The annual General French Baccalaureate exam for getting into university kicked off on Monday in France. High school students sat their first exam, philosophy, and worked on a dissertation for four hours. /VCG Photo

The French Baccalaureate is the academic diploma that marks the completion of a French high school program and is normally taken by 12th grade students. /VCG Photo

High school students in their 11th grades need to choose one of three paths – economics and social sciences, literature, and sciences – to specialize in before taking the exam. /VCG Photo

Philosophy exams include questions like “Is it our duty to seek out the truth?” /VCG Photo

Students ran into a rail strike announced by SNCF, France's national state-owned railway company. Delays and cancellation of railway were expected in the regions that covered the railway network. However, the company said it had taken steps to limit any inconvenience that strike action might cause to the students. /VCG Photo