Université d'Artois

About Université d'Artois

Université d'Artois was legally created in November 1991 as a public scientific, cultural, and professional institution, with its headquarters in Arras. Teaching began in 1992. It remains an independent public university and is classified by the French Ministry of Higher Education as a multidisciplinary university without a medical faculty. The university has a multipolar structure across five cities. Arras hosts humanities-oriented faculties, including letters and arts, foreign languages, history and geography, and economics and social sciences. Béthune houses applied sciences, an institute of technology, and the engineering school. Law is based in Douai, science and another institute of technology are in Lens, and sport sciences are in Liévin. Students therefore need to evaluate the relevant city, not simply “Arras,” when considering housing and daily travel. The official 2026 brochure describes eight faculties, two university institutes of technology, one engineering school, and a continuing-education service. It reports approximately 12,300 students and more than 100 programs. This structure gives the institution a broad regional role while preserving distinct academic environments at each location. The university’s public status means that many students who fall within the standard French national-fee categories pay regulated registration charges, although eligibility and differentiated international fees require individual verification.

Admissions are program-, level-, residency-, and nationality-specific. For 2026–2027, applicants to the first year of a Licence or university bachelor of technology program generally use Parcoursup when their profile falls within that platform’s scope. First-year master’s applicants generally use Mon Master, while applications for later Licence years, professional Licence programs, second-year master’s study, and some doctoral routes may use the university’s eCandidat system. Selective programs can impose their own capacity limits, prerequisites, and assessment criteria. International procedures depend on nationality, country of residence, prior qualification, and intended level. Applicants living in a country covered by the Études en France procedure may need to apply through that system; other applicants may use Parcoursup, Mon Master, eCandidat, or the applicable preliminary-admission process. A foreign secondary-school credential does not by itself determine one universal route, so candidates should follow the university’s current profile table and the instructions for their chosen program. Admission and administrative registration are separate steps. For admitted students in the main 2026 cycle, the university scheduled online registration periods from 9–22 July and 25 August–30 September 2026, subject to applicant category and program. Those dates describe registration after admission, not application deadlines. Applicants should rely on the relevant platform and course page for application dates and must pay the required student-life contribution when applicable before registration can be completed.

The 2026–2027 offer covers undergraduate, master’s, engineering, and doctoral education, alongside university diplomas, short courses, and continuing education. The official catalogue groups provision into arts, letters, and languages; law, economics, and management; science, technology, and health; humanities and social sciences; and sport sciences. The catalogue lists national Licence degrees, professionally oriented Licences, university bachelor of technology programs, master’s degrees, engineering programs, and doctoral study. Representative undergraduate subjects include law, economics and management, history, geography and planning, modern literature, foreign languages, computer science, mathematics, chemistry, life sciences, physics and chemistry, engineering sciences, performing arts, and sport sciences. The offer also includes health-access routes, but Université d'Artois is officially classified as a multidisciplinary university without a health faculty; applicants should examine the precise progression arrangements rather than assume that it operates a medical school. Academic location is closely tied to discipline. Humanities and languages are concentrated in Arras, law in Douai, science in Lens, applied sciences and engineering in Béthune, and sport sciences in Liévin. Some programs are available through apprenticeship or continuing education, combining university study with workplace experience. Applicants should use the live catalogue for the exact 2026–2027 program, pathway, campus, prerequisites, and delivery mode because catalogue information can be revised and not every subject is available at every location.

Key Highlights

• Public, multidisciplinary French university with its institutional headquarters in Arras
• One university distributed across five study cities: Arras, Béthune, Douai, Lens, and Liévin
• Academic structure includes eight faculties, two institutes of technology, and an engineering school
• Official 2026 brochure reports approximately 12,300 students

Student Life & Environment

Student life is organized locally across the university’s five poles rather than around one residential campus. The university provides services for cultural activities, student associations, sport, health, disability support, psychological support, and practical matters. Its student-life teams have contacts at the different study locations, while the Maison de l’Étudiant in Arras serves as a central point for several services. Housing is not automatically supplied with admission. The university directs students toward CROUS residences and private or supported alternatives. Its housing page identifies CROUS residences in Arras, Béthune, Lens, and Liévin and explains that applicants normally request CROUS accommodation through the annual Dossier Social Étudiant process. Other options include the official Lokaviz private-listing service, intergenerational housing, Campus Vert accommodation, youth residences, and local housing providers. Availability, eligibility, and application schedules must be checked directly with each provider. Students can also access university restaurants or other CROUS food services, transport information, financial-aid guidance, sports activities, cultural programming, and support for student associations. Disability services offer individualized assistance involving teaching, examinations, libraries, sport, housing, and transport. International students receive arrival guidance, but they should plan for administrative setup, initial expenses, and accommodation before reaching France.

Location & Surroundings

The university is headquartered in Arras in the Hauts-de-France region, but the relevant location depends on the chosen course. Its five academic poles are Arras, Béthune, Douai, Lens, and Liévin, spread across the Pas-de-Calais and Nord departments. The 2026 institutional brochure associates Arras with several humanities and social-science faculties, Béthune with applied sciences and engineering, Douai with law, Lens with science and technology, and Liévin with sport sciences. This distributed model offers access to several medium-sized northern French cities but requires practical planning. Applicants should verify the exact teaching address before choosing accommodation; living in Arras may be inconvenient for a course delivered primarily in Béthune, Douai, Lens, or Liévin. Housing, dining, transport, and student-service arrangements also differ by pole. Arras is the administrative seat and the largest university pole. The other locations have their own academic identities and nearby student services. The institutional brochure situates the university within reach of larger European centers such as Paris, Brussels, and London, but students should consult current rail and local transit schedules rather than treating those cities as daily commuting destinations.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For 2026–2027, the university’s official fee decision lists standard national registration charges of €178 for DAEU, university bachelor of technology, Licence, and professional Licence study; €255 for a national master’s degree; €630 for an engineering degree; and €398 for a doctorate or habilitation. These figures apply to users covered by the specified national-fee provisions and do not include every possible course surcharge or the separate student-life and campus contribution. A fully distance-taught course can carry a €350 additional charge. Students in international-mobility fee categories should not assume that the standard rates apply. The fee decision lists differentiated amounts, but the university’s registration page states that, following a May 2026 decree, it will publish further information on 2026–2027 charges and exemptions for non-EU students. Candidates should obtain a personalized amount before budgeting. Housing, food, transport, insurance, and personal expenses are separate; no verified university-wide living-cost estimate was available. Career support is provided through Cap Avenir, with resource centers in Arras, Béthune, Douai, and Lens. Students can access a career platform with internship, apprenticeship, student-job, and employment listings, as well as assistance with CVs, applications, interviews, career planning, and entrepreneurship. Internship support includes personalized guidance and an online convention process. These services improve access to opportunities but do not constitute a job or salary guarantee.