Real factory of the future great engineers of Morocco, the High School of Excellence of Benguerir, or Lydex, has once once more distinguished itself in the competitions of the French Grandes Ecoles. This year once more, no less than 24 Lydex students successfully passed the written competitions of the Ecole polytechnique de Paris.
Nestled in the heart of the green city Mohammed VI, in Ben Guérir, “city of knowledge and innovation” founded by the OCP, the Lycée d’Excellence de Benguérir is definitely aptly named. This year once more, the students from the Preparatory Classes of this unique establishment in Morocco made a strong impression in the various competitions of the most prestigious French schools.
The results of the 2022 vintage are indeed eloquent: 24 Lydex students are eligible for the Ecole polytechnique de Paris or X, considered by the students to be the most prestigious school. A feat that places the Lydex at the top of the basket of the best high schools preparing for the entrance exams to the Grandes Ecoles, close to century-old and prestigious establishments such as the Louis-le-Grand high schools in Paris and Sainte-Geneviève in Versailles.
Highlight: among the 24 eligible for X, 6 are girls. The Lydex is this year also the only Moroccan high school to have managed to place girls in the Polytechnic oral competition, out of a total of 35 eligible Moroccan students from all the preparatory classes in the Kingdom.
In addition to the Ecole Polytechnique, and awaiting the results of Central-Supélec, the harvest was also fruitful for the other major French schools. Thus, 6 Lydex students are eligible for the Ecole Nationale Supérieure in Paris (the famous ENS, rue d’Ulm), and 11 eligible for the ENS in Lyon. As for the Mines-Ponts competition, more than 60 Lydex students have successfully passed the written tests.
For these deserving students, there is one last pitfall to overcome: that of the oral tests, to definitively validate their admission. Not all will succeed, but confidence is there, as the results of recent years show. In 2019, of the 15 students eligible for Polytechnique, 11 of them successfully passed the oral exams (17 out of 21 in 2020, and 11 out of 25 in 2021).
The quality of the teachers and a certain idea of merit are the key to the success of the Lydex. Thus, with regard to the students, who are all boarders in the residential campus of the high school, social and geographical diversity is privileged, with positive discrimination for students whose parents or guardians are the most disadvantaged, and this, from the selection process.
90% of the pupils of this establishment are supported at 100% and, for those whose parents do not have sufficient means, an additional grant is granted to them to cover their additional expenses.
Establishment of excellence first open to deserving students, founded in 2015, the Lydex quickly established itself as a model to follow, and shows the possibilities that public-private partnerships can offer in the development of an education of quality in Morocco. A model that works, and which would benefit from being duplicated throughout the Kingdom. In just seven years of existence, the Lydex has made it possible to reveal some of the young Moroccan talents, who are only waiting for one thing: a chance to shine.
