France has always been a key touristic attraction for people worldwide, with Paris being one of the most visited cities in the world. However, Education has also risen to the challenge of internationalisation in France and the number of international students choosing France as their destination has risen quickly. Various reports suggest that France now only follows the United States and the United Kingdom in terms of the number of international students per year. Even though the French language being a barrier for some, an increasing number of students are now open to joining French institutions and these institutions are being consistently ranked among the best in the world.
Emmanuel Macron and his message to the United States
There was a grave threat to the internationalisation process of educational institutions in France as one of the two final presidential candidates Marine Le Pen was angling to get France out of the European Union. The programme of Marine Le Pen suggested measures such as extra taxation of enterprises willing to hire non-French labour. But with Emmanuel Macron winning the election, the idea of France leaving the EU was put to rest.
President Macron even went out of his way to share a message welcoming researchers, engineers and entrepreneurs from the United States working on climate change. As the new president focuses on a stronger EU and encourages stronger cross border links, the educational institutions can once again focus on presenting France as the warm and welcoming country that it is.
French schools
Even though France is wildly popular as a centre of culture and arts, with Paris leading the way, the French prestige for educational institutions is driven by their business schools. INSEAD in Paris leads the way in rankings over all the world renowned ivy league institutes from the United States or the prestigious Cambridge or Oxford of the United Kingdom.
The French system of business institutions is not just limited to a couple of top ranked schools, 'Grande Ecoles' are another kind of educational institutions, which are highly prestigious business schools designed to select and train the best students in the country and from around the world. While most of these schools are highly international, the language barrier in France is something which keeps it at a disadvantage compared to its English speaking counterparts in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Seeking more students from across the world
While more and more schools understand the importance of learning and teaching in the English language, they are trying to introduce courses based on the English language, as they seek more students from across the world. Other key areas of interest to international students in France are Language and Humanities.
The cultural and touristic aspect of France has charmed people from around the world for years, now education in France is becoming more and more open to those people. The institutions of France stand as an example to the world that language is not a barrier that divides people but rather a bridge that brings people together.
