University in France
Villetaneuse, Île-de-France, France
University profile
Université Sorbonne Paris Nord (also known as Paris XIII and, in its administrative addresses, Université Paris 13) is a public, multidisciplinary university in Seine-Saint-Denis, north of Paris. Created in 1971, it describes itself as one of the 13 universities that descend from the historic Sorbonne, and it is built on interdisciplinarity, multiculturalism and a strong attachment to its local area. It is a founding member of the Campus Condorcet and of the Alliance Sorbonne Paris Cité university community.
Teaching is organised in 9 components: 5 UFR (training and research units), 3 IUT (university institutes of technology) and 1 institute. The UFR are LLSHS, SMBH, SIC, DSPS and SEG; the institute is the Institut Galilée; the IUTs are at Bobigny, Villetaneuse and Saint-Denis. Together they offer more than 300 programmes. About 27,000 students study at the university, which awards around 8,000 diplomas a year (figures as of 1 March 2025).
The university operates on five sites in the north of Paris: Villetaneuse (the main campus, with the Maison des étudiants and the Institut Galilée), Bobigny (health and medicine, with the IUT de Bobigny and UFR SMBH), Saint-Denis (IUT de Saint-Denis), La Plaine Saint-Denis and Argenteuil. Two university libraries, Edgar Morin at Villetaneuse and Jean Dausset at Bobigny, serve the community, with an associated library at the IUT de Saint-Denis.
Student life is organised through the sports department (DAPS) with daily activities from Monday to Saturday, a cultural and artistic action service, a student health service (SSE), a social service, a disability support office and student associations. The CROUS runs restaurants and cafeterias on the campuses. The university has no residences of its own: rooms are requested from the CROUS or private providers, and a housing platform run with a partner offers private lettings for stays of 1 to 24 months.
The university has more than 4,000 international students and holds the Campus France label “Bienvenue en France”. A welcome desk on the Villetaneuse campus helps international students with residence permits, social security, housing and academic support. The Espace Langues teaches French as a foreign language, holds the Label Qualité FLE, and runs a university diploma (DU Passerelle) for students in exile. Sorbonne Paris Nord coordinates the UNINOVIS European university alliance (Data for L.I.F.E.), which brings together eight universities.
Registration fees (droits d’inscription) for national diplomas are set by ministerial order under the decree of 19 April 2019. For non-EU students the university applies differentiated fees under decree no. 2026-385 of 19 May 2026. For 2026–2027 these are EUR 2,902 per year for a Licence and EUR 3,950 per year for a Master. Fees can be paid by card (in three instalments until 14 October), bank transfer or money order.
Students in difficulty can request an exemption if they are not CROUS or French government scholarship holders, have not already paid, have not chosen three-instalment payment and are not in continuing education. The request form is sent to the Villetaneuse enrolment office ([email protected]). The terms for exemptions for international students depend on the implementing order and the decision of the university board.
The CVEC is a separate national contribution paid by students in initial training, apprenticeship included, before enrolment. Scholarship holders are exempt automatically, and exchange students under programmes such as Erasmus+ and those in continuing education are not concerned. Part of the CVEC funds student projects on the campuses, which can be proposed by students ([email protected]).
Official pages: Registration fees, Financial aid, CVEC.
France Excellence Eiffel Scholarship (Master and PhD) via Université Sorbonne Paris Nord →
EUR PNGS Mathematics and Computer Science Excellence Scholarship →
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View scholarships for Université Sorbonne Paris Nord →Applicants who are French or EU baccalaureate holders, students changing course, and earlier graduates apply through Parcoursup (for the 2026 intake, 19 January to 12 March 2026). Access to the first year of Licence, BUT, CPGE and PASS/LAS is through this route.
Nationals of countries outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland who hold or are preparing a non-European secondary-school leaving diploma must submit a preliminary admission request (demande d’admission préalable, DAP). The “white” DAP is for applicants living abroad and the “green” DAP for applicants living in France. Registration closes on 15 December 2026 (23:59) and applications sent by e-mail are not examined. Applicants living abroad submit the file to the cultural and cooperation service of the French embassy in their country of residence before that date; applicants living in France submit it to the international students’ office (Maison des étudiants, Bureau 5, Villetaneuse) in person or by registered post. Except in some cases, applicants take a paid language test (EUR 75). Applicants resident in one of the 69 countries covered by the Études en France procedure must apply through that platform.
First-year Master applications are made on the national platform Mon Master (for 2026, 17 February to 12 March 2026).
Applications for L2, L3, Licence professionnelle, BUT2, BUT3, BUT passerelle, Master 2, DU and DIU are made through eCandidat, with recruitment commission dates published for each year. Appeals against a refusal of admission go to the director of the UFR or institute that runs the diploma.
Students from partner universities can study for a semester or a year under Erasmus+, bilateral agreements, MICEFA or BCI and have their ECTS credits recognised at home. Applicants must be nominated by their home institution and have at least B1 French (B2 is recommended; some components require a certified level). Application deadlines are 15 May for the first semester or full year and 31 October for the second semester.
Candidates normally hold a research Master 2 or a DEA; holders of a professional Master 2, a DESS or an equivalent foreign diploma can be admitted by exception with the approval of the Research Commission. The candidate first obtains the agreement of a thesis supervisor (holder of an HDR), who contacts the relevant doctoral school (ERASME or GALILÉE); the candidate then completes an administrative file on the doctoral platform. Enrolment is confirmed by the supervisor, the laboratory director and the doctoral school and is pronounced by the head of the institution. Re-enrolment is required each year.
Students from outside the EEA obtain a visa from the French consulate in their country of residence and, within three months of arrival, validate the long-stay student visa (VLS-TS) online. Algerian students request a residence certificate within two months of arrival. Students with a short-stay “étudiant concours” visa may sit an admission test in France. A CVEC certificate is needed for administrative enrolment.
The two main libraries together cover about 7,800 m² with 1,400 seats and hold more than 300,000 printed books, around 6,500 e-books and nearly 13,000 online journals. Health and prevention advice is free through the student health service, and sport is available at Villetaneuse, Bobigny and Saint-Denis.
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