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Key Facts: Concours ECRICOME Exam

Member Business Schools

ECRICOME

1,970

Admitted Places (2026 Session)

ECRICOME

7,811

Candidates (2025 Session)

ECRICOME

320 €

Flat Fee (30 € for boursiers)

ECRICOME

6 papers / 20h

Written Examination Structure

ECRICOME

April 14–16, 2026

Written Examination Dates

ECRICOME

The Concours ECRICOME Prépas ECG/ECT admits candidates to 5 major French business schools (EM Strasbourg, KEDGE, MBS, NEOMA, Rennes SB) offering 1,970 places in 2026 for 7,811 candidates (2025 count). Registration is a single flat fee of 320 € (30 € for boursiers). The exam consists of 6 written long-form papers (20h total, April 14–16, 2026) and campus orals (June 15 – July 1, 2026). This 100-question bank is an English-language MCQ study adaptation, not an official-format simulation.

Sample Concours ECRICOME Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to review concepts for the Concours ECRICOME exam. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1Consider the real 2x2 matrix A = [[2, 1], [1, 2]]. What are the eigenvalues of A, and what is its trace and determinant?

A.Eigenvalues: lambda_1 = 1, lambda_2 = 3; Trace = 4, Determinant = 3

B.Eigenvalues: lambda_1 = -1, lambda_2 = 5; Trace = 4, Determinant = -5

C.Eigenvalues: lambda_1 = 2, lambda_2 = 2; Trace = 4, Determinant = 4

D.Eigenvalues: lambda_1 = 0, lambda_2 = 4; Trace = 4, Determinant = 0

Explanation: The characteristic polynomial of A is det(A - lambda*I) = (2 - lambda)^2 - 1 = lambda^2 - 4*lambda + 3 = (lambda - 1)(lambda - 3). Thus the eigenvalues are 1 and 3. The trace is the sum of diagonal entries (2 + 2 = 4, which also equals 1 + 3) and the determinant is 2*2 - 1*1 = 3 (which equals 1 * 3).

2Let m be a real parameter and consider the 3x3 matrix M_m = [[1, 1, 2], [1, 2, 1], [2, 3, m]]. For which value of m is M_m non-invertible, and what is the rank of M_m for that specific critical value?

A.m = 2, with rank 1

B.m = 3, with rank 2

C.m = -1, with rank 2

D.m = 3, with rank 1

Explanation: Computing the determinant by row operations: subtracting row 1 from row 2 gives [0, 1, -1], and subtracting 2*row 1 from row 3 gives [0, 1, m - 4]. Subtracting the new row 2 from row 3 yields [0, 0, m - 3]. The determinant is therefore m - 3, which vanishes if and only if m = 3. When m = 3, row 3 is the exact sum of row 1 and row 2 (L3 = L1 + L2), while row 1 and row 2 are linearly independent, so the rank is 2.

3Let X be a continuous random variable following an exponential distribution with parameter lambda = 0.5 (density f(x) = 0.5*e^(-0.5*x) for x >= 0). What is the conditional probability P(X > 6 | X > 2)?

A.e^(-1) ≈ 0.3679

B.e^(-3) ≈ 0.0498

C.e^(-2) ≈ 0.1353

D.1 - e^(-2) ≈ 0.8647

Explanation: By the memoryless property of the exponential distribution, P(X > s + t | X > s) = P(X > t) for all s, t >= 0. Here s = 2 and s + t = 6, so t = 4. Therefore, P(X > 6 | X > 2) = P(X > 4) = e^(-lambda * 4) = e^(-0.5 * 4) = e^(-2) ≈ 0.1353.

4Consider the bivariate function f(x, y) = x^2 + 2*y^2 - 4*x + 4*y + 5 defined on R^2. Which statement correctly identifies its unique critical point and nature?

A.Critical point at (-2, 1), which is a saddle point with f(-2, 1) = 15

B.Critical point at (2, -1), which is a strict local maximum with f(2, -1) = 7

C.Critical point at (4, -2), which is a strict local minimum with f(4, -2) = 1

D.Critical point at (2, -1), which is a strict global minimum with f(2, -1) = -1

Explanation: The gradient of f is nabla f(x, y) = (2x - 4, 4y + 4). Setting both partial derivatives to zero yields 2x - 4 = 0 => x = 2, and 4y + 4 = 0 => y = -1. The Hessian matrix is H = [[2, 0], [0, 4]], which has positive trace (6) and positive determinant (8), making it positive definite everywhere on R^2. Thus (2, -1) is a strict global minimum, with value f(2, -1) = 2^2 + 2(-1)^2 - 4(2) + 4(-1) + 5 = 4 + 2 - 8 - 4 + 5 = -1.

5What is the exact value of the improper integral I = int_{0}^{+infty} x * e^(-2x) dx?

A.1/4

B.1/2

C.1

D.1/8

Explanation: Using integration by parts with u(x) = x, u'(x) = 1, and v'(x) = e^(-2x), v(x) = -1/2 * e^(-2x). For any upper limit B > 0: int_0^B x*e^(-2x) dx = [-1/2 * x * e^(-2x)]_0^B + 1/2 * int_0^B e^(-2x) dx. As B -> +infty, -1/2 * B * e^(-2B) -> 0 by standard growth comparisons. The remaining integral is 1/2 * [-1/2 * e^(-2x)]_0^B = 1/4 * (1 - e^(-2B)) -> 1/4. Alternatively, recognizing Gamma(2) / 2^2 = 1! / 4 = 1/4 gives the same result.

6Let A be a 3x3 real matrix whose characteristic polynomial is P_A(lambda) = -(lambda - 2)^2 * (lambda - 5). Under what necessary and sufficient condition is A diagonalizable over R?

A.The rank of (A - 5*I_3) must equal 1

B.The dimension of Ker(A - 2*I_3) must equal 2

C.The trace of A must strictly exceed 9

D.The matrix A must be skew-symmetric (A^T = -A)

Explanation: A matrix is diagonalizable over R if and only if its characteristic polynomial is split over R and the geometric multiplicity of each eigenvalue equals its algebraic multiplicity. Here, lambda = 5 has algebraic multiplicity 1, so its eigenspace automatically has dimension 1. For the eigenvalue lambda = 2 with algebraic multiplicity 2, A is diagonalizable if and only if dim(Ker(A - 2*I_3)) = 2 (or equivalently, rank(A - 2*I_3) = 1).

7A customer service center receives incoming phone calls according to a Poisson process with an average rate of lambda = 3 calls per minute. What is the exact probability of receiving exactly 2 calls in a given one-minute interval?

A.3 * e^(-3)

B.9 * e^(-3)

C.4.5 * e^(-3)

D.1.5 * e^(-3)

Explanation: For a Poisson distribution X ~ Poisson(lambda) with lambda = 3, the probability mass function is P(X = k) = (e^(-lambda) * lambda^k) / k!. For k = 2: P(X = 2) = (e^(-3) * 3^2) / 2! = (9 / 2) * e^(-3) = 4.5 * e^(-3) ≈ 0.2240.

8Let X be a discrete random variable taking values in {-2, 0, 2} with probabilities P(X = -2) = 0.2, P(X = 0) = 0.5, and P(X = 2) = 0.3. What is the variance Var(X)?

A.2.00

B.1.60

C.0.20

D.1.96

Explanation: First, calculate the expectation: E[X] = (-2)(0.2) + (0)(0.5) + (2)(0.3) = -0.4 + 0 + 0.6 = 0.2. Second, calculate the second moment: E[X^2] = (-2)^2 * (0.2) + (0)^2 * (0.5) + (2)^2 * (0.3) = 4(0.2) + 0 + 4(0.3) = 0.8 + 1.2 = 2.0. By König-Huygens theorem, Var(X) = E[X^2] - (E[X])^2 = 2.0 - (0.2)^2 = 2.0 - 0.04 = 1.96.

9What is the inverse of the invertible 2x2 matrix B = [[3, 5], [1, 2]]?

A.[[2, -5], [-1, 3]]

B.[[-2, 5], [1, -3]]

C.[[3, -5], [-1, 2]]

D.[[1/3, 1/5], [1, 1/2]]

Explanation: For any 2x2 matrix M = [[a, b], [c, d]], the inverse is (1 / det M) * [[d, -b], [-c, a]]. The determinant of B is det(B) = (3)(2) - (5)(1) = 6 - 5 = 1. Therefore, B^(-1) = [[2, -5], [-1, 3]]. Multiplying B by B^(-1) verifies [[3*2 - 5*1, 3*(-5) + 5*3], [1*2 - 2*1, 1*(-5) + 2*3]] = [[1, 0], [0, 1]].

10Let Y follow a normal distribution N(mu = 10, sigma^2 = 4). Using the standard normal distribution table value Phi(2) ≈ 0.9772, what is the probability P(6 <= Y <= 14)?

A.0.6826

B.0.9544

C.0.9772

D.0.9974

Explanation: The standard deviation is sigma = sqrt(4) = 2. Standardizing Y yields Z = (Y - 10) / 2 ~ N(0, 1). For Y = 6, Z_1 = (6 - 10) / 2 = -2. For Y = 14, Z_2 = (14 - 10) / 2 = +2. Therefore, P(6 <= Y <= 14) = P(-2 <= Z <= 2) = 2*Phi(2) - 1 ≈ 2(0.9772) - 1 = 1.9544 - 1 = 0.9544 (approx 95.44%, the two-sigma rule).

About the Concours ECRICOME Exam

The Concours ECRICOME Prépas is a premier competitive examination gateway for students in French Classes Préparatoires aux Grandes Écoles (CPGE voie ECG and voie ECT) seeking admission to five leading EQUIS/AACSB/AMBA-accredited management schools: EM Strasbourg, KEDGE Business School, Montpellier Business School, NEOMA Business School, and Rennes School of Business. Candidates register via a single procedure with a single flat fee of 320 € (30 € for boursiers) that grants access to all five institutions. The competitive process comprises six mutualised written papers sat over three days in mid-April, followed by campus oral rounds in June and July. This 100-question practice bank is an English-language study adaptation developed to consolidate mathematical problem-solving, economic and sociological theories, geopolitical dynamics, text-contraction methodological rules, and professional English proficiency.

Exam sponsor: ECRICOME. The requirements and fees below concern the certification or admission exam, separate from our free practice resources.

Assessment

Mutualised written tests held across 3 consecutive days (April 14–16, 2026): Mathématiques Approfondies or Appliquées (4h), Économie-Sociologie-Histoire (ESH) or Histoire-Géographie-Géopolitique (HGG) (4h), Culture Générale (4h dissertation), Résumé de texte (2h, contraction of a text of about 2,000 words into 250 words ± 10%, i.e. 225–275 words, with a compulsory title), Langue Vivante A (3h), and Langue Vivante B (3h). Eligible candidates who clear school-specific admissibility thresholds sit oral examinations between June 15 and July 1, 2026 (individual interview of personality and motivation, plus oral language tests in LVA and LVB).

Time Limit

20 hours total written papers over 3 days (Maths 4h, ESH/HGG 4h, Culture Générale 4h, Résumé 2h, LVA 3h, LVB 3h), plus oral tests

Passing Score

Merit-based competitive ranking; 1,970 places open in 2026 across EM Strasbourg, KEDGE Business School, Montpellier Business School, NEOMA Business School, and Rennes School of Business (7,811 registered candidates in 2025).

Exam / Certification Fees

320 € flat fee for all 5 member business schools (30 € for boursiers de l'enseignement supérieur)

Exam sponsor website

Fees, eligibility, and exam policies can change. Confirm them with the exam sponsor before applying or paying.

Official sources

Our practice resources: topics covered

We aim to reflect publicly available exam outlines and topic information in our study resources. Coverage, format, and difficulty may differ from the actual exam, and we cannot guarantee that every detail is accurate or current. Confirm exam requirements, fees, and policies with the official exam sponsor.

30%

Mathématiques ECG

Matrix algebra, determinants, rank-nullity theorem, eigenvalue decomposition, symmetric matrices, continuous probability density functions, Poisson and exponential models, bivariate calculus, gradient, Hessian, and constrained optimization.

25%

Économie, Sociologie et Histoire (ESH)

Economic crises and long waves, market failures and monopolies, Philips and Beveridge curves, NAIRU, public debt sustainability, central banking, welfare state typologies, and sociological theories of education and social reproduction.

20%

Histoire, Géographie et Géopolitique (HGG)

Geopolitics of globalization, maritime choke points, critical minerals and energy transition, regional economic blocs (EU, ASEAN, Mercosur, AfCFTA), and the multilateral monetary system.

15%

Culture Générale et Résumé de Texte

Philosophical concept analysis, ethical and political philosophy, formal and informal logical fallacies, and the rigorous rules of the 400-word Résumé de texte (contraction au quart, ±10% tolerance, neutrality, and connective logic).

10%

Langue Vivante: Anglais

High-register economic and geopolitical English vocabulary, complex syntax, idioms, false friends (faux amis), and critical reading comprehension of analytical prose.

Preparing for the Concours ECRICOME Exam

What You Need to Know

Passing score: Merit-based competitive ranking; 1,970 places open in 2026 across EM Strasbourg, KEDGE Business School, Montpellier Business School, NEOMA Business School, and Rennes School of Business (7,811 registered candidates in 2025).
Assessment: Mutualised written tests held across 3 consecutive days (April 14–16, 2026): Mathématiques Approfondies or Appliquées (4h), Économie-Sociologie-Histoire (ESH) or Histoire-Géographie-Géopolitique (HGG) (4h), Culture Générale (4h dissertation), Résumé de texte (2h, contraction of a text of about 2,000 words into 250 words ± 10%, i.e. 225–275 words, with a compulsory title), Langue Vivante A (3h), and Langue Vivante B (3h). Eligible candidates who clear school-specific admissibility thresholds sit oral examinations between June 15 and July 1, 2026 (individual interview of personality and motivation, plus oral language tests in LVA and LVB).
Time limit: 20 hours total written papers over 3 days (Maths 4h, ESH/HGG 4h, Culture Générale 4h, Résumé 2h, LVA 3h, LVB 3h), plus oral tests
Exam / certification fees: 320 € flat fee for all 5 member business schools (30 € for boursiers de l'enseignement supérieur) Official sources

Using Our Practice Resources

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Concours ECRICOME: Suggested Study Strategy

1In mathematics, practice standard reduction and diagonalization problems, continuous probability calculations (normal, exponential, and Poisson distributions), and multivariable optimization with Hessian matrices.

2In ESH, anchor macroeconomic arguments in concrete historical episodes (e.g., the 1929 Great Depression, the 1973/1979 oil shocks, the 2008 subprime crisis) and pair them with theoretical frameworks (Keynesian multiplier, Friedman's monetarism, Ricardian equivalence).

3In HGG, synthesize spatial maps, institutional treaties, and economic data regarding critical choke points (Strait of Malacca, Bab-el-Mandeb, Suez) and strategic resources (rare earths, semiconductor supply chains).

4Master the rigid mechanical rules of the Résumé de texte: practice calibrating paragraphs to stay within the 360–440 word bracket while preserving internal logical connectors and eliminating stylistic padding.

5In modern languages (LVA Anglais), master high-frequency financial and political collocations, eliminate false friends (e.g., 'eventually' vs. 'éventuellement', 'actual' vs. 'actuel'), and drill complex grammar (inversions, conditional clauses, subjunctive).

6Use this 100-question practice bank to diagnose knowledge gaps before writing timed mock dissertations (concours blancs).

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Concours ECRICOME Prépas?

The Concours ECRICOME Prépas is the joint competitive entrance examination for students enrolled in French Classes Préparatoires aux Grandes Écoles (primarily ECG and ECT streams) seeking admission into the Programme Grande École (Master in Management) of five member business schools: EM Strasbourg, KEDGE Business School, Montpellier Business School, NEOMA Business School, and Rennes School of Business.

Which schools are included and what is the registration fee?

A single registration covers all five member schools with a flat fee of 320 € (30 € for French higher education scholarship holders / boursiers). Candidates do not pay per school; registration automatically entitles candidates to compete for all five institutions.

What are the official written papers in the ECRICOME ECG concours?

The written phase comprises six tests totaling 20 hours held over three days: Mathématiques (approfondies or appliquées, 4 hours), Économie-Sociologie-Histoire (ESH) or Histoire-Géographie-Géopolitique (HGG) (4 hours), Culture Générale (4 hours, dissertation), Résumé de texte (2 hours, 400-word text contraction), Langue Vivante A (3 hours), and Langue Vivante B (3 hours).

How are Tremplin admissions and Prépas Littéraires handled?

ECRICOME Tremplin 1 and Tremplin 2 are admissions parallèles for university/IUT/BTS graduates based on the TAGE 2 or TAGE MAGE tests and language certifications. ECRICOME Prépas Littéraires admits humanities prépa students (Khâgne A/L and B/L) through marks obtained in the Banque d'Épreuves Littéraires (BEL) and BL-SES. Both are separate routes and are distinct from the ECRICOME Prépas ECG/ECT concours.

Why is this practice bank structured as English multiple-choice questions?

The official ECRICOME written examination consists entirely of long-form handwritten essays, mathematical proofs, translations, and a 400-word text contraction. This practice bank is an English-language study adaptation designed to test core conceptual understanding, mathematical problem-solving steps, theoretical models, and geopolitical facts through focused active recall.

What are the rules of the ECRICOME Résumé de texte?

The ECRICOME Résumé de texte requires candidates to condense a non-fiction text of about 2,000 words into 250 words with a 10% tolerance either way (225 to 275 words) in 2 hours. A title is compulsory and its words are not counted. The résumé must follow the author's logical progression, maintain total neutrality, avoid formulaic attribution phrases (such as 'l'auteur affirme que'), and carry a double slash after every 50-word tranche with the cumulative count in the margin and the exact total at the end. The official consigne states that a résumé reaching 300 words, or failing to reach 200, is marked zero.

What are the key dates for the 2026 ECRICOME session?

For the 2026 session, written examinations take place from April 14 to April 16, 2026. Results of admissibility (admissibilité) are published on June 9, 2026. Oral examinations (oraux) at member campuses run from June 15 to July 1, 2026, followed by SIGEM final admissions in July.