A row has erupted in French higher education over a privately funded university that is facing legal action from the government. Université Fernando Pessoa (UFP), an institution based in the town of Toulon, has only several dozen students, but it is causing a stir within the education establishment.

The university, backed by French and Portuguese investors, opened in November and offers courses including dentistry, speech therapy and pharmacy which lead to Portuguese diplomas. In France, such health study programmes are particularly selective. Only a limited number of university students who pass competitive exams in their first year are allowed to further train as doctors, dentists and chemists. In speech therapy studies, only 5 percent of first-year applicants pass the entry exams. However, UFP allows students to pursue these vocations for an annual fee of between Euro 7,500 (Rs.5.4 lakh) and Euro 9,500 (Rs.6.84 lakh) without having to pass such exams.

Jacques Lachamp, the head of UFP’s pharmacy department, says the new university compensates for medical shortcomings in France. “The French state doesn’t train enough health professionals, and many students who fail their entrance exams go to Belgium or Romania to get their diplomas,” he says.

But the Paris Association of Students in Speech Therapy argues that the institution gives weaker students the means to bypass crucial university exams. “(Having to pass) the speech therapy entrance exams (ensures) crucial foundation skills and knowledge,” says Chloe Daigmorte, the association’s president. “If students fail, maybe it’s because they aren’t capable of pursuing the challenging courses they are applying for.”

One of the harshest reactions has come from the French government, which is seeking legal action against the university. In a press statement, Geneviève Fioraso, minister of higher education and research, says she is “concerned about the quality of teaching and the level of relevant infrastructure at Fernando Pessoa”. The ministry also alleges that paperwork to open the institution was unsatisfactory and that the term “university” had been misused.

The institution dismisses these allegations.

(Excerpted and adapted from Times Higher Education)