Université de Strasbourg

About Université de Strasbourg

The present Université de Strasbourg was formed in 2009 when Strasbourg’s three post-1968 universities reunited. Its institutional history is much older and discontinuous: an educational institution founded in 1538 became an academy in 1566 and received university status in 1621. The university was suppressed during the French Revolution, later reconstructed, divided into three institutions in 1968 and reunited four decades later. This history makes a single unqualified founding year potentially misleading. Today it is a public établissement public à caractère scientifique, culturel et professionnel, or EPSCP, led by an elected president and governed through university-level bodies. Its faculties, schools and institutes are internal components of this independent institution. For 2024–2025, the university reported 56,000 students, 13,000 international students, 35 faculties, schools and institutes, 77 laboratories and 23 libraries. These figures indicate a large and decentralized environment in which students primarily interact with their particular academic component while also using university-wide services. The institution combines broad teaching with a substantial research structure and European engagement. Prospective students should expect meaningful variation among programs in admissions, calendars, teaching language, professional orientation and physical location. The central university identity therefore matters, but program-level investigation is essential when comparing options.

Admission is not handled through one universal application. The university’s online guidance routes candidates according to nationality, residence, prior qualification and intended year of entry. Applicants to the first year of a licence commonly use Parcoursup or, for certain non-European applicants, the Demande d’admission préalable and Études en France procedures. Applications to later licence years and some other programs may use eCandidat. Master applicants use the applicable national or international route; the university states that holding a licence does not create automatic admission to the first master year. For international master applicants residing in a country covered by Études en France, application is made through that system. Candidates outside that procedure, including applicants from EU countries, generally follow the same Mon Master route as French applicants, with the relevant academic committee assessing whether prior study matches the proposed master. Doctoral admission follows separate doctoral-school and research-supervision procedures and should not be inferred from undergraduate instructions. Deadlines differ by platform and program, so no single institutional deadline should be used. After receiving an offer, students complete a separate administrative registration process. The university’s 2026–2027 registration portal confirms that registration is conducted online and requires the relevant campus-life contribution step before tuition payment. Applicants should consult the selected program page and application platform for the controlling calendar and document list.

The official 2026–2027 catalogue confirms study at licence, master and doctoral levels. It also lists licence professionnelle programs, engineering diplomas, health qualifications, university diplomas, Sciences Po Strasbourg and grande école credentials. Subject coverage extends across arts and languages, humanities and social sciences, law, economics, management and political studies, science and technology, health, education and engineering. Academic organization is distributed across faculties, schools and institutes. Examples in the catalogue include the faculties of chemistry, social sciences, historical sciences, sport sciences and theology; Sciences Po Strasbourg; several university institutes of technology; and engineering schools in biotechnology, chemistry and physics. Students should use the catalogue’s filters and then read the individual program page, because entry level, campus, teaching language, work placement, apprenticeship availability and assessment rules are program-specific. Most applicants should not assume that a credential title translates mechanically into an Anglo-American degree. The verified degree-level mapping here is limited to the university’s Licence, Master and Doctorat offerings. Engineering, medical, university and grande école diplomas follow their own French regulatory or institutional structures. French is the database-recorded general language of instruction, but the catalogue shows that language can vary by program and may include English or mixed-language teaching. International applicants should verify the exact language requirements and evidence accepted by the selected course rather than relying on a university-wide test threshold.

Key Highlights

• Public EPSCP governed as an independent university
• 56,000 students reported for 2024–2025, including 13,000 international students
• 35 faculties, schools and institutes and 77 laboratories reported for 2024–2025
• Present university created through the 2009 reunification of three Strasbourg universities

Student Life & Environment

Student life is spread across 10 campuses in six Alsatian cities, so the experience depends substantially on the academic component and teaching site. The university reports 23 libraries and identifies the Studium on the central Esplanade campus as both a library and a student-services hub. During the 2026 arrival period, the Studium hosts a welcome desk addressing practical matters such as housing, transport, health, administration and digital services. The university’s campus portal lists cultural programming, sport, student associations, food services, mobility support and services for health, disability, financial hardship and students in exile. Its current page identifies 248 student associations and 96 sporting, artistic and outdoor activities, although the activity count is sourced to 2023–2024. Cultural workshops are available in areas such as theatre, dance and music; eligible second- and third-year licence students may earn three ECTS through designated free-choice cultural units. Housing is not presented as guaranteed university accommodation. The university directs students toward CROUS furnished rooms and apartments, social housing and external search services. CROUS housing gives priority to scholarship recipients. International exchange students follow a separate residence-request process through their mobility application, so degree-seeking international students should not assume that this arrangement applies to them.

Location & Surroundings

Strasbourg lies in eastern France near the German border, giving the university a distinctly cross-border setting. The city hosts the European Parliament and the Council of Europe, and the university describes these institutions as influences on its teaching and research. It also participates in Eucor – The European Campus, a grouping of universities in the Upper Rhine region. The main Esplanade campus is integrated into the city rather than isolated on a peripheral residential estate. The Studium, for example, is served by tram lines C, E and F at Observatoire and by nearby bus services. Other teaching and research sites include the historic city, the hospital area, Illkirch and Cronenbourg, while further university campuses operate elsewhere in Alsace. Applicants should check the precise campus attached to their program before choosing housing. A Strasbourg address in the database does not mean every course is taught in the city center, and daily travel patterns can differ considerably among components. The multi-site structure can provide access to urban, medical, scientific and regional facilities, but it also makes location-specific planning important.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For 2026–2027, the university lists national registration charges of €178 for a standard licence-cycle registration, €255 for a standard master-cycle registration and €398 for a doctorate or habilitation. Engineering registration is listed separately at €630. These figures are registration rights rather than a complete attendance budget; students must also account for the CVEC campus contribution, housing, food, transport, insurance and personal expenses. Some university diplomas and specialized or continuing-education programs add their own charges. Nationality and immigration category can materially affect fees. The published 2026–2027 differentiated rates are €2,902 at licence level and €3,950 at master level for students to whom those rates apply. However, the university also publishes exemption rules, including provisions for certain new entrants, scholarship holders, exchange students and students covered by reciprocal cooperation agreements. Because implementation was being updated following a May 2026 decree, non-EU applicants should obtain a personalized determination rather than budget from the headline differentiated rate alone. Housing costs are not supplied as a single university figure. CROUS offers lower-rent furnished accommodation, prioritizing scholarship students, while other students use social or private-market options. For career preparation, Espace Avenir provides orientation advice and support with internship and job-search strategy. Program-specific placement structures and outcomes vary, and the reviewed sources do not support a university-wide salary or employment-rate claim.