Course en Cours
Course en Cours is a French non-profit association that runs an annual competition in which middle- and high-school student teams design, manufacture, and race miniature electric vehicles using professional CAD and manufacturing tools, serving 900 teams across 20+ academies and supported by Dassault Systèmes, Renault, and other industrial partners.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersVélizy Villacoublay, France
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Course en Cours does
Course en Cours is a French non-profit association (Association loi 1901), founded in 2006 by teachers from IUT de Mantes-en-Yvelines, that runs an annual competition in which student teams design, manufacture, and race miniature electric vehicles using professional-grade industrial tools. The program serves middle-school (collège) and high-school (lycée) students in teams of 4-6, with a parallel track for university and engineering-school students (GEU category), and is delivered through a national network of Resource Centers (Centres de Ressources) organized by academy across 20+ French academies plus DOM/TOM and French schools abroad. Over 100,000 young people have participated since inception, with approximately 900 teams active in recent seasons, and competitions culminate in a national final held annually at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie in Paris.
The association's core product is a structured pedagogical methodology built around four phases — Conceive, Manufacture, Evaluate, and Grow — supported by free student access to Dassault Systèmes' 3DEXPERIENCE platform, CATIA, SOLIDWORKS, 3D printing, machining methods, and electronic motor-control programming. A physical and digital Pedagogical Kit (Mallette Pédagogique), curriculum-aligned competition regulations, and evaluation by professional engineers differentiate the program from generic STEM outreach. Institutional recognition from the French Ministry of Education (since 2009) and the CNRS 'Année de l'ingénierie' label (2025) anchor its position within the national education ecosystem.
The association is primarily financed by private partner contributions, with a stated minimum commitment of €30,000 per year for at least 3 years; founding partners Dassault Systèmes and Renault are joined by PFA (2013) and Segula Technologies (2018). Additional revenue comes from individual and corporate donations (tax-deductible via Hello Asso), small school membership fees, and — starting May 2026 — the French apprenticeship tax (taxe d'apprentissage) via the SOLTÉA platform. With only 7 employees and ~900 active teams, the model is asset-light, partner-funded, and free for student participants.
Course en Cours firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Course en Cours
- Legal name
- Association Course en Cours
- Website
- https://course-en-cours.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Course en Cours is a French non-profit association that runs an annual competition in which middle- and high-school student teams design, manufacture, and race miniature electric vehicles using professional CAD and manufacturing tools, serving 900 teams across 20+ academies and supported by Dassault Systèmes, Renault, and other industrial partners.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Course en Cours industry classification
Industry- Product category
- STEM Education Program
- NAICS
- All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Competition Robotics Teams & Coaching (FLL/FTC/FRC, VEX) (EDAMADAE)
Keywords
Where Course en Cours is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Vélizy Villacoublay
- HQ country
- France
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Course en Cours business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Partner Contributions: Course en Cours is primarily financed through private partner contributions. The minimum commitment is €30,000 per year for at least 3 years. Founding partners include Dassault Systèmes and Renault, joined by PFA (2013) and Segula Technologies (2018).
- Donations: Individual and corporate donations through the Hello Asso platform. Donations are tax-deductible as the association is recognized as being of general interest.
- Apprenticeship Tax (Taxe d'Apprentissage): Companies can allocate their apprenticeship tax to Course en Cours through the SOLTéA platform (SIRET: 508 878 022 00039), starting May 2026 for the 2026 school year.
- Establishment Membership Fees: Schools pay a small membership fee to join the association Course en Cours, though participation for teams is entirely free.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Annual | Free participation for all teams |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
Course en Cours product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Course en Cours is a year-long educational competition in which teams of 4-6 French secondary school students (collèges and lycées) imagine, design, manufacture, and race miniature electric vehicles using the same professional-grade industrial tools (CATIA, SOLIDWORKS, 3DEXPERIENCE platform, 3D printing, electronic motor control systems) used in the automotive and manufacturing industry. The program is free for participating teams, culminates in regional and national finals held at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie in Paris, and is supported by a structured pedagogical methodology and physical/digital pedagogical kits (Mallette Pédagogique).
Product overview
Course en Cours is a unified pedagogical program built around an annual electric mini-vehicle design and racing competition for French secondary school students (collèges and lycées). The core offering consists of the main Challenge Competition, supported by a comprehensive Pedagogical Methodology, a dual-form Pedagogical Kit (physical and digital), Professional Design Tools Access (3DEXPERIENCE, CATIA, SOLIDWORKS), and a tiered Competition Structure (local, regional, national finals). A parallel GEU Challenge track extends the program to higher education students. All components work together to deliver an end-to-end educational experience where teams conceive vehicles, use professional industry tools, and compete at multiple levels, with the free provision of tools and materials ensuring equal access.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Mini-Vehicle Design and Racing Challenge Year-long competition where teams of 4-6 students (collèges and lycées) imagine, design, manufacture, and race miniature electric vehicles using professional-grade industrial tools, culminating in local, regional (academy) and national finals.
- GEU Challenge (Grandes Écoles et Universités)
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 100,000 young people have been reached since 2006, with 900 teams participating in recent seasons
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Course en Cours
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Course en Cours technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration4 records
Feature4 records
Course en Cours partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered key partner, founding partner, institutional partner and recognition partner.
- Segula Technologieskey partnerEngineering services company that joined as a partner in 2018, bringing additional technical expertise and industry connections to the program.
- PFA (Plateforme Française pour l'Automobile)key partnerJoined the partnership in 2013 as the platform for the French automotive industry, connecting the program to the mobility sector and providing industry relevance.
- Dassault Systèmesfounding partnerDassault Systèmes has been a founding partner since 2008, providing the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, CATIA CAD software, and professional engineering tools. The company offers these same tools to student teams and has supported the program for 20 years. CEO Tanneguy de Fromont serves as President of Course en Cours.
- Renaultfounding partnerRenault joined Dassault Systèmes as a founding partner in 2008, providing industry expertise, technical resources, and employee engagement. The company contributes to making the project professionally relevant and inspiring for students.
- Ministry of National Education (Ministère de l'Education Nationale)institutional partnerThe French Ministry of Education has supported Course en Cours since 2009 with pedagogical approval. A three-year convention was signed in 2010, and since 2025 registrations are managed through the national ADAGE platform.
- Elles Bougentkey partnerAssociation created in 2005 to encourage female students to pursue engineering careers. Partnering since 2019, they sponsor the 'Prix Elles Bougent' award at the national finals to promote gender diversity in technical fields.
- CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)recognition partnerIn 2025, CNRS officially labeled Course en Cours as part of the national 'Year of Engineering' initiative, recognizing its contribution to promoting engineering culture and technical innovation among youth.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Course en Cours competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- 4-H STEM / Youth Development Programs: Long-running US youth development organization offering STEM curricula, project kits and competitions across K-12. Broader in scope but shares the school-delivered, mentor-driven, partner-funded model.
Direct peers
- Destination Imagination: Global K-12 STEAM competition in which teams solve open-ended challenges and present to judges. Comparable team-based, project-driven format with national finals.
- VEX Robotics / REC Foundation: Operates VEX IQ and VEX V5 robotics competitions globally, with the VEX Worlds finals. Same school-based, team-based engineering competition structure as Course en Cours.
- FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology): Runs FLL, FTC, and FRC — the largest K-12 STEM competition ecosystem worldwide. Comparable mentor-driven, team-based engineering challenge with tiered finals and strong corporate sponsorship model.
- Solar Car Challenge: US-based multi-weekend solar car racing competition for high school and college teams. Comparable in student-built vehicle engineering with corporate partner ecosystem.
- Science Olympiad: US-based K-12 STEM competition across 23+ science and engineering events with regional, state, and national tournaments. Similar team-based, mentor-supported competition model.
- World Robot Olympiad (WRO): International robotics and STEM competition for school-age teams across 90+ countries. Comparable in tiered national-to-world finals and curriculum-aligned challenge design.
- Shell Eco-marathon: Student energy-efficiency vehicle challenge (battery, hydrogen, combustion) using professional engineering tools. Shares the mini-vehicle design/race format and industrial corporate sponsorship DNA.
- F1 in Schools: International student competition in which teams use professional CAD tools (CATIA/SOLIDWORKS) to design, manufacture, and race scaled F1 cars. Conceptually the closest analog to Course en Cours, and likely a direct inspiration given shared tooling stack.
Emerging players
- Technovation: Global tech-entrepreneurship program for girls aged 8-18. Overlaps with Course en Cours' gender-diversity mission (Elles Bougent award) and STEM career-pipeline focus.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Course en Cours social profiles
Digital presenceCourse en Cours financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Course en Cours leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Course en Cours funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Course en Cours M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Course en Cours
What does Course en Cours do?
Course en Cours is a year-long educational competition in which teams of 4-6 French secondary school students (collèges and lycées) imagine, design, manufacture, and race miniature electric vehicles using the same professional-grade industrial tools (CATIA, SOLIDWORKS, 3DEXPERIENCE platform, 3D printing, electronic motor control systems) used in the automotive and manufacturing industry. The program is free for participating teams, culminates in regional and national finals held at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie in Paris, and is supported by a structured pedagogical methodology and physical/digital pedagogical kits (Mallette Pédagogique).
Is Course en Cours a public or private company?
Course en Cours is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Course en Cours founded?
Course en Cours was founded in 2006. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Course en Cours based?
Course en Cours is headquartered in Vélizy Villacoublay, France, in the Europe region.
How does Course en Cours make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Partner Contributions are the primary driver. The others are donations, apprenticeship Tax (Taxe d'Apprentissage) and establishment Membership Fees.
Who are Course en Cours's main competitors?
4-H STEM / Youth Development Programs is listed as a broad incumbent. Direct peers are Destination Imagination, VEX Robotics / REC Foundation, FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology), Solar Car Challenge, Science Olympiad, World Robot Olympiad (WRO), Shell Eco-marathon and F1 in Schools. Technovation is listed as an emerging player.
Does Course en Cours have an API?
No public API is recorded for Course en Cours.
What industry is Course en Cours in?
Course en Cours's product category is STEM Education Program. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMADAE, Competition Robotics Teams & Coaching (FLL/FTC/FRC, VEX). Its NAICS code is 61169 and its SIC code is 8200.