What does your Bac mention really mean?
The French Baccalaureate mention system looks simple: Tres Bien, Bien, Assez Bien. But what those labels actually mean in percentile terms has shifted considerably over the past fifteen years. Enter your Bac results to see exactly where your score sits in the current distribution, and how that compares to a decade ago.
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What percentage of students get mention très bien in 2024?
In the 2024 Baccalaureate session, approximately 9% of all candidates across all pathways earned mention très bien — the highest tier, awarded to students with an average of 16/20 or above. For the Bac général specifically, where the academic cohort is more concentrated, the rate is higher at approximately 12-13%. These figures represent candidates who sat the exam; the overall pass rate means the proportion of the age cohort reaching très bien is slightly lower.
The mention très bien rate has increased dramatically over the past two decades. In 2005, fewer than 2% of Bac candidates achieved this distinction. In 2019 (the final year under the pre-réforme system), approximately 6.8% received mention très bien. The COVID-impacted 2020 and 2021 sessions used modified assessment, and rates reached 14.1% and above before returning to a new post-réforme baseline of approximately 8-9%. The mention très bien of 2024 is therefore less rare than it was in 2010, which is relevant context for students and employers interpreting what the distinction means relative to historical cohorts.
Mention bien (average 14-15.99/20) is awarded to approximately 15% of candidates, placing the top 24% of Bac candidates at mention bien or above. Mention assez bien (12-13.99/20) captures another 20%, so the top 44% of candidates earn some form of mention. Admis sans mention (10-11.99/20) accounts for approximately 47% of candidates, representing the passing majority. Refusé or rattrapage candidates (below 10) account for the remaining approximately 9%, though many of these students ultimately pass through the rattrapage oral examination.
What your Bac mention means for Parcoursup and selective entry
The Bac mention does not directly determine Parcoursup outcomes, because Parcoursup ranks are assigned before the Bac results are known — offers are made based on the dossier (school grades from Terminale and Première, class rank, motivation letter, and school recommendation). However, the Bac mention becomes relevant in several distinct ways. For formations sélectives (CPGEs, BTS, IUT) where Parcoursup ranks students based on academic dossiers, a very strong trajectory in Terminale (which predicts a likely mention très bien) is already captured in the dossier weighting. After results, some institutions use Bac mention as a tiebreaker in late acceptance rounds or scholarship decisions.
For classes préparatoires aux grandes écoles (CPGEs), the Bac mention très bien is strongly correlated with the profile of accepted students simply because the students who are accepted have the academic profiles that produce very high Bac averages. A mention très bien is not a sufficient condition for CPGE admission — class rank within the school and the school's own reputation matter — but it is a strong positive signal. Sciences Po Paris and Sciences Po regional institutes use a Parcoursup-based process with dossier analysis; mention très bien Bac général candidates typically have stronger profiles on average, but the mention itself is not a separate criterion.
Where Bac mention becomes directly influential is in institutional scholarship programmes. Many universities and grandes écoles offer scholarships explicitly reserved for or prioritised by mention très bien recipients. The IUT network uses Bac mention as one explicit component of their dossier evaluation. Government merit scholarships (bourses au mérite) in France are available exclusively to bursary students who achieve mention très bien, providing an additional 900/year above the standard bursary. Outside France, foreign universities increasingly recognise the Bac général as equivalent to an international qualification for admissions purposes, with mention très bien typically corresponding to the A/A* equivalent that competitive international programmes expect.
The 2019 réforme and how it changed Bac grade distributions
The 2018-2019 reform introduced by Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer fundamentally changed the structure of the Baccalaureate général. The pre-réforme system was built around series (L, ES, S) with a single set of terminal exams counting for virtually all of the final grade. The new system, phased in from 2019 and first fully applied to the 2021 cohort, introduced continuous assessment (contrôle continu) counting for approximately 40% of the final grade alongside remaining terminal exams.
The most direct effect on grade distributions was the COVID adaptation. In 2020, the terminal exams were cancelled and the entire grade was based on school assessment. In 2021, a hybrid system applied. Both years saw mention très bien rates rise sharply to 14.1% and above — roughly double the pre-réforme baseline — because continuous assessment produces grade distributions more compressed toward the upper end than high-stakes terminal exams. Since 2022, the réforme system has settled, and mention très bien rates have stabilised at approximately 8-9% for all pathways combined, below the COVID peak but above the pre-2019 baseline of 6-7%.
The practical consequence for interpreting current Bac mentions: a mention très bien earned in 2024 under the current system reflects a different assessment regime than one earned in 2018. The higher baseline rate (9% versus 6%) reflects partly the inclusion of continuous assessment and partly grade standardisation effects of the new system rather than a straightforward improvement in student performance. HCERES and Parcoursup stakeholder reports have noted these distributional shifts. For international credential recognition, most assessment bodies treat the current Bac at face value without adjusting for reform-era changes in grade distributions.
Bac results by mention tier, 2024 session (all pathways)
| Mention | Score range | % of candidates | Cumulative from top |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mention tres bien | 16/20 and above | ~9.0% | 9.0% |
| Mention bien | 14-15.99/20 | ~15.0% | 24.0% |
| Mention assez bien | 12-13.99/20 | ~20.0% | 44.0% |
| Admis sans mention | 10-11.99/20 | ~47.0% | 91.0% |
| Refuse / rattrapage | Below 10/20 | ~9.0% | 100% |
Historical mention tres bien rates
| Year | % mention tres bien |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 3.5% |
| 2019 | 6.8% |
| 2020 | 14.1% (COVID) |
| 2022 | 8.8% |
| 2024 | ~9.0% |
Frequently asked questions
In the 2024 Bac session, approximately 9% of all candidates across all three pathways earned mention tres bien. For the Bac general specifically, the rate is higher, around 12-13%. This figure has risen dramatically: in 2005, fewer than 2% of candidates earned mention tres bien. COVID years saw rates above 14%.
Statistically, mention tres bien is less rare than it was 15 years ago. At 9-12%, it still represents the top tier, but the gap between "mention tres bien at 16.1/20" and "mention tres bien at 19.5/20" is enormous. Selective institutions increasingly look at raw scores and subject-specific performance rather than the mention category alone.
The 2020 and 2021 sessions used heavily modified assessment methods, and mention tres bien rates nearly doubled. Since 2022, rates have dropped back but have not returned to pre-2019 levels. The current ~9% is still significantly higher than the 6-7% seen in 2018-2019.
Mention très bien requires a final average of 16/20 or above across all components of the Baccalaureate. The final average includes both the terminal examination results and the continuous assessment (contrôle continu) component, which accounts for approximately 40% of the total grade under the post-2019 réforme system. Some subjects are awarded through Grand Oral and other specific exams that have been reweighted under the new structure. A candidate averaging 16/20 overall falls in approximately the top 9% of all Bac candidates in 2024, or approximately the top 12-13% of Bac général candidates specifically. There is no distinction within mention très bien — a 16.1 and a 19.5 both receive the same mention label, though raw scores are visible on the original bulletin and increasingly requested by selective institutions alongside the mention.
Yes. Mention assez bien is a passing result — it means the candidate achieved an average of 12/20 to 13.99/20, well above the 10/20 threshold required to pass the Bac without entering the rattrapage oral. Approximately 20% of Bac candidates receive mention assez bien, placing them in roughly the top 44% of all Bac candidates (combining très bien 9%, bien 15%, and assez bien 20%). A mention assez bien graduate holds a full Baccalauréat diploma that qualifies for Parcoursup and university access. For most university tracks (STAPS, many licences), a mention assez bien is fully sufficient. For the most competitive CPGEs and IUT programmes, the dossier review will see this mention in context alongside class rank, teacher recommendations, and grades in relevant subjects.
Yes. The official Baccalaureate diploma issued by the Ministère de l'Education Nationale includes the mention awarded (très bien, bien, assez bien, or passé sans mention) alongside the candidate's name, date, series or voie, and the academic year. The mention is a formal element of the diploma and appears on the official document stored by the rectorat. Candidates can access their diplomas and official results through the Cyclades platform. For foreign university applications, credential evaluation bodies and admissions offices typically request either the full bulletin de notes or the official diploma with mention indicated. The mention très bien with félicitations du jury is an additional distinction sometimes awarded by juries for exceptional results above 18/20 average — this is separate from and above the standard mention très bien.
- Ministere de l'Education Nationale, resultats baccalaureat 2024