An Exceptional Sponsor for the 2023 Graduates
Graduates from the class of 2023 were lucky enough to be handed their diplomas by an exceptional sponsor: Fréderic Vasseur, Managing Director Scuderia Ferrari. The Vasseur family are ESTACA graduates from father to son, and Frédéric, a 1996 graduate, presented the diplomas to his son Pierre’s graduating class!
A look back at the exceptional career of the Class of 2023's godfather
Motor racing enthusiasts were delighted to meet Frédéric Vasseur at their graduation ceremony, but all the graduates were very proud to be able to chat with him. One of the greatest motorsport talent scouts of the last 30 years, Frédéric Vasseur is also an entrepreneur devoted to innovation since he set up several companies and is a true model of a manager, whose talent-spotting and team management skills have largely contributed to his success.
During the ceremony, he recalled that he himself had never come to collect his ESTACA diploma! Even before he finished his studies, he had already joined the ASM team, which he soon took over to compete in the French Formula 3 championship. ASM quickly made a name for itself as Renault Sport’s strength in the French Formula 3 Championship, winning numerous titles in the French and European championships. At the same time, Frédéric Vasseur co-founded ART Grand Prix to take part in the new GP2 Series championship in 2005. ART Grand Prix and ASM merged in 2008, and the team’s successes continue to this day, in Formula 2, Formula 3 and FRECA, even though Frédéric Vasseur left the team to continue his professional adventures in Formula 1.
At the end of 2015, he became head of Renault F1, then in 2017 he joined Sauber and became Team Principal for Alfa Romeo Sauber. Thanks to these excellent experiences, last year he was finally called upon to take charge of the most prestigious of teams: Scuderia Ferrari.
Nearly 430 new ESTACA graduates for the class of 2023
On March 16, Frédéric Vasseur presented their diplomas to the class of 2023, which included:
- 414 graduate engineers
- 12 post-master’s Motorsport Engineering Performance graduates
Most of the graduates from the student engineering course came from the aeronautics program:
- 173 in aeronautics (42%)
- 131 in automotive (31%)
- 81 in space (20%)
- 29 in rail (7%)
Most graduates were already in work one month before graduation day. The survey carried out when they signed up for the event revealed that 90% of them were either working or continuing their studies.
Four graduates rewarded at the ESTACA trophies
The class godfather also presented ESTACA trophies to graduates who had made a lasting impression during their time at the school. There were three categories this year:
Two graduates tied in the Association Commitment category:
- Bastien Conti, a graduate of the aeronautics program and highly active president of the FAE (Fédération des Activités Associatives), he made a major contribution to the development of the new incubator (associative premises) in Laval and to the overall coordination of associations. He has always been keen to promote associations, even from a distance during the covid pandemic. After completing his internship at Airbus on the Beluga XL, he is now Retrofit Systems Manager.
- Jérémy Severin, a graduate of the rail program, was very active in several associations: the Student Office, Guided Ways, RHEA (Rassemblement pour l’Humain, l’Environnement et l’Avenir). He and his rail program classmates were the driving force behind Popy Leplot, an entertainment channel designed to bring the world of rail to the widest possible audience, combining humor and education. He currently works for Alstom, where he also completed his internship.
One student wins in the Environmental and Social Commitment category: Angèle Minet, a graduate of the space program in Laval and Saint Quentin. Angèle was heavily involved in initiatives to encourage young girls to take up careers in STEM (sponsoring a second-year student as part of the mentoring scheme launched by the UIMM in Mayenne). Today, she is a Mentor for Chemins d’Avenir, an association that accompanies and promotes the success of young people in rural areas and small towns, encouraging them to find their way and guiding them in their studies. After several internships at LATMOS (Laboratoire Atmosphères, Observations Spatiales), she is now a test engineer at the Versailles/Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines Observatory.
One student wins award in the School Reputation category: Elodie Brunot, an aeronautics graduate, was president of the ESTACA Cercle Aéronautique. But above all, she has become famous on social media since she created PassionAero a channel where she shares her passion with young people, to present careers in aeronautics, and the associated educational pathways. Her personal commitment on social media led to her being voted Aeronautical Personality 2021 by Aerobuzz (ahead of the astronaut Thomas Pesquet and inventor of the glider René Fournier!). Today, she combines an engineering position at Safran with her entrepreneurship at Passionaero.
