Australians - Study in Europe

 
 

 
 

This website is dedicated to making it easier for Australians to embark on postgraduate study in Europe.

As well as providing a host of links to relevant websites in Europe and Australia ASiE also undertakes research and consultation with the EU Commission, European governments and a great number of universities and foundations. The aim is to produce and update as much as possible all information concerning grants and scholarships available to Australian students seeking to pursue doctoral studies in Europe.

 
 

Higher Education in France

Introduction
The French higher education system is notably different to what you will have been used to in Australia. However from the point of view of pursuing postgraduate study the differences need not be too great. One major difference is the variety of institutions, though they can basically be divided into two groupings, universities and the grandes écoles (specialised schools).
It also worth having some understanding of the classification bands of study in France, at least for registration purposes.  While university studies in Australia are divided into undergraduate and postgraduate levels, academic studies in France are divided into cycles. The first two years (for Australia the first and second years of an undergraduate degree), are designed to provide a fairly broad foundation course in the chosen subject and constitute the first cycle, known as the premier cycle. The third year, (licence), and the fourth year (maitrise) make up the second cycle (in Australian terms this would be third year pre-honours and then honours). This cycle is to lead students into a more specialised knowledge of their subject.

Then comes what we would call postgraduate study – in France the third cycle (Troisieme cycle). It starts with an introduction to research, (DEA diplome d'etudes approfondies or a highly specialised business orientated diploma known as DESS diplome d'etudes superieures specialisees), addressing subjects in the fields of science, technology or industry. It ends with a  doctorat (doctorate), which is the equivalent of an Australian doctorate or PhD.
Below you will find information about:

  • Applying for Masters and Doctorate level studies in France
  • Master’s Degrees in Networks
  • French Universities
  • Specialised Schools
  • and a list of useful links

Applying for Masters and Doctorate level studies in France.

Those wishing to pursue masters level (deuxième cycle) or doctorate level (troisième cycle) studies in France at a university must approach the President or international office of the university one year in advance, requesting a “dispense d’etudes” (course information) and providing a copy of your non-French degrees and a detailed description of your academic studies and/or curriculum to date.

Australian students already residing in France must give to the Rector of the Academie of their place of residence the following pieces of information:

• Certified photocopies of the original degree (original’s aren’t returned)
•Certified translation (if studies, degree and transcript not in French)
•Detailed description of the curriculum of their course(s) undertaken to date.

A list of qualified, certified translators is available from the Australian embassy, prefecture’s town halls (mairies), and some courts.

Australian students not residing in France can request an attestation from the National Studies Centre (Centre international d'études pédagogiques) (CIEP)- agence ENIC-NARIC France. 
For more information, and more precise information, please contact the international office of the university you wish to study at.

For a very large number of Masters and Doctorate level courses, you can also apply using the CampusFrance website www.campusfrance.org. This website allows you to search a database of over 33,000 education courses, and apply for several coruses using one single form in which you rank your preferences. More information is available at CampusFrance

 

Recognition of non-French degrees and diplomas.

There is no standard regulatory procedure in France for recognizing foreign qualifications. The request for a determination of equivalency – which evaluates the number of years of French higher education that corresponds to the studies undertaken in the applicant's home country – is considered when an institution receives an application for admission. Professional experience in the chosen area may also be taken into account. Both the admission and the student's starting level are determined by the educational institution alone.

More information is available from CIEP.FR (in French)

 

Degree deposit required for all hats, any lost hats results in lost degreesMaster’s Degrees in Networks

If you are thinking about a Master’s degree there are dedicated websites for network programs. In these cases six discipline-specific networks, each made up of a few dozen institutions, invite students to apply to master programs using a web-based application procedure that is quick  and interactive. Students complete a single, common application with one deadline, noting their institutional preferences; that file is accessed by all of the network’s institutions as they make admission decisions in communal sessions. Each network’s site features an up-to-date presentation of the education and training system used in the discipline, as well as the degrees offered. Networks are active in the following disciplines:
Engineering
Law
Art
Economics and Management
Humanities
Mathematics

French Universities

France's universities are public institutions. They offer academic, technical, and professional degree programs in all disciplines, preparing students for careers in research and professional practice in every imaginable field. The universities offer dozens of different national diplomas. In the 2002–2003 academic year, French universities enrolled over 1.5 million students. International students made up about 10 percent of total enrollments, one of the highest percentages among OECD countries.


As an international student you should apply directly via the university or through the online CampusFrance site Research activities are an integral part of the universities. In France in 2006 there were 315 doctoral schools training  4,000 doctoral candidates in connection with more than 1,200 research laboratories (affiliated with both the universities and research organizations). Note that the French doctoral schools have always been very open to international students.


The university system also stays in step with today's world, offering technological specializations and professional degrees, including

    • University engineering diplomas, which account for 50% of all engineering degrees in France.
    • Professional qualification training via the Instituts Universitaires de Technologie (IUT), offering more than 25 specialties.
    • A complete professional curriculum, from the first year of the licence level up to the master's degree, through the Instituts Universitaires Professionnalisés (IUP), which offer 21 programs.
    •  Management training through the Instituts d’Administration des Entreprises (IAE).
    • Political Science and Economics Degree through the Instituts d’Études Politiques (IEP).
    • Journalism and Communications, with the Institut Français de Presse (IFP) and the École des hautes études en sciences de l'information et de la communication (CELSA) or the Centre de formation des Journalistes (CCFJ).

Note that Medicine, Pharmacology, and Dentistry are connected with the universities in partnership with university hospitals, and have their own organization and courses of study.

 

Specialised Schools

Grandes Écoles
Grandes Écoles offer diplomas at the baccalauréat + five level, i.e. master's degrees.  Graduates can follow up this degree with a specialization, including a specialized engineering degree or a Master of Business Administration (MBA).

Selection: The classic method of admission to one of the Grandes Écoles (competitive examination after two years of preparatory courses, followed by a three-year course of study) has changed to meet modern professional needs. A parallel admission process exists that is specially designed for foreign students. It is based on degrees and exams, with courses of study between two and five years, depending on the entry level granted by the institution.

Écoles Superieures

These offer higher-level training in specific areas such as Art, Design, Fashion, Tourism, Paramedical Services, Social Services, and so on. There are:

Art schools

There are three types of art schools: the Écoles nationales supérieures d’art (Grandes Écoles for art), which offer a national diploma after four or five years of study; the schools for applied art, which are supervise by the Ministry of National Education; and the schools of fine art by the Ministry of Culture, offering diplomas after three or five years of study. All have selective admission policies.

Architecture schools.

There are 20 architecture schools, supervise by the Ministry of Culture, offering the DPLG (Diplômé Par Le Gouvernement)

Useful links

CampusFrance is the key link with its course finder and up to date information.
Alphabetical list of Grandes Ecoles with web addresses (in French)
List of Grandes Ecoles by specialization (in French)
Lists of specialities that link to Grandes

Ecoles (in French)
 
 
This website is an initiative of the Contemporary Europe Research Centre (CERC) at the University of Melbourne and has received funding and support from the Australian Commonwealth Department of Education, Science and Training, The Delegation of the European Commission to Australia and New Zealand and The National Europe Centre at the Australian National University.
 
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