High school interns discover the behind-the-scenes of the gendarmerie

Varois establishments spent two weeks in immersion with the gendarmes. This experience took place both on the premises of the lycée régional du Coudon in La Garde and at the groupement de la gendarmerie départementale in La Valette-du-Var.

EMOTION

In uniform, no one was missing from the roll call on June 27 for this ceremony marking the end of the internship at the Groupement de gendarmerie of La Valette-du-Var. Under the command of cheffe d'escadron de réserve Virginie Massol, internship director for this 2025 session, the high school students marched in step onto the place d’Armes in front of authorities, families, and partners. After the raising of the colors and the Marseillaise, colonel Goumain, commander of the groupement du Var, congratulated them during his speech and presented them with their certificate of participation in the internship. Their diligence over these two weeks was also rewarded with a "leisure pack" presented by all the partners. The traditional family photo marked the final clap of this extraordinary adventure within the gendarmerie. For these teenagers, accustomed to school benches, the tone was set immediately on the very first day of presentation. Welcomed at the start of the internship at the lycée régional du Coudon in La Garde by Lieutenant-Colonel Frédéric Dauboeuf, cheffe d'escadron de réserve Virginie Massol, and adjudant Nicolas Moulin, kindness was the order of the day. Right from the start, the young interns were able to grasp the significance of their choice for the two weeks ahead, with a very busy schedule leaving nothing to chance. As part of the mandatory observation internship for around twenty high school students from nine "seconde" classes, with military punctuality, starting with the raising of the colors, day by day they discovered a structured universe, with a presentation adapted to their young age.

DAILY LIFE OF THE GENDARMES

Beyond the action, it was also the dialogue that made an impression. The interns were able to ask the speakers all their questions about their career paths, their daily lives, and much more. This internship was also an opportunity for the young people to reflect on the concepts of commitment and citizenship; they discovered the central role of the gendarmerie in daily life: maintaining order, rescue and protection of the population, criminal investigations, and other missions, sometimes unknown to the general public. A range of gendarmerie professions was presented to them (gendarmerie mobile, Brigade Départementale de Renseignement et d’Investigations judiciaire (BDRIJ), Service Réserve Jeunesse and Réserve Opérationnelle, and the many services that make up the groupement de gendarmerie). A focus on the partnership between the gendarmerie and the municipal police was presented to them by the director of the police municipale of La Garde. The associative and cultural network was also involved, with a tripartite intervention of the speakers in their respective fields. This immersive internship undoubtedly allowed these young high school students to take a fresh look at the forces of order, far from traditional clichés. Between respect for rules, team spirit, and a sense of duty, the values transmitted during these two weeks will certainly remain engraved in their memories and will probably inspire future vocations.

THE PARTNERS:

Restaurant McDonald’s, La Valette-du-Var, PATHE Cinéma, La Valette-du-Var, VERTICAL’ART, La Valette-du-Var, OUKON’VAR (100% Varois cultural and fun game), Plateforme Médicale de Cuers, Régie du Téléphérique du Faron, Conseil départemental, Routes varoises de la liberté.

THE SPEAKERS:

Délégation départementale du Souvenir Français, team of cultural mediators of the Mémorial du Faron (high place of national remembrance), Association ACSPMG (History and Heritage of the Gendarmerie).