« En Premières Lignes »: NEOMA Business School honours the young writing talents of the literary preparatory classes

The « En Premières Lignes » prize, organised by the APPLS — the Association of Teachers of Première and Senior Literary Classes — has announced its 2026 winners. As a co-partner of the competition, NEOMA Business School commends the three award-winning texts, which will be published in a special issue of the general-culture magazine The Elephant. Through this support, the School affirms its commitment to students from the literary preparatory classes.

Three young authors honoured

Each year, the « En Premières Lignes » prize invites first- and second-year literary preparatory students to compose a text — essay, narrative (short story, novel…), poetry (in verse, in prose…), drama… — inspired by a photograph (shown here, © Véronique Jacob), and celebrates their creativity, imagination and writing excellence. After extensive deliberations, the jury of the 2026 edition has announced its winners. Once again this year, the submissions confirmed the quality of writing in the preparatory classes:

• 1st prize: Hannah Mbechezi, Lycée Herriot (Lyon) — "With One Breath"
• 2nd prize: Edgar Letos, Lycée Albert Châtelet (Douai) — "The Cave of Souls in Torment"
• 3rd prize: Solène Bouckenooghe, Lycée Faidherbe (Lille) — "In Balance"

"The literary preparatory classes shape minds that our era needs: attuned to nuance, trained in analysis, able to grasp the complexity of the world and put it into words. That is the whole purpose of this prize, which reveals and distinguishes these young talents," says Delphine Manceau, Dean of NEOMA Business School.

The first-prize text will be published in a 2026 special issue of The Elephant, a magazine devoted to creative work. The laureates will receive their awards on Saturday 7 November 2026 in Paris, at the Hôtel littéraire Le Swann, in the presence of the jury members, who are professionals from the worlds of culture and communication.

A continuum between the preparatory classes and the Grande École

Through its commitment alongside the « En Premières Lignes » prize, NEOMA upholds a strong conviction: the skills developed in literary tracks are a major asset for understanding and helping to shape the transformations of the contemporary world, and they meaningfully complement the profiles of students from the business-school preparatory classes. Critical thinking, a humanist culture, creativity, analytical ability and the capacity to engage with complexity are today essential qualities within organisations. This conviction is reflected in the profile of the students the School welcomes. NEOMA is today the management school that recruits the largest number of students from the literary preparatory classes — a choice that reflects the importance it places on diversity of background and on complementary approaches. "There is a continuum between the preparatory classes and the Grande École: the same rigour, the same curiosity, the same ability to think through complexity carry over. Supporting these students means reminding them that their path is a strength," notes Alexandre Pourchet, Deputy Director General for Programmes & International at NEOMA Business School.

This emphasis on the Humanities is part of the School's broader pedagogical vision. Launched in 2025 and created by Agathe Mezzadri-Guedj, a professor of literature in preparatory classes and at NEOMA, the course "Lessons from the Great Literary Texts: Management, Business and Leadership" embodies this desire to bring literature, critical thinking and management into dialogue. It is an approach designed to train graduates who can understand the major challenges of their time and act with discernment.