Providing a third free day in the week is the project of a design school for its students, provided that they use it… for work.
The four-day week paid five, with the same number of hours worked, the principle is gaining ground in certain companies or in the public sector. Consequence of the Covid crisis and the need to better reconcile professional and private life. The model is starting to be exported to higher education, as in this design school in Sèvres in Hauts-de-Seine, which implemented a four-day week at the start of the school year.
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In this private design school, Strate, a student is delighted: “I’m happy to have the four-day week, I’ll be able to take a student job which will allow me to earn some money.” A welcome gain for studying on this multi-storey campus located in Sèvres, which accommodates 700 students and costs 10,000 euros per year.
A grant of time to confront the world
Damien Legois, design professor, explains that he has not reduced the number of courses at all: “The objective is not to put students in a mold, so that they can build their own profile by confronting the reality of our world, through cultural activities or associative environments.”
It is also a grant of time necessary to take your first steps on the job market by continuing your studies. Raphaël, 20 years old, in third year: “I’m a freelance photographer, so I’m taking advantage of this fifth day to respond to orders from service providers. Being able to enter the professional market before even finishing our studies is a great advantage.”
“Post-Covid has accelerated our thinking around a desire to find a balance between personal and professional life. And students have the same problems as today’s employees in companies.”
Guillaume Lom Puech, director of Strate schoolsat franceinfo
The school has a second campus in Lyon, where, starting last year, students were released every Wednesday to allow them to volunteer in an association. “It wasn’t to make one more day of the weekend”, specifies Guillaume Lom Puech. This first experience was convincing enough for Strate to decide to generalize the four-day week this fall.
fr