After several weeks of waiting, the Minister of Higher Education Sylvie Retailleau announced Wednesday at a press conference a revaluation of the amount of student grants to the tune of more than 500 million euros, allowing in particular 35,000 new students to become scholarship holders from the beginning of next September.

In total, "a strong, historic response, which will benefit 175,000 students, with an average increase of 20%" in the amount of scholarships, summarized Sylvie Retailleau.

Announcements made in a context of social conflict, part of the youth being mobilized against the pension reform. "Our schedule was linked to the opening of the stock exchange platform, which will be effective tomorrow (Thursday)," defended the minister.

"We have heard it, among young people, there is an anger that is expressed, but for this consultation (scholarships), it is important to give them very concert signs from 2023," she said, stressing the importance of "working with young people to regain confidence".

These measures expected since the beginning of the year, which are part of the fight against student precariousness, will make it possible to "increase the amount of scholarships for all levels by 37 euros per month (or 370 euros per year)", said the minister, welcoming "the strongest revaluation in 10 years, for all students".

They are the result of a consultation led since October by the minister with several student unions, which demanded the creation of a universal study allowance.

For the 35,000 new beneficiaries of student scholarships, "the annual gain will be 1,450 euros of scholarship (paid over 10 months), accompanied by the associated benefits" such as the exemption from registration fees and the meal at 1 euro or the priority for a Crous accommodation, details the ministry in a press release.

"We are enabling 140,000 current fellows (about 20% of the total number of fellows) to move to a higher level of scholarship, taking better account of their family situation. This represents for them an increase in their scholarship amount ranging from 66 euros per month to 127 euros per month," the statement said.

"Next decisive months"

With these measures, the ministry hopes to "put an end to threshold effects".

"At the start of the 2023 academic year, no student will see his scholarship decrease by an amount greater than the increase in his parents' income: we neutralize this year the threshold effects, pending their permanent elimination," says the ministry.

Minister of Higher Education and Research Sylvie Retailleau at the exit of the Elysée Palace in Paris, March 8, 2023 © Ludovic MARIN / AFP/Archives

This is a first step in the reform of stock exchanges, before a second in September 2024. In the meantime, in 2023, "consultation continues until the summer in order to continue to build structural changes to our scholarship system".

The student unions welcome a step forward but want to keep up the pressure to "go further".

The Alternative claims "a first victory following the massive mobilization of students, which pushes the government to its limits". "These announcements, however, fall short of the needs of young people, when we know that one in two students is still forced to pay and two out of three skip meals regularly," Eleonore Schmitt, his spokeswoman, told AFP.

The union calls on "all students to mobilize in their places of study and in the street, by all means of action, especially on April 6" to defend scholarships, during the 11th day of mobilization against the pension reform.

"After months and weeks of deaf ears, students have managed to force the government to put money on the table," but it is "insufficient in the face of the violence of social misery that affects students," UNEF responded in a statement, which proposes "at least 100,000 new scholarship holders."

For its part, La Fage hailed "a first victory", and said to continue "to fight" so that "each student can benefit tomorrow from a fair and equitable scholarship".

© 2023 AFP