At the start of the 2022/2023 academic year, EM Strasbourg introduced a new status for student caregivers, which will make it possible to formalize and effectively manage the study paths of students who find themselves in complex social situations.
Diversity is at the heart of EM Strasbourg's mission and one of the School's three values.
Aware that the diversity of student profiles and backgrounds within elite business schools is very broad, the Student Support Office has imagined and created this new status of student caregiver. This builds on the list of specific statuses reserved for students with disabilities, high-level athletes, artists, or employees, thus enriching the range of support measures offered by the School.
A first in a grande école de management
A caregiver is legally defined as “someone who helps, on a regular and frequent basis and in a nonprofessional capacity, a person who is losing his or her autonomy due to age, illness, or disability to accomplish all or some of his/her daily activities.”*
The creation of the student caregiver status at EM Strasbourg responds to a real need, which is not currently regulated in the world of higher education. The number of students in caregiving roles for sick loved ones is growing. These situations, specific to each case, have a concrete and often negative impact on their studies. The aim of recognizing this status is to remove the self-censorship of students who do not always dare to report their situation to School administration.
Concrete accommodations
The creation of the official status of student caregiver will allow EM Strasbourg teaching and administrative teams to better anticipate and consider the particular situations of each student. The students concerned will benefit from specific rights: authorized absences, leaves, part-time study, group changes, specific timetable arrangements affecting a dozen hours per week depending on the situations.
The status was approved by the CFVU (Committee for Education and University Life) of the University of Strasbourg in July 2022.
Contact: action-sociale@em-strasbourg.eu
* References: French law no. 2015-1776 of December 28, 2015 (article 51) and Code de l’action sociale et des familles (articles L113-1-3 and R245-7).