The National Graduate School of Engineering of Caen

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Programme Details

Minimum mark 60%

Level Undergraduate

Language/s B1 French required

Agreement Scope Chemistry department exchange for MChem students in their fourth year

Exchange Places 1 full year place in 2026/27

The National Graduate School of Engineering of Caen Exchange Students Webpage

Events and information sessions

Overview

About:

The National Graduate School of Engineering of Caen (ENSICAEN) is a French grande école which trains chemical, electronical and computer science engineers. The school delivers 5 engineering degrees and has around 700 students.

Highlights:

The campus offers many facilities such as places to eat, a gym and even a shopping mall. The city of Caen is a pleasant city to live in and is another highlight of ENSICAEN. It is known for its history and culture and is appealing due to its proximity to the sea and Norman countryside, as well as being 2 hours away from Paris.

Location:

Caen, Normandy, France

Academic information

Courses / Modules:

Consult ENSICAEN's courses page for more information about specific courses.

You must take a full credit load while on exchange. ENSICAEN uses the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) to show credit values. 30 ECTS is the equivalent to 60 York credits, and 60 ECTS is the equivalent to 120 York credits.

MChem students in their fourth year take the majority of credits as a Research Project - you should discuss this with your departmental coordinator in York in the first instance. You may be able to take some taught courses at the host university to complete your credit load. Please be aware that host organisations may class students taking a research project as being on a traineeship, rather than a study placement. Please contact the host organisation with any queries and note that if you are completing a traineeship, you may not be considered a registered exchange student.

Teaching Periods:

Teaching periods are in two semesters, from September to December with exams in January, and then from January to April with exams in April

Language:

B1 French required

Student life

Accommodation:

ENSICAEN has an agreement with the Campus University called the "CROUS de CAEN". Accommodation is reserved for exchange students at the Résidence Côte de Nacre. Students are allocated a 9 square metre room. Check the useful information for your mobility webpage and the Crous Normandie website for more information.

Orientation / Welcome week:

The Student Office (BDE) organises major events, including the orientation of new students and orientation weekend.

Support Services:

The International Office provide advice and guidance for incoming exchange students, and you can download their information booklet for more details

Visas:

You may need a visa to study in France. If you are a UK National you must refer to the Gov.UK Travel Advice page and its Living in France guide to check on any visa requirements, and raise any queries directly with the relevant embassy/consulate. If you are not a UK national you should check equivalent advice for your home country. UK passport holders planning studies in France can also refer to France-Visas for more information .

Travel insurance:

If you complete the Travel Authorisation process and are approved by the University of York to participate in this programme, you will be covered by the University's Travel Insurance Policy. This is a complimentary policy to cover you for the duration of your University of York mobility experience. Please refer to the Insurance website for all travel insurance queries. You may be required to obtain health insurance valid during your exchange.

Health insurance:

Students travelling to Europe may be able to apply for a free UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) or in some circumstances a new UK-issued European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which gives the right to access state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in the EU. You are strongly recommended to obtain a GHIC / EHIC if eligible. To check your eligibility and find out how to apply if you are eligible, go to the NHS page on Applying for healthcare cover abroad (GHIC and EHIC).

Consult the useful information for your mobility webpage for more information about requirements for health insurance for study in France.

Student experiences

You can be the first to share your experience of studying at the National Graduate School of Engineering of Caen!

Have a look at some student stories on the Global Opportunities website!

Top Tips for Studying in France

Please note: these tips have been provided by students who have studied abroad in France - Global Opportunities recommends that you use these as a guide only and do your own research on what is best for you.

Money and Banking:

I used Monzo and transferred money into the account from my UK account via mobile banking. It doesn't charge for currency conversion and so was extremely useful and is great for budgeting.
I used Revolut international bank. I took money from my Santander account and placed it into my Revolut bank, where it is free and easy (with subscription) to convert GDP into Euros. Then I used that card as any normal debit card.
I would advise students to pay close attention to the exchange rates however if you are going to open an account in Euros as whilst you can take advantage of the fluctuation of the value of the currencies and end up with more euros than you otherwise would, you are taking somewhat of a risk if the pound then significantly increases in value the next day and you are left with significantly less money than if you had simply used a Monzo card.

Staying Connected:

My friends and I used Whatsapp to communicate all the time so we would not have huge charges to our phone contract.

Food:

I did my food shops in big supermarkets, but also went to the boulangerie for French bread a lot, there are also a lot of markets in France which is a fun option for fruit/veg.

Paperwork and bureaucracy:

Don't give up! It can feel very long and arduous but you'll get there eventually. Before I left I had some difficulties getting my mentor in France to fill in my learning Agreement, just make sure you keep your contacts at York in the loop if you're having problems, they were understanding and make special exceptions if you keep them informed about what's going on.
Make a list of what you have to do, who needs to sign it and when it has to be done and slowly work through it.

What I wished I'd known...:

Everything is a positive learning experience, even if something is really tricky at the time, it's temporary, your year abroad will be challenging but that's so normal, it will also be very rewarding!

Contact Global Opportunities

Global Opportunities - Drop in and see us at Derwent College D/A/023, Tuesdays-Thursdays 11-1pm

Book a virtual appointment with one of our advisors here, or email global-opportunities@york.ac.uk for further support.

Introduction ENSICAEN.pdf

Useful links

ENSICAEN Website

If you find any broken links, please email us at global-opportunities@york.ac.uk

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