National Advanced Polytechnic School Yaounde (NAPSY)

The National Advanced Polytechnic School Yaounde (NAPSY) was established on 4 June 1971 to train senior technical staff and to conduct research in support of the country’s development.

To this end, two types of training were established: the first, known as the short cycle, lasting three years and leading to a diploma in civil engineering; and the other, known as the long cycle, lasting five years and leading to a diploma in design engineering.

Les spécialités à l’origine étaient Electronique, Electromécanique et Automatique et Génie Civil, en formation courte, et en formation longue, Génie Civil, Electromécanique.

Since 1991, NAPSY has discontinued its short cycle and now offers only the long cycle training. The five specialities at NAPSY are delivered across two stages: the first stage, lasting two years, provides students with a foundation in mathematics, physics and engineering sciences; the second stage, also known as the specialization stage and lasting three years, trains students in their chosen trade. As at 2015, NAPSY had trained more than 3 300 engineers.

Every year, NAPSY organizes entrance examinations for Levels I and III. Fresh admissions contribute to the total student enrolment, with 15% of students entering in their third year and 85% in their first year. Students admitted through the Level I entrance examination are enrolled in the Department of Mathematics and Physics, which covers the first and second years of the programme. At the end of these two years, the guidance issue arises to determine which departments will admit third-year students for the second phase of their engineering training.

Guidance into the third year is conducted by the Mathematics and Physics Department, under the supervision of the Director and Deputy Director (Director of Studies) of NAPSY. The placement process for third-year students involves taking students’ preferences into account as far as possible, subject to the space available at each department. Students therefor work in groups of six, ranked in order of priority. Depending on the intake capacity of the various branches, students are allocated places in order of merit. Where the first choice is full, the student is directed to their second choice, and so on.

The advantage of this method is that it encourages students to strive for excellence in their work throughout the academic year, so that they can rank among the top students and thus have their further education choice respected. This avoids the need for intervention and complaints of injustice.