Cefipa, a different way to become an engineer...
A Higher Education Institution offering an engineering degree course based on a business-education partnership
Cefipa is part of l'Ecole d'ingénieurs cesi. Cefipa offers the first alternative scheme based on an internship system recognised by the Higher Education Ministry in December 1989. In this scheme, full-time periods of study alternate with full-time periods of work. All students are part-time employees of a company and they are paid accordingly.
The internship system in higher education
The internship system is an alternating teaching scheme . It's goal is to prepare the students to the working life and to their jobs. The 3-year course is a combination of periods in the company and periods in the school. The student has to go through real working situations and are confronted to technical problems. The internship system helps them to have a better idea of their vocational projects.
The internship system enhances the employability of graduates. It is an answer to industrial needs to get engineers immediately operational.
This system also creates a partnership between companies and the academic world.
The internship system : a different way to become an engineer…
It is different because :
the student-engineer gets a real working experience
the student-engineer gets a cesi Engineering degree (created in 1958).
It is different because :
the student gets an individual education to meet his/her personal and professional needs
the student gets a professional training in the company of his/her choice
the student is supervised by both an academic tutor and a company tutor.
It is different because :
the student get an international working experience . He/she has to carry out a 3-month mission in a company abroad.
It is different because :
the student can work in the company of his/her choice : laboratories, research centres, technical centres, industrial groups, small and middle size companies, state companies etc...
the student can work in the industry sector of his/her choice : food processing, aerospace, nuclear, car industry, building, computers, lighting, communications, cosmetics, plastics, pneumatics, medical systems, test equipment, environment, software development, etc.
the cefipa teaching method
The main objective is to train student-engineers with the help of companies.
At the end of their studies, student-engineers :
are immediately operational executives,
have both technical and organisational skills,
are ready to work in an international market.
Both cefipa and the partner companies run complementary actions :
The three-year course at cefipa covers a broad range of scientific and technical subjects which underpin the work of engineers. The course covers also subjects such as managing people, managing projects, communicating with others, environment, sociology, business finance, marketing strategy, rules and regulations...
The partner company offers an industrial training . It is an opportunity for the student to undertake real engineering projects according to his/her personal interests. For these projects the student has to apply a wide range of subjects and develop a solution. Increasing responsibilities are given to the student throughout the three years.
Features of the course
The 3-year course is a combination of training periods in the school of engineering, followed by working periods in a company. The working periods are longer as the course goes on.
The student-engineer is supervised by two tutors :
The company tutor : has to integrate the student in the company, build a training program with objectives and give him/her projects. The tutor has to supervise the student's progress within the company and has to keep the school informed at regular intervals.
he academic tutor has to supervise the academic and the industrial progress of the student. The responsibility of the academic tutor is to define and plan together with the company and the student a set of training and educational objectives. The tutor has to ensure that the student fulfils both academic and industrial.
