The French Senior Civil Service

In their fourth year, students of the Ingénieur Polytechnicien Program have the option to go into a government body of the French Civil Service (Grands Corps de l’État). They can choose to become officers of the Armed Forces, by joining the Army, Air Force, Navy, Gendarmerie or the Commissariat of the Armed Forces. Students may also become civil servants at the French National Institute for Statistical and Economic Studies (INSEE) or join ENSAM. The latter is a corps of career officers of the French Navy managed by the Ministry of Ecology that helps to develop and implement public maritime policies. There are several other options available in for students in the Civil Service. The Corps de l’Armement (Corps of Armament) is a major military government body attached to the Ministry of the Armed Forces that creates and implements public policies and national and international regulations. There is also the Corps des Mines (Corps of the Mines), which falls under the responsibility of the Ministry of the Economy, and which works to modernize administration. And finally, students can become engineers of the Corps des Ponts, des Eaux et des Forêts (Corps of Bridges, Waters and Forests), a senior government body affiliated with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Ecology.