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Collège de France response to an article in L'Express

Émilie Lanez's article, published on June 22, 2025 on the L'Expresswebsite and then on July 9, 2025 in the magazine's print version, paints a damning picture of a professor at the Collège de France and makes a misleading statement about our institution's recruitment procedures. We would like to reiterate our confidence and esteem for Patrick Boucheron and emphasize that, contrary to what the article implies, our procedures follow the most rigorous international standards in the recruitment of Collège de France professors.

Every decision concerning the creation of a Chair in a given field is the subject of meticulous discussions within the assembly of professors. According to the procedure, once the field has been defined, a working group emanating from the assembly is set up and launches a consultation with international personalities with recognized expertise in the field. The working group then examines the results of the survey and, after reading the work of the potential candidates, submits the results of its investigations to all the professors. If the outcome of the discussion is positive, the candidate is invited to present a research and teaching project, and to have an in-depth interview with each professor. After these interviews, the assembly votes to create the Chair, and the creation is published in the Journal officiel de la République française. With the Chair now open, a second vote is held to fill it.

Each stage is subject to deliberation within the assembly, and no result is guaranteed in advance. Once the successful candidate has been elected, the relevant academy within the Institut de France provides an opinion, and the entire dossier is sent to the Ministry of Higher Education and Research, which forwards it to the President of the Republic for signature of the appointment decree.

This long and exacting procedure has long ensured the transparent and democratic recruitment of professors at the Collège de France.

The quality of the procedure depends on the confidentiality of discussions within the Collège. We therefore deeply regret both the indiscretions and the untruths spread by the article, which are detrimental to the institution and to the individuals concerned.

Professors of the Collège de France

Philippe AGHION
Nalini ANANTHARAMAN
Edouard BARD
Samantha BESSON
Patrick BOUCHERON
Dominique CHARPIN
Anne CHENG
Françoise COMBES
Laurent COULON
Jean DALIBARD

François DEROCHE

Stanislas DEHAENE

Denis DUBOULE

Esther DUFLO

Didier FASSIN

François Xavier FAUVELLE

Louis FENSTERBANK

Marc FONTECAVE

Jean-Luc FOURNET

Sonia GAREL

Antoine GEORGES

Timothy GOWERS