Aside from a very demanding scientific curriculum, the Ingénieur Polytechnicien Program sets itself apart from other top-level Master’s degrees in sciences and technology by its well-rounded education which includes:

Personal Development

The personal development and sports training, unique to our institution, enables students to develop their relational skills:

  • Openness to others: sense of ethics and public interest, teamwork
  • Openness to the world: adaptation, international experience
  • Personal development: self-awareness and control, communication and leadership, physical development and commitment to sports
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Cycle Ingenieur Military ecole polytechnique

This training helps students to develop a community spirit and to feel a true sense of belonging within their year group and institution.

When joining the Ingénieur Polytechnicien Program, French students acquire the status of Officers of the French Military. Thus, they follow a military preparation during their first year.


Humanities, Languages and Cultures

Classes in Humanities and Social Sciences at École Polytechnique are a special feature that set it apart from other leading French science, technology and engineering institutions. They include Photography, Sculpture, Philosophy, Political Sciences, Architecture, etc. In addition 10 differents languages are taught in the program:

Arabic, Chinese, English, French (FFL), German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Hebrew, French Sign Language (LSF)

The classes in Humanities, Social Sciences, and Foreign Languages and Cultures provide students with a unique and enriching experience. These studies are intended to help students develop their capacities for intuition, dialogue and innovation, as well as enabling them to confront the challenges of a multicultural world.

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Cycle Ingénieur sculpture

Sports

Students play sports and exercise together in groups and cultivate a sense of public interest through 6 weekly hours of mandatory sports classes.
From the end of Year 1 onwards, students choose their sports section among 15 possibilities:

Badminton, Basketball, Boxing, Climbing, Fencing, Football (soccer), Handball, Horse riding, Rowing, Rugby, Swimming, Tennis, Trekking & Orienteering, Volleyball

The sports section remains the same for the duration of the student's time at the École, that is, for second and third year sports courses. Students must practice one of the 15 sports for six hours a week.

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Cycle Ingenieur Sports

"Keynote speaker" conferences

To allow students to reflect on their future position within the business world, expand their knowledge of the major societal stakes and compare their experience with highly meaningful testimonials, distinguished guests are regularly invited to the École Polytechnique.

  • "Professions" and "Businesses" Conferences are predominately aimed at second year students and address business-related problems.
  • Keynote speaker conferences are testimonials of people involved in civil society or public interest causes, and are open to all École Polytechnique students.
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Cycle Ingenieur Amphi