Bac 2026 philosophy exam: 'Can we be happy when others are not?' and Nietzsche among subjects for 530,000 students
Nearly 530,000 French high school students sat the philosophy exam on Monday, choosing between two essay questions and a text commentary, including a Nietzsche excerpt.
Exam rollout
Nearly 530,000 pupils in general and technological terminale streams began the written philosophy test on Monday 15 June 2026 at 8 a.m. The exam is the traditional curtain-raiser for the baccalauréat, the end-of-secondary school qualification in France. The education ministry released the subjects shortly after the start.
Subject options
For the general track, the two dissertation topics were "Do we have control over our words?" and "Can we be happy when others are not?". The third choice was a commentary on an extract from Friedrich Nietzsche's Human, All Too Human, focusing on the scientific method. The article also noted the names Nietzsche and Paul Ricœur in connection with the paper.
Practical details
The philosophy test runs until midday, giving candidates four hours to complete one of the three tasks. The ministry did not immediately report any irregularities.
