Creating a new university in an average city. The case of Université de la Rochelle

Abstract

La Rochelle University was founded in 1993 within the framework of the University Plan 2000 set in motion by the Minister for National Education, Lionel Jospin, in 1990. The Plan was designed to systematize western France in response to an exceptional period of growth in the number of students. Situated in the centre of a triangle formed by the regional metropolises and university areas of Bordeaux, Poitiers and Nantes, La Rochelle University has helped to inject new life into the regional dynamics of an "average city". This institution receives around 7000 students per year and was originally conceived as a "new", professionalizing, innovative European university aimed at the international ambit, primarily the Asian-Pacific and American zones.It has contributed towards the construction of university buildings that have greatly modified the urban landscape.This article aims to analyse the mechanisms for creating and developing a university, which are made possible thanks to the application of a public policy of "decentralisation" between the State and regional collectives.