University in France
Lille, Hauts-de-France, France
University profile
Sciences Po Lille is a public grande école of the humanities and social sciences in Lille, in Hauts-de-France. Its five-year diploma is recognised by the State at master level (bac+5) and trains students to analyse the political, economic, social and environmental transformations of the contemporary world. It is a member of the Réseau ScPo (seven Sciences Po institutions sharing a common first-year entrance competition), a member of the Conférence des grandes écoles, and, since 1 January 2022, a component institution (établissement-composante) of the Université de Lille, while retaining its own legal personality.
The school has about 1,700 students, more than 7,600 alumni, over 20 master-level programmes and five programmes open to apprenticeship. Teaching is interdisciplinary, combining political science, law, economics, history, sociology, international relations and languages, with two modern languages studied throughout. Methods courses in small groups, collective projects, case studies and simulations sit alongside lectures.
The campus is made up of three sites in the Saint-Michel district of central Lille: the Angellier building (the former Faculty of Letters, built in 1895), the library, and L'Atelier, a 900 m² building opened in 2025 for teaching, research, continuing education and individual and group work.
The diploma has a first cycle (three years, 180 ECTS), whose third year is spent abroad, and a master cycle (fourth and fifth years) with 14 majeures (specialisations) plus integrated double degrees with the Ecole Supérieure de Journalisme de Lille, EDHEC Business School, Centrale Lille, Johns Hopkins University SAIS Europe (Bologna) and the University of Szeged. Three five-year double degrees are run with the University of Münster (Franco-German), the University of Salamanca (Franco-Spanish) and Sapienza University of Rome (Franco-Italian). The school also runs preparations for the senior civil-service competitions (PGC), the Ecole Nationale de la Magistrature entrance exam and the agrégation in economic and social sciences and in history.
International students make up about 350 of the community each year as exchange or free-mover students, with courses taught mainly in French and also in English and some in Spanish. Student life centres on nearly 30 student associations (politics, culture and media, fundamental rights, environment and health, international, sport and leisure), a CROUS cafeteria, a library open from 9am to 10pm, a nurse on site twice a week and free consultations with a psychologist. A housing platform run with Studapart and CROUS accommodation help students find housing in Lille.
Registration fees for students in the diploma cycle are graduated according to parental taxable income and number of tax shares, from 180 euros to 6,400 euros per year. Students holding a CROUS scholarship on social criteria (including echelon 0 bis) are exempt from registration fees. Some double degrees and the PGC preparation have specific fees (for example 1,210 euros for the Sciences Po Lille-ESJ double degree; EDHEC double-degree fees are nil). Payment is online by card and can be split into three monthly instalments. Free-mover exchange students pay between 180 and 4,000 euros, while students enrolled in a partner university's exchange programme pay no tuition at Sciences Po Lille.
The Contribution de vie étudiante et de campus (CVEC) is a separate national contribution, set at 105 euros for 2025-2026, payable once a year through the CROUS platform; scholarship holders are exempt but must obtain the exemption certificate.
Since 2007 the Programme d'Études Intégrées (PEI), labelled Cordées de la Réussite, has supported scholarship pupils from lower secondary to Terminale in about 100 partner schools in Hauts-de-France, Guadeloupe and Saint-Martin, with tutoring by Sciences Po Lille students and preparation for the common entrance competition. Exam fees are reduced to 40 euros (first year) and 15 euros (master cycle) for scholarship holders. Third-year mobility students may receive means-tested financial aid.
Official pages: fees, social openness, housing aid.
Browse the scholarships listed for Sciences Po Lille and check each award’s eligibility.
View scholarships for Sciences Po Lille →Entry to the first year of the diploma is through the common entrance competition of the seven Sciences Po of the Réseau ScPo (Aix, Lille, Lyon, Rennes, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Strasbourg, Toulouse). It is open to holders of the baccalauréat of the current or previous year, or an equivalent foreign diploma or the DAEU. Applications are made on Parcoursup. The competition consists of three written papers on one day: Questions contemporaines (3 hours, coefficient 3, essay on one of two themes), History (2 hours, coefficient 3, document analysis, based on the Terminale general-track programme) and a modern language (1 hour, coefficient 2; English, German, Spanish or Italian). The 2027 session registration runs January to March 2027 and the written papers take place on Saturday 24 April 2027. The exam fee is 210 euros (40 euros for scholarship holders). Admitted students must confirm their admission on Parcoursup. Integrated double degrees (Franco-German, Franco-Spanish, Franco-Italian) have their own selection procedures.
Direct entry to the master cycle is open to holders of a bac+3 diploma, or students with 180 ECTS or equivalent, including Licence holders, business-school and engineering-school students, and students who completed three years of classe préparatoire. Candidates apply to one of the 14 majeures (not Analyse des Sociétés Contemporaines) and up to ten places are offered per majeure. Selection has two online admissibility tasks (a motivation file, coefficient 2, and an essay, coefficient 1) followed by an oral in French and/or English held in person (remote only in exceptional cases). Registration for 2027 runs from 15 February to 28 March 2027, orals take place 7 to 11 June 2027 and results are published on 15 June 2027. The fee is 110 euros (15 euros for holders of a higher-education scholarship on social criteria). Documents: CV, transcripts (L1 and L2 for L3 candidates; L1 to L3 for M1 or above), proof of English level (TOEIC, TOEFL or another certificate) and, for scholarship holders, the final scholarship notice. Specific procedures exist for the Franco-German double degree (bilingual motivation file, oral in French and German), the Sciences Po Lille-ESJ Lille double degree, and mutualisation for students of other Sciences Po.
Exchange students are nominated by their partner university, whose coordinator explains how to apply to Sciences Po Lille. Free movers contact the international relations office ([email protected]). Applications are assessed by the international admissions committee. Most courses are in French, with a wide choice in English and some in Spanish. The Certificate of European and International Studies (CEIS, 30 ECTS per semester, minimum B2 English) and the Certificat d'Études Politiques (CEP, 60 ECTS over a year, minimum B2 French) are open to exchange students.
After admission, students calculate their fees online, pay the CVEC (or show exemption) through the CROUS platform, enrol administratively online and upload supporting documents. Exchange students from outside the EU, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland need personal or university health insurance covering medical costs, travel and repatriation, and must also join the French social security system.
Health and welfare: a nurse is present twice a week, free psychological consultations are available at the school or online, and students can use the Université de Lille student health service. A CROUS cafeteria operates at the school (Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 3.30pm) and the Châtillon university restaurant offers a tray meal at 1 euro for students.
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