About
Sorbonne Nouvelle University Paris 3 – also known more commonly as the Sorbonne Nouvelle – is a public university in central Paris. As one of the historic inheritors of the University of Paris dating back to the 12th century, it has existed in its current form since the restructuring and overhauling of the university network in 1970.
Today, Sorbonne Nouvelle offers courses in a wide range of Arts and Humanities courses across three Parisian campuses and has a student population of approximately 15,000. A large proportion of the student population at Sorbonne Nouvelle are international. In the year 2022-23, 26% of students came from 146 countries around the world.
Find regularly updated information on QS world rankings.
Location
The majority of classes take place on Campus ‘Nation’, located in the 12th arrondissement (district). Campus Nation map.
Paris is a beautiful and historic city, known by many as the European cultural capital. Many of Europe’s most iconic features of the world can be found in the galleries, museums and streets of Paris. Sorbonne Nouvelle enables students to live centrally to a city that has an otherwise notoriously competitive housing market.
Level of competitiveness
This exchange is only open to students within the Department of English from the School of English and Drama.
Department of English bilateral agreement: Competitive **
The level of competitiveness (Less competitive * / Competitive ** / Very competitive ***) refers to one's chances of being allocated an exchange space at this partner. This is an approximation determined by the number of applications received for this destination during the last academic year versus the total number of exchange spaces available to Queen Mary students.
Language of Instruction
The majority of courses are taught in French, but it is possible to take a full course load taught and examined in English (bearing in mind the selection of available courses may be a bit more restricted). Students have different opportunities to learn French to help assist with daily life in France, with courses available at all levels.
Academic Calendar
Typically, the academic year runs from early September, starting with Orientation/Welcome activities for Autumn/full-year exchange students. These Orientation/Welcome activities are critical to your successful integration and enrolment at the university and include important general information for international and exchange students. Bear in mind that your successful enrolment at the university is integral to being able to apply for your French social security number (required for many things in France including accessing healthcare and French government benefits, such as for housing; see next tab).
Teaching formally beginning mid-September. Autumn semester teaching and exams conclude by mid-December. For full-year exchange students, Welcome/Orientation activities take place early January, teaching begins mid-January, and the end of classes including exam period runs between mid-April and mid-May.
The current academic calendar can be found on the student life webpage.
Courses
Course information can be found on this webpage.
Students who wish to take courses taught in French must provide proof of a minimum level of B2 in French, evidence of which will need to be added to the Sorbonne Nouvelle's application form that nominated students complete during the spring.
Important note about TDs: Modules at Queen Mary's partner universities in France tend to have fewer credits, where students often follow more modules with fewer credits each when compared to a standard Queen Mary module selection. Some modules on offer (especially but not limited to ones taught in French) may include the option to follow these with (avec) TDs or without ("sans") TDs. TDs stand "travaux dirigés," which are smaller group tutorials which tend to involve more work, assessments and class hours on top of the lecture itself. Modules followed with TDs award more ECTS (credits), and modules followed without TDs award fewer ECTS.
While following a lower number of modules with TDs might seem like a quick way to reach 30 ECTS for the semester, be wary that the workload for modules with TDs are more academically challenging, with more class hours, outside of class work and assessments on top of the standard lectures themselves. We therefore would strongly advise against you taking more than one module per semester "avec TD" (with the TD/tutorial) where this is available to you. Academically speaking, it would be advisable to select more classes without TDs (ECTS credit value of each class will be lower) rather than fewer classes with TDs, as the workload will be less rigorous and more feasible this way.
Credits
Students must enrol on a full courseload: 30 ECTS per semester / 60 ECTS for the full academic year (equivalent to 60 Queen Mary credits per semester / 120 Queen mary credits for the full academic year).
Find out more about credit transfer and grade conversion.
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Accommodation
Sorbonne Nouvelle provides excellent guidance regarding university housing and private renting.
Student accommodation: No on-campus accommodation is available for exchange students at Sorbonne Nouvelle, but accommodation in French student residence halls in Paris is available yet not guaranteed. Accommodation in public French student residence halls (all subsidised and managed by each region's student welfare office known as the Centre régional des œuvres universitaires, abbreviated as CROUS) is price-controlled in Paris yet varies depending on if any facilities are shared or private/en-suite. Varying in price between €304 and €535 a month, it includes a single bed, kitchenette, shower, toilet, desk and all utilities (water, electricity and internet). The accommodation also comes with a laundry room, storage room, study room and common room, and has secure access with a welcome desk. The applications for student housing are between April and May for students arriving for semester 1/autumn (and again during October and November for second semester, in case students do not obtain accommodation during first semester and hope to re-apply).
It should be noted that both navigating the French housing market and finding accommodation can be quite difficult in Paris (not only privately but also in student residence halls), as many students (French and international) are trying to reserve and secure housing across the city via many routes. Students without any French language skills may find this challenging especially if they are searching for accommodation late at the start of the academic year. Students are advised to begin researching options and consulting advice from former participants as soon as possible, once they are nominated to the host institution.
Students in France who meet certain conditions are entitled to modest, monthly financial housing assistance payments from the French government to help with the cost of rent, whether they rent student accommodation or privately, alone or in a flat/houseshare (referred to as colocation); procedures to apply will slightly differ depending on the situation. These housing benefits are commonly referred to as "la CAF" or "the CAF" in both French and English (Caisse des Allocations Familiales), as this is the service of the government delivering the financial support. The type and amount of the funding you may be eligible for will depend on your living and renting situation, yet most students are eligible to receive Custom Housing Assistance (aide personnalisée au logement, abbreviated as "APL") in the amount of €180-€200 per month. You must open a French bank account in order to be eligible to receive payments. You must also eventually have a French social security number (enrolment and registration at the university facilitates this), yet you may be able to begin the application process without this. Learn more here about eligibility and further conditions for applying; guidance for international students applying for the first time can also be found here.
Private accommodation: Students can rent privately either through an estate agent, homestay or private student halls. However, the cost will be higher, and students will likely be asked to provide details of a caution (or guarantor) required for signing any rental contract. Studapart is a useful resource to search for accommodation and, as an organisation, can also serve as a caution (learn more here). Due to the size and popularity of Paris as a global destination, finding secure and affordable private accommodation is competitive and challenging year round, especially at the start of the academic year. Queen Mary students looking for private accommodation in the Paris metropolitan area are advised to follow the above guidance and any guidance from the host institution as soon as possible to begin their accommodation search safely. Guidance about searching for private accommodation safely is also available on the QMplus resource page, “Pre-departure” tab from early spring.
Cost of living
Please consult the estimated minimum and maximum cost of living figures for this destination country available in our “Estimated Costs of Living” document available on our Finance page.
Regularly updated information on the cost of living in Paris can be found on this webpage.
Support services
The International Affairs Department hosts a number of resources for international students, including housing, immigration and integration support. They host a welcome desk, staffed by current international students, and a buddy system to help students integrate into university and Parisian life.
Students with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) can learn about the available support at Sorbonne Nouvelle here. With the relevant teams, a student support and inclusion plan can be created. Support for visual and hearing impairments is also available. The new campus is also adapted to students with physical impairments, yet accessible accommodation within the student residence halls is not on campus and cannot be guaranteed (yet SEND students are encouraged to apply and receive guidance on this from the International Office).
Support for non-emergency healthcare, positive mental health and well-being is available from the on-campus Office for Preventative Medicine. Students can make an appointment here.
As a current Queen Mary student you will be able to find a summary sheet for this partner university on our QMplus page, with an overview of the local student support services available on the following topics: specific learning differences, physical impairments, sensory impairments, long term medical conditions, autism spectrum conditions, mental health and wellbeing difficulties, special accommodation provision, non-emergency health care, emergency services, harassment and trauma and suicide prevention
Student life
Sorbonne Nouvelle has a great range of sports and cultural activities, alongside the endless cultural offerings available in the Parisian metropolitan area.
Free cultural workshops are available for students (one per semester) on everything from radio production to cultural journalism.
