertheless, the forecasts for the coming months look optimistic.

The Business Climate Index (BCI), published by the European Commission, reached -0.38 in
January 2026, compared to the previous reading of -0.56 in December 2025.
The Eurozone Manufacturing PMI in January 2026 reached a level of 49.5 which was an
increase by 0.7 point from the value of 48.8 in December 2025.
_____________________________________________________________
The FISI – European Foundry Industry Sentiment Indicator – is the earliest available composite indicator
providing information on the European foundry industry performance. It is published by EFF every month and is
based on survey responses of the European foundry industry. The EFF members are asked to give their
assessment of the current business situation in the foundry sector and their expectations for the next six months.
The BCI – Business Climate Indicator – is an indicator published by the European Commission. The BCI
evaluates development conditions of the manufacturing sector in the euro area every month and uses five balances
of opinion from industry survey: production trends, order books, export order books, stocks and production
expectations.
Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) - in the Euro area is an indicator of the economic health of the manufacturing
sector. It is based on such indicators as: new orders, inventory levels, production, supplier deliveries and the
employment environment.
Additional information at eff-eu.org/.
Background information on EFF:
EFF is the umbrella organisation of the national European foundry associations. The organisation, founded in 1953,
has 22 European member states and works to promote the economical, technical, legal and social interests of the
European foundry industry. At the same time, EFF implements activities which aim at developing national foundry
industries and co-ordinating their shared international interests. The General Secretariat is situated in Düsseldorf
since 1997.
EFF represents 4 400 European foundries. Nearly 260 000 employees are generating a turnover of 39 billion Euro.
European foundries are recruiting 20 000 workers and engineers per year. The main customer industries are e.g.
the automotive, the general engineering and the building industries as well as the electrical engineering industry.
No industrial sector exists without using casted components.

Additional information at eff-eu.org