Estimated reading time: 13 minutes

36 universities from France are listed in the QS World University Rankings® 2021, 10 of which are among the top 300 worldwide.

The technique used to determine the rankings evaluates each university’s reputation among academics and employers, the influence of its research, and other factors.

Do you want to further your studies in the home of camembert, champagne, and croissants? Here is a closer look at the top 10 universities in the nation.

 École Normale Supérieure de Lyon

École Normale Supérieure de Lyon continues to be fifth among the best universities in France despite a modest drop in position this year to 161st in the world.

The École Normale Supérieure de Lyon, another of the major écoles, is a prestigious public university that educates scientists and humanities scholars

The École normale supérieure de Lyon is a French grande école that is situated in the city of Lyon. It is often referred to as ENS de Lyon, ENSL, or Normale Sup’ Lyon. One of France’s four famous écoles normales supérieures, it is highly regarded. The institution has campuses in Lyon, close to the meeting point of the Rhône and Saône rivers, and is divided into two academic divisions, Arts and Sciences.

In the wake of intensely competitive tests, ENSL students typically enjoy a privileged civil servant status, provided they follow professions in public service.

The school is still independent even though it has close ties to the University of Lyon and other organisations that conduct research, such the CNRS.

THEY OFFER

Monod Campus: Natural and Experimental Sciences Departments

Jacques Monod Campus – Sciences

• Biology
• Chemistry
• Computer Science
• Earth Science
• Mathematics
• Physics

Descartes Campus: Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences Departments

René Descartes Campus – Humanities

• Arts: Musicology, Cinema and Theater studies, Classics and modern French Literature
• Economics
• Education and digital humanities
• Foreign Languages, Literatures and Civilizations: Arabic, Chinese, English, German, Italian, Spanish and Russian
• Human Sciences: Philosophy, Cognitive science and Anthropology
• Social Sciences: Sociology, History, Geography, Political science and International studies

École Centrale Paris

ECP was a French major école for engineering and science. It was also known as École Centrale or Centrale. Additionally, it was referred to by its full name, École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures. A constituent institution of the University of Paris-Saclay, CentraleSupélec was created in 2015 as a result of the merger of École Centrale Paris and Supélec. [2]

It was one of the most renowned and exclusive grandes écoles when it was founded in 1829. It served as the cradle for top engineers and executives who continue to make up a significant portion of the industry leadership in France. This region has a long history of entrepreneurship that dates back to the Industrial Revolution. The establishment of several engineering institutes around the world, including the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland, the Faculté polytechnique de Mons in Belgium, as well as other member schools of the Ecole Centrales Group alliance in France, Morocco, China, and India, was inspired by its model of education for training generalist engineers beginning in the 19th century.

After École Centrale Paris and the Supélec graduate engineering school merged in 2015, CentraleSupélec was created and is currently rated 138th in the world as of 2021. It is a founding member of the Université Paris-Saclay, a grouping of French universities with a focus on research.

ECP was a science and engineering school with a focus on French. It was sometimes referred to as Centrale or École Centrale. It was sometimes called by its complete name, École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures. In 2015, École Centrale Paris and Supélec merged to form CentraleSupélec, a constituent institution of the University of Paris-Saclay.

When it was established in 1829, it was one of the most prestigious and elite grandes écoles. Leading engineers and executives who now make up a sizeable section of the French industry leadership were nurtured there. Since the Industrial Revolution, there has been a lengthy history of entrepreneurship in this area. The École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland, the Faculté polytechnique de Mons in Belgium, as well as other member schools of the Ecole Centrales Group alliance in France, Morocco, China, and India were all founded as a result of its educational model for educating generalist engineers beginning in the 19th century.

Sorbonne

The Sorbonne Institution is a public research university in Paris, France (French: Sorbonne Université; la Sorbonne: “the Sorbonne”). The history of the organisation dates back to 1257, when Robert de Sorbon founded Sorbonne College, one of the first universities in Europe.

One of the most prestigious universities in Europe and the entire world is Sorbonne University. It enjoys a renowned status in both academia and business; as of 2021, 33 Nobel Prizes, six Fields Medals, and one Turing Award have been received by former students and faculty members.

The Sorbonne University was placed 35th globally in the Academic Ranking of World Universities for 2021, making it the fourth-best university in continental Europe and the third-best in mathematics and oceanography. The Sorbonne was placed 60th globally in the 2023 edition of the QS World University Rankings, making it eighth in continental Europe, fourteenth in the natural sciences and mathematics, and seventh in classics and ancient history.

One of the most sought-after universities among students and scholars from France, Europe, and other French-speaking nations is Sorbonne University, which is renowned for its selectivity. The first woman to hold the position of professor at the Sorbonne was Marie Curie, who arrived from Poland in 1891 and joined the faculty of sciences. The modern-day Faculty of Science and Engineering at Sorbonne University is credited to Marie and Pierre Curie as its founders.

Sorbonne University, a brand-new organization created by the union of Paris-Sorbonne University and Pierre and Marie Curie University, is ranked 83rd globally in 2021 and earns its highest score in the academic reputation index, ranking 42nd globally.

Paris Sciences et Lettres Research University (PSL)

PSL University, also known as PSL, is a public research university with its headquarters in Paris, France. It was founded in 2010, and in 2019 it was fully established as a university. 
A collegiate institution, it has 11 constituent schools, the oldest of which was established in 1530. With its main locations in the Latin Quarter, the Montagne Sainte-Geneviève campus, the Jourdan campus, Porte Dauphine in northern Paris, and Carré Richelieu, PSL is situated in the heart of Paris.

PSL confers Bachelor’s, Master’s, and PhD degrees on graduates of its member institutions. The university’s 17,000 students have access to a wide range of fields in science, engineering, humanities, social sciences, visual art, and performing arts, and it provides an education centred on research and interdisciplinary instruction.

PSL University received the 26th, 38th, and 40th rankings in the 2022 QS World University Rankings, Academic Ranking of World Universities, and Times Higher Education World University Rankings, respectively

28 Nobel laureates, 11 Fields Medalists, 3 Abel laureates, 49 CNRS Gold Medalists, 50 César winners, and 79 Molière winners are among the graduates and personnel of PSL.

Paris Sciences et Lettres Research University (PSL), a collegiate university founded in 2010 and composed of nine constituent colleges, including the extremely prestigious École normale supérieure, continues to be ranked 52nd in the world and in first place among the top universities in France (ENS Paris).

PSL places 20th in the globe with its highest score in the employer reputation indicator. The university develops strategic alliances with other prominent universities throughout the world as well as close ties with local employers.

Ecole Polytechnique

A major école university called École polytechnique is situated in Palaiseau, France. It is sometimes referred to as Polytechnique or l’X [liks]. It focuses in science and engineering and is a founding member of the Polytechnic Institute of Paris.

Gaspard Monge, a mathematician, founded the school in 1794 during the French Revolution[4], and under Napoleon I, it was militarised in 1804. The French Ministry of Armed Forces continues to be in charge of it. The institution relocated to Palaiseau, in the Paris-Saclay technology cluster, in 1976 from its original location in the Latin Quarter in the heart of Paris.

The historic engineering graduate programme at Polytechnique has an extremely competitive admissions process that includes written and oral examinations after preparatory classes or a bachelor’s degree.

French engineering students are paid officer cadets and receive basic military training.

Additionally, the institution has been conferring doctorates since 1985, master’s degrees since 2005, and bachelor’s degrees since 2017. [8] The majority of Polytechnique graduates go on to work as senior business executives, senior government officials, military commanders, or researchers.

Three Nobel laureates, a Fields Medalist, three French presidents, as well as several CEOs of domestic and foreign corporations are among its graduates. They include economists Maurice Allais and Jean Tirole, as well as mathematicians Cauchy, Coriolis, Henri Poincaré, Laurent Schwartz, and Benoît Mandelbrot. They also include physicists Becquerel, Carnot, Ampère, and Fresnel. All of the French Marshals Joffre, Foch, Fayolle, and Maunoury are Polytechnique alums.

Despite being highly regarded in French higher education due to its academic excellence and selectivity, Polytechnique has come under fire for being technocratic and elitist. In the minds of the general public, the school is symbolised by items like the bicorne and the student uniform.

FUDAN UNIVERSITY

In Shanghai, China, there is a national public research institution called FUNDAL UNIVERSITY. As designated by the Chinese Ministry of Education, Fudan is a member of the C9 League, Project 985, Project 211, and the Double First Class University. Additionally, it belongs to Universitas 21, the McDonnell International Scholars Academy at Washington University, the Association of Pacific Rim Universities, the BRICS Universities League, the Association of East Asian Research Universities, the Council on Business & Society, and the League of BRICS Universities.

Five colleges make up the collegiate university Fudan: Zhide, Tengfei, Keqing, Renzhong, and Xide. It now consists of four campuses in Shanghai, namely Handan, Fenglin, Zhangjiang, and Jiangwan, all of which are under the control of the same central administration. There are 17 hospitals connected to Fudan.

According to the QS Rankings, Fudan University is now placed third in China, seventh in Asia, and 31st worldwide.

Chen Yinke, Chen Wangdao, Chu Coching, Yan Fu, Yu Youren, and “China’s Kissinger” Wang Huning are some of Fudan’s noteworthy former student

In addition to having 17 full-time schools, 69 departments, 73 bachelor’s degree programmes, 22 disciplines and 134 sub-disciplines that are qualified to award PhDs, 201 master’s degree programmes, 6 professional degree programmes, 7 important social science research centres of the Ministry of Education P.R.C., 9 national basic science research and training institutes, and 25 post-doctoral research stations, Fudan University also has a total of 134 PhD-granting sub-disciplines. It ranks third nationally and contains 40 national priority subjects, according to the Ministry of Education. It now has 5 national important laboratories, 112 cross-disciplinary research institutes, and 77 research institutes. View a list of Fudan’s faculties and divisions.

Over 45,000 people are enrolled at Fudan University, including full-time, continuing, and online students. Additionally, the university has about 7,000 international students, which places it sixth nationwide.

Universite de Strasbourg.

The University of Strasbourg (Université de Strasbourg, Unistra) is a public research university with more than 52,000 students[2] and 3,300 researchers. It is situated in Strasbourg, Alsace, France. [4]

The ancestry of the French university can be traced back to the older Universität Straßburg in German, which was established in 1538 and split into three distinct institutions in the 1970s: Louis Pasteur University, Marc Bloch University, and Robert Schuman University. These three institutions combined on January 1 2009 to become the new, united University of Strasbourg. The university is regarded among the top in the League of European Research Universities, boasting as many as 19 Nobel laureates and two Fields Medal winners.

The university was born out of a Lutheran humanist German Gymnasium that Johannes Sturm established in the Strassburg Free Imperial City in 1538. In 1621, it underwent a transformation into a university (German: Universität Straßburg), and in 1631, it was promoted to the status of a royal university. Johann Scheffler, a medical student who subsequently converted to Catholicism and became the mystic and poet Angelus Silesius, was one of the university’s first enrollees. [5]

Even after King Louis XIV annexed the city in 1681, the Lutheran German university continued to exist (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe was a notable student there in 1770/71), but after the French Revolution, it mostly became a French-speaking institution.

In 1872, the institution was reestablished as the German Kaiser-Wilhelm-Universität after the Franco-Prussian War and Germany’s annexation of Alsace-Lorraine sparked a flight of Francophone professors to the west. The university underwent significant growth and a large number of new structures were constructed during the German Empire in order to display German culture in Alsace in opposition to French culture. As a result of the return of Alsace-Lorraine to France in 1918, there was a reverse migration of Germanophone educators.

Aix-Marseille University

A public research institution called Aix-Marseille University (AMU; French: Aix-Marseille Université; officially incorporated as Université d’Aix-Marseille)[4] is situated in the southern French province of Provence. One of the first universities in France was established when Louis II of Anjou, Count of Provence, petitioned the Pisan Antipope Alexander V to construct the University of Provence[5]. The University of Provence, the University of the Mediterranean, and Paul Cézanne University were reunited to form the university in its current configuration. [6] [7][8] The largest university in the French-speaking world was established when the reunification went into effect on January 1st, 2012, and has about 80,000 students. [9] With a budget of €750 million, AMU has the biggest academic budget in the Francophone world. [10] It frequently receives top 200 university rankings worldwide[11]. It is listed among the top four colleges in France by CWTS and USNWR,[12,13], and fifth in the nation by ARWU. [16]

The university is structured around five main campuses located in Marseille and Aix-en-Provence.

[17] AMU also owns and manages properties in Arles, Aubagne, Avignon, Digne-les-Bains, Gap, La Ciotat, Lambesc, and Salon-de-Provence in addition to its main campuses. The university’s main campus is located in Marseille’s 7th district. [18]

In the disciplines of law, politics, commerce, science, academia, and the arts, AMU has produced a number of prominent alumni. Its alumni and teachers currently include four Nobel Prize laureates, a Pulitzer Prize winner twice over, four César Award winners, several chiefs of state or governments, parliamentary speakers, cabinet ministers, ambassadors, and members of the constituent academies of the Institut de France.

AMU has hundreds of research and educational collaborations, including close cooperation with the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CNRAE) and the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) (CEA).

[28] AMU is a part of many academic associations, such as the Mediterranean Universities Union and the European University Association (EUA)29. [30]