The new "actors" of university selection: technology "French bac" graduates

Higher education has undergone many changes over the last few decades, allo wing admittance to an increasing flow of "new students", most of which are of modest origin and with a professional secondary-education background. Th is increase in diploma holders has reinforced social differentiation within the existing courses. This article proposes a better understanding of the new issues of discrimination in relation to the admission of a large number of technology graduates. It analyses their rather paradoxical choice of co urse, and their studies in higher education, from which spring misunderstan ding. incomprehension, and to finish, individual disillusionment and collec tive downgrading. The carter path of technology graduates today is the refl ection of a growing differential instability : another way of reproducing i n higher education the differences already encountered at school.