- Homepage
- >Why choose Angers?
Angers
Angers is a medium-sized city with about 230,000 inhabitants. It is located in the Loire Valley in Western France, about 1.5 hour by train from Paris and the Atlantic coast.
It regularly tops the lists of best places to live in France and has been voted greenest french town for several years now, with its numerous parks and gardens and specialised plant production companies.
It is renowned for its many historical sites, its fine cuisine and wines and its relaxed way of life. It offers a rich cultural scene with film, drama and music festivals. Angers is also one of the most sports-focused towns in France and home to the SCO premier league football team.
It's a young city - nearly 50% of the population is under 30 and it has about 40,000 students.
Angers is also particularly open to the world: it was chosen by China to host a Confucius Institute and it has the largest English-language library in western France. It has been building close social and business relationships with foreign towns since the mid-sixties. Today Angers has 8 sister cities around the world.
The University of Angers
The University of Angers is the fifth oldest university in France. It was founded in 1364 by King Charles V and abolished during the French Revolution. However Angers remained an important focus of intellectual and academic activity. The modern university was established in the 1970s. In 2021, the University of Angers celebrated the 50th anniversary of its refoundation.
The University of Angers has over 25,000 students and nearly 2,000 staff. It is spread over 3 campuses in Angers and it also has campuses in other nearby towns. We deliver a wide range of degrees across many areas including science, languages, humanities, technology, engineering, law, economics, business, tourism, health sciences...
A welcoming community
The University of Angers provides a dynamic and supportive environment with a quality infrastructure.
Students and staff have access to a medical centre, a career centre, 3 dining halls, extensive sports facilities, a cultural centre providing a large number of activities and 2 university libraries which are among the ones with the most extensive opening hours in France, including on Sundays.
We also have a special one-stop helpdesk that provides students with practical information and advice on various aspects of student life in Angers, e.g. accommodation, transport, healthcare, insurance, financial aid, sports, cultural activities...
All these services ensure the well-being and academic success of our students. UA has the highest graduation rate in France for 3-year bachelor's degree students.
Research excellence
Research at the University of Angers is innovative and characterised by cross-disciplinary cooperation and close links with education and society.
Our university has a network of 26 research units covering a variety of fields. Our major areas of research are: Plant and Environmental Sciences, Health Sciences, Mathematic & Computer Sciences, Materials Sciences, Literature, Languages, Humanities & Social Sciences. We host approximately 500 PhD students, 40% of whom are from abroad.
UA owns 65 active patent families and 6 start-up companies were created as a direct result of lab activities.
International focus
UA is particularly active on the international level. We have over 10% of international students representing approximately 130 nationalities. We also have about 450 international partners across the world and more than 20 joint and dual degrees.
We hold the "Bienvenue en France" certification, which means we demonstrate high standards in support services for international students and researchers. This includes a student mentoring programme called the "Buddy System", to improve the integration of international students arriving at UA. We also offer several English-taught programmes in various fields and we have a French language centre for international students and researchers who want to learn French or improve their language skills.
In 2019, the University of Angers entered the Academic Ranking of World Universities, also known as the Shanghai ranking.
Summer Schools in Angers
For the past 13 years, the University of Angers has given international students the opportunity to enrich their academic experience in a stimulating and relaxed environment while discovering French culture and the Anjou region.
The one or two-week programmes combine lectures, workshops, site visits, leisure activities with the possibility of developing your network… and creating great memories.
Courses are taught in English by renowned international researchers and are open to participants from all over the world.
In 2019, 150 students from around 30 different countries took part in our summer schools.
6 reasons to choose our programs
- Gain hands-on experience
- Meet international researchers and like-minded students
- Benefit from affordable fees
- Take part in an attractive social programme
- Discover France and the city of Angers
- Get a certificate of attendance with 3 or 5 ECTS credits