Crédit Agricole Atlantique Vendée is joining Audencia’s Sirius social inclusion programme as a sponsor, to help young people with a vocational baccalaureate from the region to have a more secure future in higher education.
By becoming a sponsor of the Parcours Sirius, one of Audencia’s exclusive social innovation programmes, the Crédit Agricole Regional Bank is providing financial support and human accompaniment to the 19 professional baccalaureate holders currently benefiting from the programme. The Sirius programme is a free year of reinforcement available directly after a vocational baccalaureate to prepare students for higher education.
The 4-year sponsorship agreement provides for Crédit Agricole Atlantique Vendée employees to support young people throughout their first 3 years of study. This support covers mentoring, training and the acquisition of new skills – pitch training workshops run by the Village by CA Atlantique Vendée, for example – and career guidance.
Crédit Agricole Atlantique Vendée’s financial commitment, alongside that of the other sponsors and the Audencia Foundation, will help to fund a year of skills enhancement for professional baccalaureate holders in the Sirius programme, as well as a 90% reduction in Bachelor’s tuition fees for scholarship students who pass the entrance exam. Yves Schwartz, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Crédit Agricole Atlantique Vendée: “Crédit Agricole Atlantique Vendée is very proud to be working with Audencia to support the Sirius programme. Encouraging young people in our region to achieve their full potential is one of our priorities. This commitment is fully in line with our CSR strategy, which aims to encourage a diversity of profiles and gender mix. In addition, Sirius enables us to unite our employees around a project that goes beyond our company and is in line with our commitment to corporate citizenship.
For Audencia, Sirius helps to improve diversity within business schools. While vocational baccalaureate holders represented only 0.1% of Audencia’s student body, they now account for 26% of baccalaureate holders in France.
Christophe Collignon, Audencia’s Deputy Managing Director, confirms: “Audencia is committed to promoting greater diversity and inclusion within the school by removing self-censorship and financial barriers to higher education, and opening up new prospects for career development and fulfilment. This is what the Parcours Sirius is all about.
About Sirius
The Sirius programme is a 100% free reinforcement year launched by Audencia in 2022 and accessible directly after a vocational baccalaureate (from September to May) to prepare students for higher education. It aims to improve the diversity of Audencia’s student body by removing self-censorship and financial barriers to higher education. The programme covers 4 dimensions to help students realise their full potential: reinforcing their academic achievements, personal development activities, developing international and cultural awareness and discovering the professional world. The programme is supported by the Pays de la Loire region, the founding partners: the Bessé group, Maisons du Monde, the Sigma group and Terrena, as well as Crédit Agricole Atlantique Vendée.
