Mushus, Meet Your Candidates for HD!

by Nayantara Maitra Chakravarty

Yatika Singh

Q: Okay, can you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

A: Okay, my name is Yatika and I’m running for HD. I’m from India and I want to transform the pre-professional side of HD because I believe in the other aspects HD is doing excellently, but I think there can be a major revolution, if I may say so, for the pre-professional side.

Q: What would make you the best candidate for it?

A: I am extremely committed to making sure that everybody is successful. I want you to succeed and I will do anything possible for that. And I’m very good at utilising the resources of the pre-existing institution and mobilising them for your needs. And as a student council member at my last school as well, I was also very actively involved in connecting alumni to mentor students. So I’m very familiar with working in pre-professional areas. And I want to implement things like that, even at Sciences Po.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year?

A: My top three priorities for the next year would first be to make sure that students at Sciences Po, whether it’s first years or second years, do not feel unequipped to take on the professional world after Sciences Po ends. Whether you’re doing a master’s or not, I believe that everybody should have some core professional competencies in terms of soft and hard skills, such as networking and conflict management, to make sure that you feel comfortable in the future workspace. Secondly, I think one of my priorities would be to make sure that SciencesPistes at the Le Havre campus are exposed to as many different perspectives and voices through HD speakers as possible, whether it’s for your career related talks or for academic or cultural or political talks. But I believe that the speakers could be expanded and we can also add panel discussions and roundtable discussions and more of a Q&A interview style presentation to the speaker events. My third priority for HD would be to make HD a cozy environment which is not very intimidating because sometimes HD becomes larger than itself and I feel like it’s very important to make it rooted and grounded in what students actually want, whether it’s in the cultural aspect or the political aspect or pre-professional, anything it may be. So I want it to be inclusive, accessible and mobilized for you.

Q: If viewers should take away one thing from this interview, what would it be?

A: The only thing I want you to take away, if I have to make it the only thing, would be that I am ready to work for you and I am extremely committed to making sure that your speeches get what they deserve when they’re in an institution which ranks number two in the world for politics.

Swapnarka Arna (CJ)

Q: Can you give a quick introduction?

A: Hello everyone, I’m CJ and I’m running for Havrais Dire, HD.

Q: Why are you running for this position and what makes you the best candidate for it?

A: Well, since the very beginning, I’ve been extremely involved and active in politics, not only on campus but off campus as well. I’m a journalist on this topic. I’m an indigenous rights activist. And also, I fight for the rights of even the most marginalized communities. I think we need more political activism and more involvement in politics on campus, and we need to provide a platform where we can freely express our views.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year?

A: It’s very simple. First of all, unite the French and international students. Secondly, is to protect free speech. Your speech matters, your views matter, and we need to protect it. And finally, we need more political activism on campus. Bring back politics to campus. This is the heart of student life. We need more events, more fundraisers, more guest speakers. Bring it all.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what would it be?

A: It’s very simple. CJ cares and CJ delivers. I have ideas on what to do. I want to bring in ambassadors who can enlighten you on world politics. I want art for activism, where we use art for activism. It’s pretty self-explanatory. I want more fundraising events to help people in need, whether it’s from climate disasters in Asia, or human rights defenders, or helping women in Afghanistan. This is what we want to do. We want to create an impact, not only on campus, but on the world around us. And that’s the difference that we as students of Sciences Po need to make.

Viren Gemini

Q: Can you first give a quick introduction to yourself?

A: My name is Viren Gemini and I’m a 1A on this campus.

Q: Why are you running for HD and what makes you the best candidate?

A: I’m running for HD because I’m interested in making sure that we have a more streamlined approach to debate, speaking, and cultural events and activities. And after a lot of deliberation, I came to four main ideas that I want to implement if I get elected. I want to make sure that I have a clear aim if I do get the chance to be a part of HD. And I want to focus on expanding some clubs that are dormant at the moment and making sure that HD is a bigger deal. Working with other campuses, I’ve had the opportunity to go to some. Recently I went to Reims and I was able to talk to people. They’re very interested in collaboration. That’s something that I’m very open to. And the other week collaboration beyond campuses, but use leveraging Sciences Po’s network to make sure that the existing clubs have wider access and more projects that they can work on. For example, the Economic Society, the Finance Investment Society, and the Geopolitics Society. And that links me to my third point, which is my idea of creating a think tank that will focus on the Asia Pacific. So really emphasizing our unique identity as a campus, something that brought us all here together, the idea of analyzing and common providing commentary on the Asia-Pacific actively. And I really want to work on that with collaboration from multiple clubs in HD and make that a streamlined initiative for next semester that will be consistent. And last but not least is the student voice. I want to work on a citizen’s assembly, something that I’ve heard the Year Reps talk about. I’ve heard chatter around campus and that should be something that’s very active and consistent and make sure that student voice is heard on all matters.

Q: And what makes you the best candidate to do this?

A: I believe I’m willing to allocate a lot of time. That’s something that I believe is very important for someone that’s running for assos. I put a lot of time into thinking whether I’ll be able to dedicate the effort and what it takes to achieve what I’m saying, which is nothing easy and which is nothing minor. It involves taking the initiative to organize events, inter-campus events, collaborations, these are not things that are going to be easy and I want to work, I want to put in the effort to talk to admin, to talk to other campuses, to talk to other institutions, corporations, reach out to them, use the Sciences Po network to make sure that we are having, we are creating an environment that’s vibrant and full of conversation, learning, cultural exchange, and pluralism, where French international students, all of us can come together and talk.

Q: Lastly, if viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what would it be?

A: Vote for Viren!

Felicia Aldiyani

Q: Could you first give a quick introduction to yourself?

A: Hi everyone! I’m Felicia, I’m from Indonesia, and I’m running for HD.

Q: Why are you running for HD and what makes you the best candidate for it?

A: I’m running for HD because this semester I’ve been involved in quite many HD clubs so I kind of observed how 2As organize the events and I’m just more familiar with the environment of HD and I also have quite aspirations of what kind of events and what kind of campus life that I want to implement through HD. And what makes me a perfect candidate is because I myself already saw how two ways they coordinate, they’re working together to make HD a more friendly environment for everyone and to provide everyone with the best programs that they all dream of.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year?

A: So I actually have three main programs. First is the Speak Up series. So as usual, we will invite guest speakers but this time it’s quite different because we also want to open the stage for you guys, for students. So if you have any knowledge about anything, any topic that you’re interested about, and you want to share it with fellow friends, we’re opening up the stage for you. And then second is career advancement tracks. I feel like campus is a perfect place for us to grow and to seek opportunities in terms of career preparation. So we also want to have workshops, seminars, and invite speakers such as interviewers to help us with knowledge about cover letters, interview preparation for internships and career networking also. And the last program is mentor mentee project because I feel like us coming from different school backgrounds, we don’t have the exact same skills and knowledge in terms of academic research and writing for classes. So with mentor 2As who are willing to mentor the 1As, there will be a collaborative project between pairing the 2As and 1As.

Q: And lastly, if viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should that be?

A: One key takeaway from this interview is that we hope that as the next HD board, we will be able to provide and facilitate you guys with whatever you dreamt of when you’re thinking about HD and whatever you need for your pre-professional career preparations and stuff. And don’t forget to vote for me.

Phuong Anh Nguyen

Q: Could you give a quick introduction to yourself?

A: I’m Anh. I come from Vietnam. I grew up in the south of Vietnam and I traveled a lot. I lived for a while in Malaysia and Singapore. I am obsessed with academic and pre-professional opportunities. Growing up, I received a lot of help when it comes to career guidance and academia. And for that reason, I want to give back and I want to foster an energy of LinkedIn obsession, be professional and academia obsession on campus. And for that reason, I’m running for HD.

Q: What makes you the best candidate for HD?

A: First off, I think I have the skill set that is required for HD, which I define by being able to reach out to cool people, being able to scout for opportunities, and having the mindset of giving it back and spreading this energy on campus. I have had exposure to a lot of pre-professional and academic opportunities. So personally, I received a lot of help when it comes to exploring different industries. I heard from alumni in my dual degree about it, and I was feeling that it’s a pity that it’s only shared to a very small group of specific people. And with that exposure and that very concrete idea of how pre-professional opportunities should look like, I think that is a significant leverage for me to become in the HD board to further spread and make this opportunity more accessible to everyone. Furthermore, I have an appreciation for diverse cultures. I travel a lot. I just grew up with parents who are obsessed with traveling. And I noticed that we have a lot of cultural initiatives on campus. However it could have been much more diverse and inclusive. And that is what I want to push for as a potential HD more member.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year?

A: So first off, I want to push for more learning opportunities from alumni and professors. and institutions as in Sciences Po or institutions that Sciences Po is connected with. I think Sciences Po has an amazing network of alumni and professors however we only know of them through like a very formal capacity like in class or small talk and if we ever have any cool opportunities it’s because of individuals reaching out to professors and I want to make that less of an exclusive-sounding thing and more of something that is available to everyone. For example, hosting talks from professors. I think we have amazing professors within the school itself. it’s not always the case that we need to reach out to far off people. So facilitate more learning opportunities with our alumni professors. Second thing is to make cultural clubs or associations more inclusive, more diverse. We have voices that are not yet entirely heard on campus. I noticed that personally in my role as year rep. And third is to make the process of implementing new initiatives more efficient and faster within the administration. And I have had experience doing that as Year Rep as well.

Q: Lastly, if viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what would it be?

A: I am committed to promoting more accessible opportunities and more diverse and inclusive cultural initiatives. And I think I could do the job.

Carmen Leong

Q: Can you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

A: Hi, I’m Carmen. I’m running for HD.

Q: Why are you running for HD and what makes you the best candidate for it?

A: So I’m running my campaign based on three principles, accessibility, communication and transparency. I chose to run along these lines because I think I would like to make HD more accessible to the student body. And you’ll see later in my campaign, or you’ll have seen in my campaign election video, that I interviewed a few students to ask what they would like to see for HD in the coming year. And this is the kind of dialogue between HD and the student body that I’d like to bring more of through feedback platforms. For communication, I’d like to make HD a more regular presence on campus. Lastly for transparency, I think a lot of us don’t know what goes on behind the scenes within HD’s board. And so when running or deciding to run for HD that was something that I kind of struggled with, and I had to reach out individually to the members of the board So if I am elected for HD I would like to increase the transparency of what we do behind the scenes. For example, how we are managing the budget, how we are delegating it to the different clubs. I think you should vote for me for HD because I am collaborative and if you come to my events on Tuesday night and Thursday morning, you will be able to see that I work well with my potential board members. I’m also organized and responsible and creative.

Q: Lastly, if viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be?

A: I think viewers should vote for who they think is most capable and who they believe will carry out their promises.

Meet your candidates for SPE!

Interview conducted by Maalavika Hareesh.

*Responses have been edited slightly for clarity

Nathan Gehin

Q: Could you quickly introduce yourself?

Nathan: My name is Nathan. I’m a Sciences Po student in 1A, and I’m running for the post of National Coordinator of SPE.

Q: Why are you running for the position you’re running for, and what makes you the best candidate for it?

Nathan: I’m running for SPE as the national coordinator because I love talking to people, and I love to spread the message in every Sciences Po. I think I can be good at that because I’m always enjoying it, and I’m always happy to talk to new people and to try to organize new things, in partnerships with Sciences Po universities. I think I have a lot of ideas for this job. For example, trying to find new partnerships with other universities, maybe in a more global, European way.

Q: What are your top three priorities for this year?

Nathan: To make SPE a major association on this campus because we need to be everywhere and to promote sustainability. Secondly, I think organizing more fun stuff around sustainability can be a great thing to promote sustainability. And finally, as I already said, trying to organize new partnerships with other European or world universities can be a great thing. Like they organize the MUN, we can organize a COP. It can be fun.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be?

Nathan: Just one thing. Vote for me, vote for ecology!

Sylvain Sainte-Marie

Q: Could you quickly introduce yourself?

Sylvain: I’m Sylvain. I’m running for SPE as the Local Coordinator. I’m pretty much interested in everything, but especially in the environment, and the political question related to the environment; how can we make people involved in this, find solutions, debate and the relation between democracy and environment. I’m also interested in concrete actions, and that’s why I want to run as a local coordinator.

Q: Why are you running for the position you’re running for, what makes you the best candidate for it?

Sylvain: For SPE, we don’t really run for any position specifically, but I think the position that suits me the best will be local coordinator; the one who is in charge of the relation between the campus, the student community, and the global LH events, activities, and different initiatives taking place there. So, I think what makes me the best or good enough for this position is because I already had the opportunity to create contacts with a lot of associations around LH. For instance, Hangar Zero, where I’m volunteering right now and where I plan on organising some events. And, also, Havre de Vers and some other associations. I think that’s what helps me mostly for this position. And, well, I speak French, and I like to connect with people.

In this position, I’d like to establish long standing links between those different associations around LH and the campus so that people throughout the years have easy access to those associations.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year?

My top three priorities, I think first would be to have a sort of a program for SPE for the next year; a program based on the next board that will be elected and also what people want so that SPE maybe feels more open, more people can join, propose their ideas, and we can go ahead like this.

Second will be, I think really the link between Hangar Zero and the campus is something interesting and maybe improving this.

Third, contributing to more sustainable products available on campus. We already have the Veggie Baskets, but maybe further those types of initiatives for the next year.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be?

Sylvain: It’s not “vote for me”. I think that SPE is important, and you can do whatever you want with it. It’s also your association.

Thomas Landerretche

Q: Could you quickly introduce yourself?

Thomas: My name is Thomas Landerretche. I’m a 1A, and I’m running for SPE’s head of communications position.

Q: Why are you running for the position you’re running for? What makes you the best candidate?

Thomas: I feel that SPE’s voice deserves to be heard more on campus. I want this association to have as much attention and love as other associations such as the BDE or the BDA and I feel that my attention seeking personality and my creative mindset regarding problems and promotion would serve SPE greatly.

Q: What are your top three priorities for the next year?

First of all, having a greater social media engagement with SPE which includes more stories, more posts, more promotion of our events because the events of SPE are really interesting and cool. I feel that with more social media promotion, it could be accessible to more people.

Secondly, I would love to propose this campus and other Sciences Po campuses to use green energy. I feel that would be a great policy to implement.

And thirdly, I’d love to organize more events with local LH grassroots organizations. For example, Hangar Zero where we could organize a day where we all go to and help them with their renewable wall projects and other projects that they have.

Q: If viewers could take away just one thing from this interview, what should it be?

Thomas: I hope that viewers can take away the message that SPE deserves more love, respect, and attention, and I feel that I could bring that to this association.

L’Hémicycle’s Paris Trip (and more): What To Expect This Year

English text by Carmen Leong

French translation (below) by Claude Leroy-Pinto

If you were lucky enough to have been online when our Google form dropped, you’d know that the annual Paris trip organised by L’Hémicycle will be taking place from 15 to 17 January next year! Thank you to everyone for your enthusiastic participation, and congratulations to the 60 students who managed to snag a spot. Our logistics team is currently working hard to plan a fun and fruitful experience for our participants, and if you’re curious about what to expect for this year’s edition of the trip, this article is for you.

And if you have not been able to register, do not worry! The end of the article should interest you…

Last year, we visited important French institutions like the National Assembly and Constitutional Council, where students learned about the inner workings of the French parliamentary system and watched them in practice. Last year’s participants described the trip as “enlightening”, “enriching” and “insightful”. “In terms of learning,” said one student, “I think nothing compares to actually being inside a living, breathing political institution. At SciencesPo, so much of our studies remain limited to the realm of theory, [so] to watch French politics in practice is something else altogether – even more so for international students like myself.” During our interviews with them, which we posted as an Instagram reel, another student even shared a memorable anecdote from the excursion: when the group took a picture in the National Assembly, Director Hauchecorne commented that at least 1-2 of the students in the picture would be working at the same institution within a few years! Truly a SciencesPo moment.

In anticipation for this coming edition of the Paris trip, we interviewed Noa Belarbi, the leader of our Logistics team.

Interviewer: What can you tell us about the Paris Trip itinerary so far?

Noa: For now, our goal with this year’s edition of the Paris Trip is to innovate. We still want to provide students with the opportunity to visit national institutions like the National Assembly and the Senate, but we also want to switch things up a little bit so that this trip is stimulating for [returning] students who participated last year. Therefore, we’re hoping to add new activities on the itinerary, including visits to foreign embassies or diplomatic institutions; for our interactive conference, we will also be joined by a new speaker whom we believe will offer great insight and fruitful engagement with students on topics that they might not yet be familiar with.

To sum it up, this year’s itinerary is all about getting to learn what French politics has to offer in different fields.

I: What will this year’s participants be learning about?

N: The purpose of l’Hémicycle is to render French politics more accessible to students both French and international, from both SciencesPo and other universities. That said, in order to keep the Paris trip financially accessible, we have reserved participation for SciencesPo students only.

The goal of the trip is to familiarise students with French political institutions for educational and personal benefits. Through visiting these institutions, students will not only learn about their histories and evolution, but also meet and observe the different people working at their heart. Encounters and discussions with political figures will provide students with the rare opportunity to discover and consider new political perspectives, which the board of l’Hémicycle views as the essence of this trip.

I: Other than the Paris trip – and especially for those who did not manage to sign up in time – what else can students look forward to?

N: Other than the Paris trip, l’Hémicycle is going to be organising many events throughout the year. Students can look forward to conferences, discussions and our main event: the Parliamentary Simulation weekend! During this weekend, students from SciencesPo and other schools in Le Havre will gather and roleplay as Members of Parliament. Representing the interests of their “political party” in parliamentary committees, they will discuss, debate and suggest amendments. The weekend will conclude with a plenary session attended by all the MPs, who will debate the different commissions’ work and vote on the proposals of amendment.

This immersive experience will be not only educational, but also very entertaining, allowing students to meet, discuss and express themselves. We know from previous years that the Parliamentary Simulation weekend never leaves anyone disappointed – we could say it is the highlight of all l’Hémicycle events, so keep an eye out for it!

Clearly, there is much to look forward to for this year’s edition of l’Hémicycle! We hope that after reading this article, students are better informed about what to expect from the Paris trip as well as other upcoming l’Hémicycle events. Until then, follow us on our Instagram account to keep updated on our activities!

Note: Thank you to Noa Belarbi, Connor Donaldson and all interviewees for their insights and cooperation! All quoted responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Le Paris Trip de L’Hémicycle : Ce à quoi s’attendre cette année

Texte en anglais de Carmen Leong

Traduction en français par Claude Leroy-Pinto

Nous espérons que vous avez pu vous inscrire lorsque notre formulaire est sorti. Si c’est le cas, vous savez sûrement que le voyage annuel à Paris organisé par L’Hémicycle aura lieu du 15 au 17 janvier prochain ! Nous tenions à vous remercier pour votre participation enthousiaste, et à féliciter les 60 d’entre vous qui ont réussi à obtenir une place. Notre équipe logistique travaille en ce moment d’arrache-pied pour vous préparer une expérience divertissante et enrichissante. Or, pour l’instant, tout cela vous semble probablement vague. Alors cet article est là pour vous ! Si vous êtes curieux de savoir ce que cette édition du voyage vous réserve, vous êtes au bon endroit.

Et si vous n’avez pas pu vous inscrire, ne vous en faites pas ! La fin de l’article devrait vous intéresser…

L’année dernière, nous avons visité des institutions françaises importantes telles que l’Assemblée nationale et le Conseil constitutionnel. Cela nous a permis d’apprendre et d’observer le fonctionnement interne du système parlementaire français (la théorie des cours de PI ne nous suffisait pas !). Les participants de l’année dernière ont décrit le voyage comme “éclairant”, “enrichissant” et “instructif”. “En termes d’apprentissage,” a déclaré un étudiant, “je pense que rien ne vaut le fait de se retrouver dans une institution politique vivante. À SciencesPo, une grande partie de nos études reste théorique, donc voir la politique française en pratique, c’est tout autre chose – surtout pour les étudiants internationaux comme moi.” Lors de nos entretiens, que nous avons publiées sous forme de reel sur Instagram, un autre étudiant a partagé une anecdote marquante de l’aventure : lorsque le groupe a pris une photo à l’Assemblée nationale, Monsieur Hauchecorne aurait glissé aux élèves qu’au moins 1 ou 2 étudiants présents sur la photo travailleraient dans cette même institution d’ici quelques années ! Vraiment un moment SciencesPo.

Comme nous vous savons tous très impatients, pour vous préparer à l’arrivée du Paris Trip nous avons interviewé Noa Belarbi, la responsable de l’équipe logistique.

Interviewer : Que peux-tu nous dire à propos de l’itinéraire du Paris Trip jusqu’à présent ?

Noa : Pour l’instant, notre objectif pour cette édition du Paris Trip est d’innover. Nous souhaitons toujours offrir aux étudiants l’opportunité de visiter des institutions telles que l’Assemblée nationale et le Sénat, mais nous voulons également apporter un peu de nouveauté pour que ce voyage soit stimulant pour ceux qui y ont déjà participé l’année passée. Ainsi, nous prévoyons d’ajouter de nouvelles activités, par exemple des visites d’ambassades étrangères ou d’institutions diplomatiques. Pour notre conférence intéractive, nous accueillerons notamment un nouveau conférencier, que nous estimons capable d’offrir un grand éclairage et un échange fructueux aux étudiants sur des sujets qu’ils ne maîtrisent probablement pas encore.

Ainsi, l’itinéraire de cette année vise à découvrir ce que la politique française peut offrir dans une multitude de différents domaines.

I : Que découvriront les participants cette année ?

N : Le but de L’Hémicycle est de vulgariser la politique française aux participants, qu’ils soient français ou internationaux, de SciencesPo ou d’autres universités. Cela dit, afin de rendre le Paris Trip accessible financièrement, nous l’avons réservé uniquement aux élèves de SciencesPo.

L’objectif du voyage est de se familiariser aux institutions politiques françaises, tant pour des bénéfices éducatifs que personnels. En visitant ces lieux, nous apprendrons non seulement leur histoire et leur évolution, mais rencontrerons aussi les différentes personnes qui y travaillent. Les rencontres et discussions avec des figures politiques offriront une occasion de découvrir et d’envisager de nouvelles perspectives, ce que le bureau de L’Hémicycle considère comme l’essence de ce voyage.

I : Mis à part le Paris Trip, et notamment pour ceux qui n’ont pas pu s’inscrire à temps, à quoi d’autre les étudiants peuvent-ils s’attendre ?

N : En dehors du Paris Trip, L’Hémicycle va organiser de nombreux événements tout au long de l’année. Tels que des conférences, des discussions et notre événement principal : le week-end de Simulation Parlementaire ! Durant ce week-end, des étudiants de SciencesPo et d’autres écoles du Havre se réuniront et joueront le rôle de députés. En représentant les intérêts de leur “parti politique” dans des commissions parlementaires, ils débattront, discuteront et proposeront des amendements. Le week-end se terminera par une séance plénière à laquelle participeront tous les députés, qui débattront des travaux des différentes commissions et voteront sur les propositions d’amendements.

Cette expérience sera aussi ludique qu’enrichissante, permettant aux étudiants de se rencontrer, de discuter et de s’exprimer. Nous savons d’après les promotions précédentes que le week-end de Simulation Parlementaire ne déçoit jamais personne—on pourrait dire que c’est l’événement phare de tous ceux de L’Hémicycle, alors ouvrez l’œil !

Il semble qu’il y a beaucoup à attendre de cette édition de L’Hémicycle ! Nous espérons qu’après avoir lu cet article, vous en savez plus et que vous avez hâte des autres événements à venir de L’Hémicycle. D’ici là, suivez-nous sur notre compte Instagram pour rester informés de nos activités !

RENTRÉE SOLENNELLE: A solemn Return to the Realities of Political Discussion

Franzcesca Chiara DE LA CRUZ, Maalavika HAREESH, Thomas LANDERRETCHE, Sylvain SAINTE-MARIE

Image Credits: Thomas FUNKLEDER

Above: students gathered in the main hall outside of the Grand Amphitheatre on Sciences Po’s Le Havre Campus

Not your typical year-opening ceremony, now is it? All across the different campuses of Sciences Po, the Rentrée Solennelle is a symbolic occasion for the academic year to officially begin – and an opportunity for the institution to flaunt its specialities. For the Le Havre campus, this took place on Thursday the 12th of September. Traditional outfits and suits filled the hallway that day, ready for “Meet the Paris Admin” – a two-hour Q&A format session with Paris’s Dean and Head of Student Life along with Mr. Hauchecorne. Students raised their concerns, as the presence of the central administrative body is rare on regional campuses. It was presented as a time for open dialogue.

In the beginning, all looked to be in order. The day started off with the welcoming of different personnel; among those present were marine officers, departmental and regional officials and civil security representatives. This was followed by an afternoon of speeches from the admin and different officials, as well as an inaugural lesson from Dr. Champaka Rajagopal. The session came to an end with artistic performances by the BDA.

Our campus director, Michaël Hauchecorne, delivered his speech in the Grand Amphi in front of guests, before leaving the floor to Dean Jeanne Lazarus. Suddenly, after a few minutes of her speaking, she was interrupted by a 2A student standing up from the assembly and reading a statement from the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) LH group. A strained silence descended on the assembly as everyone listened to the impassioned reproaches of the students from SJP. The dean made the attempt to resume her speech after this initial outburst, but soon it was made clear that the student protesters would interrupt her every time. It is recorded that, in total, the dean’s speech was cut off four times after each attempt to resume her address. Each speech made by students in the audience received warm rounds of applause from students in attendance, though not unanimously. Cheers and silence, applause and indifference, eagerness and frustration played against one another throughout the room. Some stood and applauded the intervention, others left. In the spirit of this medley of varied and contrasting reactions from the assembly, the officials’ “apolitical” departure from the amphitheatre was drowned by most students’ cheers, much to the discontent of the admin and the guests. As the fourth claim was read out, Mr. Hauchecorne called on everyone to leave the amphitheatre, before engaging in heated discussion with the students involved in the disruption.

Above: Campus Director Michaël Hauchecorne addressing the assembly at the Rentrée Solennelle welcome ceremony

This clash of interests ultimately cut the Rentrée Solennelle short. After a few dozen minutes of students filling the campus halls in a trance of confusion, intrigue and excitement, the event was set back into motion with the inaugural lecture made by Dr. Champaka Rajagopal on urban development in a liberalised India. The 2A and 1A sessions were separated, however. To end that day, only the Thaï dance from Nicky (2A) was performed in the hallway. Notable enough was the absence of the majority of guests and the whole of Paris’ administration after the initial interruption in the Grand Amphitheatre took place.

What to do, what to say after such an unconventional start to the year? A week after the event and the protest actions that characterised it, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) LH convened an independent meeting, attended by both second and first-year students to explain the organisation’s objectives and to answer potential questions. Here, second year students such as Lino Battin, Samy Sefouni, and Angèle Doray explained to the first year students the history, intentions and protest mechanisms of SJP.

A representative from SJP clarified that their recent actions were aimed at capturing the attention of the administration and other key stakeholders, rather than disrupting the event itself. This latest protest follows previous efforts by SJP, including fundraisers, petitions with over 2,000 signatures, and multiple blockades on campus to raise awareness for their cause.

During the meeting, SJP addressed concerns about their recent protest, including a lack of communication with first-year students and accusations of anti-Semitism, which they firmly denied. They clarified that their protest targeted individuals they view as supporting a “genocidal state,” not any specific ethnic or religious group. The group also distanced itself from pro-Palestinian graffiti that led to a campus event cancellation.

Looking ahead, SJP plans to expand its media outreach through social media and connections with media houses such as Libération, all while continuing its advocacy for Palestinian justice. They maintained that the tone of future actions will depend on developments in Gaza and any potential disciplinary actions from the university administration.

Meanwhile, the campus administration has expressed its chagrin at the disruption caused by protesters affiliated with SJP, believing the Rentrée Solennelle to be neither “the time nor the place for a constructive discussion.” This and more was stated in an email addressed to the first year cohort soon after the event. Director Hauchecorne’s email, sent alongside a letter from Jeanne Lazarus herself, describes the interruption as “not acceptable,” emphasising the negative impact such disruption could have on partnerships. Lazarus emphasised the need for open dialogue and declared a desire to work with students.

“I assure you of my availability for all forms of dialogue, my openness to all questions, and my willingness to listen and pay attention” – Jeanne Lazarus, in a letter addressed to all first year students of the Le Havre campus.

Despite the campus administration having stated its willingness to listen to students, SJP still has lingering doubts regarding the admin’s ability to cooperate. It is worth noting that no mention of the SJP protest, across any social media platform, was included in posts by Sciences Po about Le Havre’s Rentrée Solennelle. However, Hauchecorne gave his remarks on the matter in an interview with the newspaper Paris Normandie, condemning the protests last year as polarising while assuring that platforms for discourse would be implemented this year, such as conferences and mediation workshops.

Preventing an entire class from taking an exam, preventing students from accessing a conference… These are not normal behaviours in an institution like ours, and we condemn extreme polarisations.

– Hauchecorne, in an interview with Paris Normandie.

Regarding students’ opinion on the matter, it seems that sentiments are divided. We attempted to quantify students’ opinions with scales (a 1 to 10 measurement system) and the results were often found in the extremes. For instance, when we asked if they agreed with the intervention by SJP, 60.3% of students voted in extreme cases (either voting 1, 2, or 9 and 10) with 26.4% disagreeing in the extremes and 33.9% agreeing in the extremes. Nevertheless, many students found common ground when it came to certain aspects of the event. For instance, 83.1% of people agreed that the cultural aspect of the event made it better and 52.9% of people also, overall, enjoyed the Rentrée Solennelle. However, it is important to note that only 54 people sent in their opinions on our anonymous Google forms, meaning that there may be a silent majority who genuinely feels indifferent towards the intervention and the Rentrée Solennelle.

Above: a group photo of students taken outside of the main building of the Le Havre campus

While there have been mixed reactions towards the event, some students revealed in interviews that the SJP meeting helped them understand the motivations behind the protest, and were glad it was held despite not agreeing with all the points discussed. Others felt that the meeting only strengthened their support for the cause and that the new school director won’t improve administrative response to these situations – this leaves students unsure about the future of political expression on campus. However, those interviewed feel that students studying politics should not be blamed for trying to change the world, and believe that more Sciences Po students are taking action on an important issue.

But Sciences Pistes of Le Havre, resilient to the tensions that had boiled over earlier in the day, chose not to let the occasion pass them by. Indeed, the cancellation of the highly anticipated prom picture, taken traditionally during the Rentrée Solennelle, did little to lessen their energy and enthusiasm. For as the long (and fortunately sunny) day drew to a close, many gathered gladly outside campus, to have a chat with classmates old and new and to take photographs in fancy dress. Nothing could diminish the buzz of excitement of a fresh school year that hung in the air on that fateful September afternoon.

Above: a group photo of students taken outside of the main building of the Le Havre campus

A Time Capsule From Integration Week

The good, the bad, and the busy from your fellow SciencesPistes.

By Syontoni Hattori-Chatterjee

Remember integration week? Do the performances and parties feel a million miles away amidst the trenches of midterms season? Here’s a reminder of times past when Le Havre weather was warm and Sciences Po life had the promise of fun.

Sweet Memories

SPE and LH Sessions’ Beach Concert and Stargazing. Photo credit: Thomas Funkleder.

Nara, 1A: “Integration week was super fun! All of the assos, along with SciencesPo made everything accessible to everyone and there were tons of activities to choose to attend. For most of the 1As it’s our first time being away from home, so I appreciate the support system our 2As and admin made available for us to help us settle down and integrate. By Saturday, the day of Appartathon, I think everyone warmed up to each other and experienced lots of “core memory” things. I’m positive everyone was able to find their people and feel comfortable being here thanks to integration week.”

BDA and LH Sessions Jam Session and Bar Night. Photo credit: Julos Dartiguenave.

Yu Xuan, 2A Year Rep: “Integration week was such a blur for me and I felt like the week passed by in a flash! I absolutely loved the vibe of the campus though, everyone was so kind, lovely, and so open to discovering new cultures during the club & cultural fair! Always so fun for me to see new faces and meet y’all cutiepies! <333”

Hard Work Behind the Scenes

Club Fair. Photo credit: Thomas Funkleder.

Humshinee, 2A and Street Dance Co-Captain and Musical Logistics Captain:

“As a club leader, thinking about integration week is the best part of the summer. As the Street Dance Captains, Morgane and I started talking in Early August about ideas and it was amazing but difficult to create new choreography. We had a video call at 10 pm Morgane’s time and 4 pm my time during which we made new choreography in 30 minutes and then at 3 am my time and 9 am Morgane’s time to finish it. The crew learned it in 2 hours and then performed it the next day.

As 2As, we were just so excited to be able to showcase to 1As, and let it be on the record that I was sick during the Club Fair, but through sickness and jetlag we all powered through. For the Musical Club, we were rehearsing starting at 9 am the day before the Club Fair. Laura landed at 8 am, then came into Le Havre at 3 pm, ate lunch and showered, and came to rehearse at 4 pm. I had so much anxiety seeing if we could pull everything together and Tuesday was running in between clubs and performances, from Shatta to Musical to Cheer. But overall, showcasing our clubs was so worth it.

On Monday, meeting everyone at the beach and singing was super fun. Big ups to LH Sessions for reaching out over the summer and seeing what people were willing to do. On Thursday, it was so fun coming back to Craft a year later. I remembered seeing our now 3As perform last year so it was cool being on the other side of it.

As a whole, as a Club Captain and Performer, my main goal and takeaway from integration week was to have fun and showcase what LH is all about and the relationships that we’ve built over the past year and will continue to build this year.”

Club Fair. Photo credit: Thomas Funkleder.

Sara, 2A and President of PROPA:

“Je dirais que c’était beaucoup de stress, énormément de stress, en fait c’était vraiment une pression que je me mettais et que je pense tous les autres membres des associations se mettaient parce qu’on veut donner aux 1A une semaine d’intégration et WEI incroyable pour qu’ils se fassent des souvenirs incroyables comme nous on a pu se faire des souvenirs aussi incroyables l’année dernière.

C’était beaucoup de pression, voir même certains mental breakdowns mais au final, quand on voit les réactions des 1A qui viennent directement nous voir et nous remercier pour ce qu’on fait et nous dire qu’ils ont adoré que ce soit la semaine d’intégration ou le WEI et juste quand on les voit et qu’ils s’amusent, franchement ça en vaut la peine.

Mais honnêtement ça me fait vraiment plaisir de voir qu’ils adorent parce que franchement moi je me rappelle que l’année dernière ma semaine d’intégration et mon WEI j’avais adoré, encore maintenant on en parle avec mes amis donc j’avais envie qu’ils aient exactement les mêmes émotions et les mêmes souvenirs que moi j’ai pu avoir l’année dernière en tant que 1A.”

Translation:

“I’d say that it was a lot of stress, an insane amount of stress, but really it was pressure that I was putting on myself and that I think all of the other association members were putting on themselves because we want to give 1As an incredible integration week and WEI so that they could make incredible memories just as we did last year.

It was a lot of pressure, even some mental breakdowns but in the end, when we see the reactions of 1As who come directly to see us and to thank us for what we’re doing and to tell us that they loved integration week or WEI and even just when we see them and they’re enjoying themselves, honestly it’s worth it.

And honestly it makes me really happy to see that they loved it because truly I remember last year that I adored my integration week and WEI, even now I talk about it with my friends, so I wanted them to have the exact same feelings and memories that I got to have last year as a 1A.”

Some of the Best Sciences Po Traditions

PROPA Appartathon. Photo credit: Fatine Mohattane.

Alex, 1A: “So I thought integration week was very entertaining since lots of different associations held various events. Almost every single one of them were fun and it was a great chance to [get to] know new people, both 1As and 2As. WEI, on the other hand, was also very fun and I could see that BDE and PROPA had put a great effort into it. The events were entertaining but the best part was definitely the 2 party nights! To be honest I think this tradition must be kept forever in SciencesPo.”

WEI. Photo credit: Enxin (Rosie) Han.

Rosie, 1A: “This was my first exposure to one of the best freshman traditions of SciencesPo – a very happy first weekend. I really enjoyed playing games with my classmates, making marshmallows, swimming, dancing, singing…etc. And I‘ve also met many people who are super interesting. We walked on the lawn together and looked up at a sky thick with stars like ice crystals, flashing and flickering, with beer… this atmosphere, it’s super super nice. I thought I will always miss my 18-year-old WEI trip, en France.”

BDA MuMA Visit. Photo credit: Thomas Funkleder.

HD and BDA Cultural Fair. Photo credit: Syontoni Hattori-Chatterjee.

Been There, Done That

Anya, 2A: “As a 2A it made me very grateful for the friends I had because I saw all of the 1As in the process of making friends and it reminded me of the good friends I have.”

Diva, 2A and somebody anonymously agreeing: “Glad I’m not a 1A. I have never been so fake as my first year integration week.”

The Most Mature and Reflective Tea You’ll Ever Read

WEI. Photo credit: Nicky Punnnahitanon.

Nikki, 1A: “Before going to WEI my friends and I asked many seniors about what exciting things we could look forward to, and many of them hinted to us that we could expect the wildest things happening like couples sprouting up everywhere, condoms littered all over the place, many people getting wasted. I think many of us were excited to see such spicy stories unravel — at least I was hahaha. (Un)fortunately, I didn’t hear of anything scandalous at all, but certainly I found something way more exciting: countless platonic relationships that quickly blossomed and strengthened, from jumping into the pool together to the screaming our lungs out at parties, from playing truth or dare on the floor of our chalets to boulangerie-hopping in centre-ville together in the rain. I know that in the next two years, whenever I get a headache from PI or feel lost along the Silk Road, I’ll definitely think back to these memories and feel this snuggly warmth in my heart.

Also, I love that the BDE provided condoms – even though I felt like almost nobody ended up using them for the right purpose hahaha (my friends and I were dissecting a female condom in our own room, fascinated to be seeing it for the first time!!) This is very new for me, something I’d never expect to see back in Singapore where I went to high school because there, abstinence is still very much at the forefront of our sex education (possibly in Thailand where I originally grew up).

Initially I was shocked – likely shaped by the environment I’d grown up in, I instinctively wondered whether this would encourage potentially risky sexual interactions, but very quickly my friends and I started having discussions about it and I was amazed to discover just how open minded people around me are towards this initiative. I realized that the condoms helped normalize safe sex and conversations about it, and as we grow up, we together can do so much in spreading this open minded attitude in our workplace and the policies we’ll help push for in society!

Another highlight of WEI for me is the food – omg it was just so ✨incroyable✨ with the charcuterie buffet and biscoff panna cotta being on top of the list for me. Simply unforgettable. Changed my life.”

I hope this recap makes you think fondly of your integration week experience at Sciences Po, the first for our dear 1As and the last for us 2As soon to be spread around the world. Now get back to studying SciencesPistes, I’m sure you have work to do.