The middle-aged woman wore low-waisted skinny jeans and Converse shoes to sit the English language baccalaureate in Paris. But a sharp-eyed invigilator who had seen the 19-year-old daughter taking her philosophy paper a week earlier realized the woman was an imposter and called police.
She was arrested when the exam ended so as not to disturb other students taking the paper this week, a Paris police spokesman said.
He added: ‘The mother was dressed in the casual clothes a typical teenager would wear.
‘She was held briefly in custody and freely admitted what she had done. She said she was better at English than her daughter.’
The mother now faced fraud charges and a fine of up to £7,000. The daughter faced being banned from taking all public exams for five years, police said. The baccalaureate was introduced by Napoleon in 1808 and is France’s main school-leaving exam.
Students usually take five subjects which they must pass if they wish to go to university.
