UniLaSalle, best private higher education establishment of general interest (EESPIG) for the ecological and societal transition according to the ChangeNOW / Les Echos 2024 ranking published this Thursday, November 7!
UniLaSalle is very proud to feature so prominently in this ranking dedicated to commitment to ecological and societal transition, a subject close to its heart. The school stands out in particular on two criteria: training and the involvement of student associations. This excellent score is the result of the momentum generated by Uni4Change, UniLaSalle's SD-RS policy.
UniLaSalle is also one of the best performers in the ranking, moving up 11 places on last year.
“Being recognized as the first EESPIG establishment in this ranking testifies to the anteriority of our commitment and our ambition to aim for excellence in our educational approach: acting for and with students. Our mission is to prepare all our students, whatever their course of study, to meet environmental and societal challenges, by promoting enthusiasm, innovation and concrete action.”
Geoffroy Belhenniche, Director of Ecological and Societal Transformation at UniLaSalle
UniLaSalle, the engineering school that best trains students for the challenges of ecological and societal transition
Higher education institutions have a responsibility to produce new knowledge that is useful for the future of the planet and humanity. They also have a duty to raise our students' awareness and equip them with the tools they need to take action, by offering curricula that fully integrate the challenges of ecological and societal transition.
On this training criterion, UniLaSalle is proud to be in first place among engineering schools, with a score of 43 points out of a possible 47.
This top ranking rewards the work carried out over several years by our teaching teams to decompartmentalize our courses, increase hybridization and deconstruct silo-based thinking, in particular through the introduction of cross-disciplinary courses within our various degrees.
Lasallian student associations are the most involved on the subject
The ChangeNOW rankings also reveal that UniLaSalle students are the most involved in ecological transition issues as part of their community life. On this criterion, UniLaSalle received 10 points out of 12, a score shared with École des Mines de Nancy.
Since the start of the 2022 academic year, each of UniLaSalle's student associations has had a Sustainable Development referent. These referents are offered training to enable them to better understand the challenges of ecological and societal transformation, and to contribute to changing practices to better take these challenges into account.
“As proof of its commitment, the school has held the DD&RS label since 2020 across the group and our four campuses, enshrining the actions taken with our stakeholders to set in motion an ecological and societal transformation of industries and territories.”
Caroline Le Moulec, Head of Ecological and Societal Transformation at UniLaSalle
Green skills that benefit everyone
At a time when the “ecological debt” is becoming an inescapable challenge, UniLaSalle, through its Uni4Change strategy, is committed to training responsible and enlightened decision-makers.
Students apply the green skills they have acquired throughout their training to projects that benefit companies, local authorities and NGOs. From eco-design to the food of tomorrow, from the circular economy to urban agriculture - to name but a few examples - the studies carried out amplify the territorial deployment of solutions for transformation by working as close as possible to the players who count.
About the ChangeNOW / Les Echos ranking
60 institutions took part in the 2024 edition, including 28 business schools and 32 engineering schools. Assessments cover all master's degrees, not just those specializing in sustainable development. This year, to make the scoring easier to read, the maximum score has been set at 150 points (compared with 160 last year), spread over 41 questions.
The questionnaire is divided into six themes:
- Training (47 pts, 6 questions),
- Employability and academic excellence (30 pts, 6 questions),
- Corporate strategy (27 pts, 10 questions),
- Diversity and inclusion (22 pts, 10 questions),
- Alumni network in impact (12 pts, 3 questions),
- Student Associations (12 pts, 4 questions).
This year's audit was internalized by ChangeNOW, based on the methodology established with Deloitte in previous years. As a result, 60% of responses (by weighting in the final result) were thoroughly checked. The reliability of the data has been further strengthened by requiring mandatory attachments for all questions where it is possible to provide them. In the event of a response not supported by a document, the data was not retained.
