This education is found, either in Ecole Centrale, mainly providing private enterprise with engineers, and Polytechnique, mainly providing the State with engineers.

Specialist engineers, in construction, chemistry, electronics, electricity etc.

are produced by a few dozens prestigious engineering or commercial schools which admit the students who have completed 2 or 3 years of preparatory school and successfully competed for the more popular schools.

The special schools Taine talks about are the precursors of a great many of the schools available in France today.

The principle of admission by concurs is still in use and produce engineers who are able and willing to work hard, engineers who are competent but often a bit proud and overly sure of themselves.