There are several options to fund your studies, with grants and scholarships for Master's degrees or PhD.
Funding your Master's degree: Scholarships of Excellence
For all students enrolling in a Master's degree
The ENS de Lyon and its partners offer scholarships for excellent international students to enrol in its Masters programs in Exact Sciences, Arts, Human and Social Sciences (except FEADép Master's programs):
- Ampère Scholarships of Excellence
- Master's programs concerned: all Master’s programs (except FEADép Master's programs)
- Amount: 1,000€ per month for one academic year (renewable under conditions)
- GRADUATE + Scholarship
- ENS de Lyon offers a scholarship for the best international students selected for a Master’s degree in the Graduate initiatives CORE, DynLifeSys, MathInfi, PACE and Master’s programmes, either in M1 or M2
- Amount: 1,000€ per month for 10 months
- Scholarships funded within the framework of the French government’s SFRI programme.
Application process and deadlines
Funding your PhD
Various grants and contracts can help studentsfund their PhD.
- Doctoral contracts
A doctoral contrat is a three-year employment contract under which an institution selects and hires a student to undertake doctoral studies. There are no conditions in terms of age or nationality.
More information on the doctoral school's websites
- Co-funding for doctoral studies
International doctoral students wishing to enrol in a doctoral programme at the ENS de Lyon can apply for the « doctoral co-funding programme » of ENS de Lyon. This programme can provide a co-funding of up to 50 percent of the amount required for enrolment. This scholarship granted by the ENS de Lyon for the duration of the doctoral program (3 years maximum). In the case of internationally co-directed doctoral theses (cotutelles internationales), the scholarship will only be paid during the months of presence at the ENS de Lyon.
Call of proposal - CIFRE (Industrial Convention for training through Research)
This convention brings together a company, a student, and a research laboratory. The PhD student is recruited and employed by the company with no conditions regarding nationality or area of research. See the National Association of Technological Research (ANRT).
- Foundation and association grants
These are common in medical research. Candidates must apply for funding themselves. The funding usually requires the signature of an employment contract between the institution (or research institution) and the doctoral student.
- Research grants
This type of funding, awarded to a team to support a research project, involves an employment contract between the institution (or research institute) and the PhD student. To find out more, visit the doctoral schools' and research laboratories' websites.
Other grants
For all students enrolling in a Master's degree or in a PhD
- The Eiffel Excellence Scholarship Program helps French higher education establishments attract top foreign students into their Master’s and PhD courses. For other grants offered by the Ministry, students should contact the French embassy's cultural department in their country.
More information on Campus France
- Foreign students can browse for more scholarships using Campus France’s Grant search engine.
Normalien Status
If you are recruited through the competitive entrance exam, you will benefit from the specific "Normalien" status:
- For citizens of the European Union or the European Economic Area: 1,500€/month salary for 4 years
- For students from other countries- the best candidate in each "série de concours": 1,000€/month grant for 3 years
Keywords