An estimated 40,000 French university students, the great majority of them female, have turned to prostitution to help defray the costs of their education, the daily Le Figaro reported on Monday.
Citing numbers provided by the SUD-Etudiant student union, the daily said that this represented about one of every 57 students, and that they used the money thus earned to pay for their rents, their studies or simply for pocket money.
According to Emma, a former student in veterinary medicine who supported herself by working in brothels in Brussels, “in two months, I earned pocket money for the entire year. Which I would never have done working at McDonald’s. I’m not saying this is easy money, but I was proud to have earned it without robbing anyone.”
However, most student prostitutes try to avoid the street and the usual prostitution circles. Student prostitution is usually an individual and occasional activity. In fact, the most common site where students offer their services is the Internet, via Webcams, erotic photographs and small ads.
Police are sceptical about the figures quoted by the student union. They say there are many more prostitutes pretending to be French students than there are students selling sex in pursuit of their degrees.
[tags]France,French students,prostitution[/tags]
