Welcome to Centre International de Valbonne (CIV)
Le lycée - the French school
Le Centre International de Valbonne is located on the French Riviera. It is a very beautiful part of France with a magnificent coast line, charming old villages and delicious local products. The CIV is a very academic school and has a very good reputation. It offers the classic French high school pathways as well as international options for students from Spanish, Italian and German backgrounds.
Nested in the hills of the "arrière pays", the CIV is close to Sophia Antipolis, a technology park originally created to become a French "silicon valley". It attracts many engineers from all over the world. The CIV caters for a wide range of students from different cultural backgrounds, hence the international sections.
Apart from the international sections, the lycée runs like a normal French high school and provides our students with a typical French secondary school experience.
How the exchange runs
It is an annual exchange running during Year 10. It is a reciprocal family-based and school-based exchange, i.e. participation involves both of: (a) hosting the matched French partner for six weeks here in Melbourne, and (b) travelling with the school group six months later to stay with that partner in France. A McKinnon SC teacher accompanies and supervises our students for the first three weeks in France.
We organise an information session at the end of Year 9 for students and parents interested in taking part in the exchange the following year.
It is really important to attend this session as we give a thorough description of the exchange and we can answer your questions.
See the presentation for year 9 below from 2019. We are currently working with our partner school here in Melbourne (Northecote High School) to re-establish the exchange, starting in 2025.
If you want more information, you can contact the Languages coordinator by email.
