French Universities 👩🎓👨🎓📚
There are 83 universities in France, including the world’s first university, the Sorbonne in Paris, established in the 13th Century.
To gain entry students should normally possess a Baccalauréat (BAC), or commensurate international qualification. For those not holding the BAC it is also possible to study a foundation course called the Diplôme d’accès aux études universitaires (DAEU), equivalent as a BAC, over one year, which gives admission to university.
If you live in France, and you are part of the French secondary education system, the application process can be best commenced at Admission Post-Bac, which permits those in their last year of Lycée to make application for study in a French university. This process is commenced several months before the final Baccalaureate exams. If you live abroad, the process of applying can best be started at Commencer ses Etudes supérieures en France. Those from outside the EEA need to apply through the French Embassy in their home country by mid January in the academic year preceding the proposed course of study.
Short term studies
Universities and the Instituts universitaires professionnalisés (IUT) attached to them offer two year vocationally based courses, following which students can enter employment in their specialist field or continue their studies thanks to the pretty flexible system of ‘parallel admissions’. This system allows for example a student with a relevant qualification to enter a course to get a Licence, without having done the first two years. This is sometimes possible only through an application to explain your motivation and check your academic level.
The main qualifications which are awarded are the Diplôme Universitaire de Technologie (DUT) and the Diplôme d’Edudes Universitaires Scientifiques et Techniques (DEUST). To this list of short courses we should also add two higher education courses offered through the lycées, the Brevet de Technicien Superieur and the Classes Préparatoires aux Grandes Ecoles (CPGE).
Long term studies
In France, courses are divided into three ‘cycles’ in an attempt to reflect the continuous nature of education and the linkages between the different stages. The three cycles lead to three levels of qualification often referred to as the LMD – Licence, Master and Doctorat, which correspond to the internationally recognised structure of higher education qualification – bachelor, masters, and PhD system of qualification.
As studies are now broken down into semesters and in teaching units (Unités d'Enseignement), referring to a 'year' is does not always make sense. The teaching units match the various subjects being taught.
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