Esports & gaming: XP School comes to Marseille to play

The school offers Bachelors and MBAs adapted to the online video game industry

Two years ago, the private education company Ionis launched XP, a school designed to train future talent in the world of esports and gaming. XP is a place to learn the ins and outs of online gaming and build a career in a field with tremendous growth potential. After Paris, Lille and Lyon, XP has found a place in the sun in southern France. Given the density of actors in the gaming landscape, the scale of the French Tech digital ecosystem ‒ with Medinsoft in particular ‒ and France's second-largest telecommunications hub, Marseille was a natural choice: in September 2020, Ionis Education Group opened another XP campus in the Epitech complex. Provence Promotion helped the school to integrate the local digital environment.

The world of video games is blowing up. In 2019 alone, the sector generated more than €5 billion in total sales in France (source: SELL, the professional association of French video game developers). "XP, the international esports & gaming school", the most recent Ionis school created in 2018, stepped into this fast-growing industry. "Video games are the number-one entertainment sector in France, ahead of music, film and books combined. We opened a school to target the esports market in France and to train young graduates in marketing and management in a hyper-growth market," explains Sébastien Lévêque, Director of Projects at XP. In the southern region, Ionis chose Marseille because of the growing importance of gaming, as illustrated by the presence of the MCES Academy e-sports club; Prismgang.com, a talent agency that represents players and influencers; and the arrival of the OM football club on Twitch in conjunction with the Grizi Esport e-team.

A class of 20 students for 2020

XP School opened its doors in September with 20 baccalaureate holders who earned admission through a competitive application process. In a true stroke of luck, the school year got off to an almost-normal start between the two lockdowns.

Beginning next year, the student body is expected to double. Courses are taught by professionals within the framework of a three-year Bachelor's program with four majors: events, video game marketing, digital communication and influence, and international business. Students have the option to extend their studies to five years to earn an MBA as part of a work-study arrangement with a six-month internship abroad. "XP fosters educational synergies with the other Ionis schools, Epitech, E-artsup and ISG, for technical, artistic and international and marketing expertise," notes Sébastien Lévêque. In his view, the dynamic of the local digital ecosystem could offer opportunities for these powerful startuppers.

After XP Paris, Lille and Lyon, the network expanded in 2020 with the opening of four campuses in Bordeaux, Rennes, Strasbourg and Marseille.