ENSAD Paris

Licence: first year (concours)

Admission to the first year is by competitive entrance examination in three phases. Candidates holding or preparing the French baccalauréat, or an equivalent or higher French or foreign diploma, register on Parcoursup and place ENSAD among their confirmed choices. For the 2026 session Parcoursup was open from 19 January to 12 March 2026, with choices confirmed by 1 April 2026. A candidate without a Parcoursup route may request a diploma exemption from the director by e-mail to [email protected], before 10 February 2026 for that session. Final admission depends on obtaining the baccalauréat or an equivalent diploma, apart from exemptions granted before registration.

The admissibility phase is online: an at-home creation answering an internet subject (coefficient 1; a PDF of up to 5 pages with a short description of up to half a page, in French or English) and a personal work file (coefficient 1; a one-page motivation letter and a portfolio PDF of up to 15 pages). Both files are anonymous and non-compliance is eliminatory; around 350 candidates are normally declared admissible. The admission phase consists of a four-hour artistic production (coefficient 1) and a 20-minute interview with the jury (coefficient 2), ideally in French. Results are announced on Parcoursup from 2 June 2026. The competition registration fee is 56 EUR for 2026 (non-refundable; holders of a national grant are exempt). A candidate can apply to only one route per year: the first-year concours or the entry-in-course commission. There is no age limit.

Entry into 2nd or 3rd year of Licence and 1st year of Master

A separate commission admits French and international candidates with an established artistic background into any of the ten sectors. Applicants must show 60 ECTS for the second year (L2), 120 ECTS for the third year (L3) or 180 ECTS for the first year of Master (M1). Qualifications obtained outside the European Higher Education Area undergo a comparability check against French diplomas and ECTS credits. Applications are made online (sco.ensad.fr, then ensad.oasispro.fr); for the 2026 session registration ran from 17 March to 30 April 2026, with preselection on file, interviews on 25 and 26 June 2026 and a plenary jury on 30 June 2026. The file contains a portfolio of up to 15 pages, a detailed CV and a one-page motivation letter (which may be in English), plus a short dissertation project for M1. The fee is 56 EUR. Applicants for Master in Architecture Intérieure, Scénographie or Design Graphique may apply to the Museodesign pathway, available only at Master level. The jury may propose admission to a lower year.

Language

Teaching is very largely in French, and non-French-speaking students must master French to follow classes. Level B2 (TCF or DELF) is required of non-francophone candidates at administrative registration if admitted, with diplomas and transcripts translated into French. French is also assessed at the jury interview.

Post-master programmes

Design des Territoires and the one-year Artiste intervenant en milieu scolaire (AIMS) post-master are open to graduates. Design des Territoires places five to eight practitioners per territory in immersion for ten months, from September to June.

Doctorate

The PSL-SACRe doctoral pathway is open to artists, designers and theorists holding a Master 2 or equivalent diploma, with no age limit and a maximum of three attempts. Candidates apply for the PSL doctoral contract or show confirmed funding, and are enrolled in École doctorale 540 of the ENS. Foreign candidates need a French certificate at level C1 minimum; the thesis may be written in English if the supervisor agrees, with a long French summary. Practitioners must present an established artistic practice. The call for 2026-2027 ran from 5 March to 5 May 2026 (16:00) and a pre-doctoral year in EnsadLab is also offered to build a thesis project and funding. The application fee is 56 EUR.

Exchange students

Students from partner schools with a direct agreement apply online after nomination by their home school, with a portfolio, a cover letter (preferably in French) and a CV. Deadlines are 6 April for the autumn semester or full year and 1 October for the spring semester; autumn runs from mid-September to the end of January and spring from early February to the end of May. Contact: [email protected].

• Site Ulm, 31 rue d'Ulm, Paris 5e: historic main site, home to the ten sectors, technical workshops (knitting, weaving, clothing, textile finishing, screen printing, wood, metal, engraving, robotics, animation, photo, video, resin models, pre-press and others), two lecture theatres, exhibition spaces, library and materials library. Open Monday to Friday, 8:00 to 21:00.
• Site Issy, 20 cours Saint-Vincent, Issy-les-Moulineaux: annexe opened in 2024 with modular spaces for first-year classes and workshops, research and diploma production, a living-materials laboratory (first cycle on mycelium culture) and public exhibition spaces. Open Monday to Friday, 8:30 to 18:30.
• Design des Territoires field schools: post-master programme with the Ministry of Culture, starting at Nontron (rural environments) with further schools planned for mountain, coastal, forest, island and urban settings.

The library is specialised in art and design, with 22,000 books, 4,000 heritage documents, 230 journal titles, 620 student dissertations, 2,000 films and 45,000 images in its photo library. It is open Monday to Friday, 10:00 to 21:00 from October to May. Students have access to Crous university restaurants, and the school partners with the online medical service Qare and employs a psychologist.