Our history goes back over more than a century. ESA, Ecole Supérieure d’Agricultures, saw the light of day in 1898 with the encouragement of professionals from the rural world in the West of France. They wanted to develop the agricultural sector by creating a school specialized in training engineers in agriculture.
Throughout the 20th century, new development (research, international, etc.) and training (distance teaching, Bac +2, 3, and more study programs) activities were added to the school’s original goals.
Our job is to train women and men, young and adults, from all walks of life who aspire to a higher education or professional qualification to help them to achieve their goals. To this end, our agricultural training center implements various educational systems that emphasize experience, individual support, and moral reflection.
ESA is established in Anger in the West of France, the leading agricultural and agri-food region of France. At the regional level, ESA is part of the Université Bretagne Loire. It collaborates with the universities of Anger and Nantes, as well as with the grandes écoles of the Pays de la Loire (Oniris, Agrocampus Ouest, etc.). It actively contributes to the plant (Végépolys) and the agri-food (Valorial) competitiveness clusters.
Also, ESA’s CFA (networked apprenticeship training center) promotes the development of apprenticeships in 22 lycées (higher secondary schools) affiliated with the CNEAP network (Conseil National de l’Enseignement Agricole Privé – National council of private agricultural educational establishments) of the Pays de la Loire.
At the national level, ESA is one of the four private undergraduate and graduate agricultural schools (grandes écoles d’agriculture) that make up FESIA (Fédération des Ingénieurs pour l’alimentation, l’agriculture et l’environnement – French network for Education and Research in Life Sciences). The four schools are ESA in Angers, ISARA in Lyon, ISA in Lille and INP in Toulouse. It is also part of CNEAP, CGE (Conférence des Grandes Ecoles – Conference of Grandes Ecoles) and FESIC (Fédération d’Écoles Supérieures d’Ingénieurs et de Cadres – Federation of Higher Schools of Engineering and Business Studies).
ESA is a well-known participant in European exchange programs (Erasmus +, etc.). Outside of Europe, it collaborates with, for example, China, Brazil, Russia, and Argentina and has developed partnerships – of which more than 10 in the area of double qualifications – with 139 universities from all over the world. ESA’s international dimension reflected by its Erasmus + recognized masters’ programs, the 250 international students hosted each year of 35 different nationalities, and some ten visiting lecturers give the school its cachet.
Since its very beginnings, ESA has sought to be open to all students, adults, and companies, and, more generally, to society. The school undertakes applied research in the agricultural and agri-food sectors and trains professionals responsive to contemporary issues. This expertise permeates our training, and the study contributes to it.
In the area of education and training, ESA is different in that it offers all higher education levels from the Bac to the Doctorate. Several modes of teaching are offered to make them available to young people and adults from different walks of life: full-time (initial and continuous), work-study (apprenticeship agreements and professional training contracts), distance learning, and validation of professional experience (VAE). Each year, 2,500 students choose to study at ESA, thereby making it one of the leading agricultural higher educational groups in France.
In the professional area: the most significant companies call on ESA for their development (training of employees, orders for research, assistance in recruitment, counseling and specialized training for employees of foreign subsidiaries, etc.). These constant exchanges allow us to remain always in step with the challenges and realities of the world of work. Nearly 2,000 French and foreign business partners place their trust in us each year.
In the area of research: from the outset, a pioneer in responsible agriculture, ESA has always been active and
Forward-thinking to position itself at the forefront of ideas. This is reflected in the school-business chairs, “Changes in Agriculture” and “Ecologically Intensive Agriculture.” Given the growing food needs of humanity, the research work responds to the issues and challenges facing society, such as, for example, learning to produce both more and better by ensuring the renewal of the planet’s resources or, with an aging population, guaranteeing older adults a healthy diet.
ESA is a multidisciplinary training and research center, the fields of expertise ranging from agricultural production to the development of our living environment.
Studying at ESA means benefiting from a setting conducive to your personal development and growth at a school specializing in agriculture. You will be enriched by the exchanges with the lecturers, with the other students during group work and in the student clubs and societies.
ESA makes it easy to progress from one level of studies to another. You can thus start with a short course, then decide to go on to another study program. You can also directly join a so-called “long” agricultural study program, such as a five-year engineering course after your secondary school diploma.
In some programs, such as Agricadre or Engineering, the possibilities may also take the form of a double qualification, either with an international agronomic university or with a first business school.
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