Miss a revolution as important as artificial intelligence (AI)? “Unthinkable in the training of engineers today”insists Nicolas Travers, deputy director of the De Vinci Research Center, at the Léonard-de-Vinci Engineering School (Esilv). In 2020, the establishment opened a specialization in data and artificial intelligence. The difficulty? Manage to attract qualified experts to teach there. “When we open a position in AI, it can take four to six months to fill it”explains.
Esilv is not a special case. If some schools refuse to admit it to preserve their brand image, in reality they all face the same difficulties. Including the most prestigious ones, such as Polytechnique. However, the school spares no effort. “To increase our chances, we publish each recruitment advertisement at the five establishments of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris – which includes Polytechnique, Ensta Paris, Ensae Paris, Télécom Paris and Télécom SudParis »explains Dominique Rossin, director of teaching and research at the Polytechnic. The group also actively surveys researchers who have expressed their desire for mobility.
Among young teacher-researchers, the recipe works quite well. “The name of X helps us, as does our long involvement in the field of AI”says Dominique Rossin. In recent years, the school has also opened the AI Cluster research center, which has reinforced its visibility in academia. However, it still has a hard time attracting senior profiles.
“The joy of teaching”
Adding to the decline in the attractiveness of teaching professions is another obstacle: strong competition from the private sector. When ChatGPT was launched two years ago, companies realized the power of AI, the innovation potential it represented, but also their lack of internal skills to integrate these new tools and turn them into a competitive advantage. Since then, we have seen a real race in the labor market.
To get the best profiles, the technology heavyweights (Amazon, Google and others) do not hesitate to make incredible offers. A young researcher with only two or three years of experience can be offered up to 130,000 euros per year. Impossible for schools to compete. “As an association of lawyers from 1901, we are lucky, at Esilv, to not be regulated by the State in terms of salaries.underlines Nicolas Travers. Therefore, we can negotiate a little with the candidates according to their profile, their seniority and the discipline taught. But our room for maneuver remains limited. We also need to ensure that there is some equity among all of our teachers. »
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