# École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Rabat (Mines Rabat)

The École Nationale Supérieure des Mines de Rabat abbreviated as ENSMR, and also called Mines Rabat in French or Rabat School of Mines in English is a leading Grande école engineering school in Morocco. The previous school's name was École Nationale de l'Industrie Minérale (ENIM; National School of the Mineral Industry). Based in Rabat, Mines Rabat is one of the oldest engineering schools in Morocco. Mines Rabat is a member of the Conférence des grandes écoles (CGE). The course for the engineering program lasts three years and the admission is done mainly by the common national competition (CNC) after making two or three years of preparatory classes.
Grandes Écoles are institutions of higher education that are separate from, but parallel and connected to the main framework of the Moroccan-French public university system. Similar to the Ivy League in the United States, Oxbridge in the UK, and C9 League in China, Grandes Écoles are elite academic institutions that admit students through an extremely competitive process. Mines Rabat's Alumni go on to occupy elite positions within government, administration, and corporate firms in Morocco.
Despite its small size (fewer than 300 students are accepted each year, after a very selective exam), it is a crucial part of the infrastructure of the Moroccan industry. Based in Rabat, it is one of the oldest engineering schools in Morocco. Mines Rabat is a member of the Conférence des grandes écoles (CGE). The course for the engineering program lasts three years and the admission is done mainly by the common national competition (CNC) after making two or three years of preparatory classes.
In the limit of available places candidates can be admitted to the Engineering Cycle by level:
* Associate
* Bachelor
* University's Master
The engineering cycle is 3 years for applicants holding an associate's or a bachelor's degree and is 2 years for applicants holding a, master's degree.
The Ph.D. and Deng cycles are 3 to 5 years for applicants holding an engineering degree or a master's degree.
The school has similarities with the Mines ParisTech, Mines Saint-Étienne, and Mines Nancy schools in France, Columbia School of Mines, Colorado School of Mines in the USA, and Royal School of Mines in the UK

## Admissions

Admission to Mines Rabat in the normal cycle is made through a very selective entrance examination and requires at least two years of preparation after high school in preparatory classes. Admission includes a week of written examinations during the spring followed sometimes by oral examinations over the summer.

## History

The school was established in 1972 and now about 300 Moroccan students are admitted each year. Foreign students, having followed a class préparatoire curriculum (generally, African students) can also enter through the same competitive exam. Finally, some foreign students come for a single year from other top institutions in Africa.

## Rankings

Mines Rabat is ranked among the top 5 Moroccan Grandes Ecoles, though it doesn't appear in international rankings due to its very limited number of students (900 students per year for the class of 2022).

## Preparatory classes: The classic admission path into Grandes Écoles

To enter the Diplôme d'Ingénieur curriculum of Grandes Écoles, students traditionally have to complete the first two years of their curriculum in the very intensive preparatory classes, most often in an institution outside the Grande École.
* University students pursuing an Associate of Science can take the university admission path examination: Admitted students admitted with associates from universities need to pursue a 3 years cycle of engineering at the school to get the "Diplôme d'Ingénieur"
* University graduates with one of the following degrees can also apply to get admitted to the engineering cycle of the school.

## The Diplôme d'Ingénieur (Combined Bachelor's/Master's degree in Engineering)

Grandes Écoles of Engineering usually offers several master's degree programs, the most important of which is the Diplôme d'Ingénieur (Engineer's Degree equivalent to a combined BS/MS in Engineering).
Because of the strong selection of the students and of the very high quality of the curriculum, the Diplôme d'Ingénieur (combined BS/MS degree in Engineering)) gives the right to bear the title of an Ingénieur, is one of the most prestigious degrees in Morocco. The degree is protected by law and submitted to strict government supervision. It is more valued by companies than a university degree in terms of career opportunities and wages. At the end of these preparatory classes, the students take nationwide, extremely selective competitive exams for entrance into Grandes Écoles, where they complete their curriculum for three years.
* 1st year at Mines Rabat - equivalent to - senior year of BSc.
* 2nd year at Mines Rabat - equivalent to - 1st year of MSc.
* 3rd (final) year at Mines Rabat - equivalent to - 2nd year of MSc.

## Options and majors

The Mines Rabat has a total of 15 engineering options:
* Energy Engineering
* Operations Planning Protection of Soil and Basement
* Environment and Industrial Safety
* Computer Engineering
* Production Systems
* Electromechanical
* Industrial Maintenance
* Mechanical Engineering and Development
* Industrial Engineering
* Process Engineering
* Materials and Quality Control
* Hydro-Geotechnical Engineering
* Renewable energy

## Doctoral program (DEng/PhD)

The school also has a doctoral program open to students with a master's degree or equivalent. Doctoral students generally work in the laboratories of the school; they may also work in external institutes or establishments. The Doctor of Engineering (DEng) program takes three to five years to complete.

## International

Agreements signed with:
* France:
** Central Group of Schools (École Centrale Paris, École Centrale de Lyon, École Centrale de Marseille, École Centrale de Casablanca ...)
** Groupe des écoles des mines (GEM) (Mines ParisTech, Mines Saint-Étienne (ENSM SE), Mines Nancy, École des mines d'Alès, ...)
** National Polytechnic Institute of Lorraine (INPL)
** École Nationale Supérieure de Mécanique et des Microtechniques (ENSMM)
** Aix Marseille University
** University of Technology of Compiègne (UTC)
** INSA Lyon
* Belgium:
** Faculté polytechnique de Mons
** Université catholique de Louvain (UCL)
* Switzerland:
** École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)
* Canada:
** Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal
** Laval University
* United States:
** Georgia Institute of Technology
* Tunisia:
** National Engineering School of Tunis (ENIT)