The status of visiting professor or researcher

Researcher

French institutes of higher education encourage foreign professors and researchers to do research and teach in France with the status of visiting professor or via the chair programmes.

Le statut de professeur ou de chercheur invité

French research institutes can welcome professors or researchers using the "visiting" status. These stays, reserved for experienced professors and researchers, generally last from two months to one year.

Visiting professors, generally received into the universities, must usually do research and have teaching hours. When they are received into a research institutes (CNRS, INRA, INRIA, etc.), visiting researchers can devote themselves entirely to research, with the exception of having to direct a few seminars.

Below there is a (non-exhaustive) list of French establishments that offer visiting professor or researcher positions:

the Collège de France: http://www.collegede-france.fr/site/en-inter-rel/Visiting-Professors.htm;
the RFIEA (Réseau Français des Instituts d’Etudes Avancées French Network of Institutes of Advanced Studies): http://rfiea.fr/;
The University of Paris 1 PanthéonSorbonne: https://www.univparis1.fr/international/enseignants-chercheurs-invites/venir-comme-professeur-invite/;
the University of ParisSaclay, with the Alembert programme: https://www.universiteparis-saclay.fr/fr/recherche/appel-projet/jean-dalembert;
AixMarseille University https://amidex.univamu.fr/fr/notre-projet;
the University of Paris 13: https://www.univ-paris13.fr/professeurs-invites/;
the UPMC: http://www.upmc.fr/fr/international/mobilite_des_chercheurs.html.

The chair programmes

In addition to receiving visiting professors or researchers, many French universities and Grandes Ecoles have chair programmes to welcome researchers from around the world. These programmes are usually designed for specific scientific problems and last for a limited time. The Collège de France in particular has developed a programme of excellence in which many chairs are reserved for foreign researchers or professors. Find out more on the site www.college-de-france.fr.

Further, there are corporate chairs that enable foreign researchers to work with a company and research establishment for up to 2 years. This programme is financed by the French National Research Agency.

Comment financer votre équipe de recherche en France ?

Experienced researchers may request funding for their research team from the European Research Council (ERC). A Consolidator Grant or Advanced Grant can finance all or part of your stay, as well as that of your team, for up to 5 years. These grants can reach 2.5 million euros.