French university leaders condemn campus blockades by protesters

Some French university leaders have expressed support for the massive student protests that have swept the country in recent days, while defending their decision to close campuses amid widespread blockades.

Buildings have been shut and classes shifted online after protests flared at at least 30 campuses across the country over the past few days.

The demonstrations, which began two weeks ago and have seen violent clashes with police, were started by high school students expressing anger over staff shortages, deteriorating facilities at schools and overcrowded classrooms. 

University students have since joined the movement. Their demands include the abolishment of Parcoursup, a centralised web portal introduced in 2018 to manage university admissions in the country. In France, passing the baccalauréat exam historically guaranteed students a spot at a university, but about 80 per cent now pass the exam, which has made it more difficult to secure a spot at a desired institution. Students see the platform as an opaque gatekeeper. Other concerns include higher tuition fees for non-European students and skyrocketing cost-of-living expenses, particularly housing. 

Alexandre Péraud, the president of Bordeaux Montaigne University, said in a statement that he had expressed solidarity with “most of the demands made by the high school and university student communities”. 

He added that the university had faced questions from students and trade unions over its decision to close some of its buildings at its campus in Pessec, a suburb near the city of Bordeaux. Péraud said the closure was necessary, citing safety reasons. “It is simply not possible to leave buildings ‘semi-open’ when [they are] obstructed,” he said, adding that buildings had to be closed “given the lack of willingness to discuss the matter with those blocking the entrances”.

The university was “open” to discussion, he said, but it was “essential that we don’t simply face masked individuals ordering people to leave classrooms”. Its Pessec campus will remain closed until at least Saturday. 

Meanwhile, Dean Lewis, the president of the University of Bordeaux, said in a post on LinkedIn that the concerns expressed by both high school and university students “must be heard” but he also condemned the university blockades. 

Lewis added that frustrations about higher education in France should not just focus on questions surrounding the transparency of Parcoursup but also examine the lack of funding for universities. 

“The Parcoursup process must continue to improve, as it does every year. But we must not overlook the issue of university capacity, which is a determining factor in access to higher education,” he said. “In very concrete terms, at the Université de Bordeaux, the capacity of the new teaching and education bachelor’s degree, which had to be deployed without new resources, has been limited to 60 places at the start of the 2026 academic year.”

“More generally, the response must therefore focus on access to higher education, precariousness, housing, health, study conditions and the prospects offered to each young person, regardless of their social origin or territory,” Lewis said. 

He added that universities were “structurally underfunded” and this could have severe consequences for students. 

Paris Nanterre University, located in the western Parisian suburb of Nanterre, is among the universities that have faced significant disruption. It said in a statement earlier this week that it supported the “demands at the heart” of the student movement, particularly “the dramatic lack of funding” at public universities. 

“For many years, Paris Nanterre University has been raising the alarm about its structural difficulties stemming from chronic underfunding and understaffing. The University is demanding sufficient human and financial resources to fulfil its public service missions, both in teaching and research, and in student life,” it said. 

“Violence and excesses, in all their forms, must be condemned unequivocally. In a democracy, ideas are debated, and sometimes clash. It is therefore urgent to recognize young people as active participants in the public debate they so fervently desire.”

seher.asaf@timeshighereducation.com