With internationalization now an imperative for institutions of higher learning around the world, this article examines the specific case of how France's elite engineering and business schools, known as the "grandes écoles," have taken on this challenge. Mobilizing work on organizational allomorphism and the "glonacal"…

One hundred and twenty students successful at entering four of the most famous French "grandes ecoles" ("Ecole Normale Superieure" Ulm, Polytechnique, HEC, Sciences Po) were questioned about their institution's image. We focus on how the prestige of these institutions in the French society played a role in students' attraction…

There is an extensive literature on the productivity of universities. Little is known, however, about how different types of leaders affect a university's performance. To address this question, this paper blends quantitative and qualitative evidence. First, I establish that the best universities in the world are led by respected scholars. Next, by…

This article starts from the puzzle that although French elite institutions enjoy extremely positive and attractive images, students from these schools generally choose to conceal their academic pedigree in their daily interactions. We show that, in a context of growing inequalities of access to "grandes ecoles," the strategy of hiding…

This white paper examines the business case for environmental and sustainability (E&S) employee education and engagement. The "business case" is defined as both quantifiable measures of the business value for the sustainability program (e.g. money saved, energy use reduction, etc.) as well as less easily measurable assets such as…

Trade globalisation is beginning to affect universities worldwide. In response to this outside pressure, institutions have become more geared to gaining international repute through research than to maintaining their reputation at home for the quality of their teaching. As a result of this focus on research, French universities, for example, are…