France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, a diplôme universitaire (DU, in English "university degree") or interuniversitaire (DIU, in English "inter-university degree") is a degree from a

French university This List of universities and colleges in France includes universities and other higher education institutes that provide both education curricula and related degrees up to doctoral degree and also contribute to research activities. They are the b ...

, a ''

grand établissement Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and co ...

'' or ''

Établissement public à caractère scientifique, culturel et professionnel In French law, ''établissement public à caractère scientifique, culturel et professionnel'' (EPSCP; English: public scientific, cultural or professional establishment) is a formal category of more than one hundred and thirty public higher educa ...

'', or many establishments jointly, as opposed to national diplomas, which are issued on behalf of the Ministry.

Standard Comparison

A diplôme universitaire (DU) is, in France, a university degree. Contrary to the

Bachelor A bachelor is a man who is not and has never been married.Bachelors are, in Pitt & al.'s phrasing, "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating". (). Etymo ...

Master Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

and Doctoral degrees, which are national, DU means "University diploma". The degree corresponds to a restricted domain, for temporary or professional purpose. Each university is authorized for specifics DU. Application process, the duration of studies, the evaluation method can be very different depending on the purpose of the diploma. Most of DU, however, attest to a 1 to 3 months training spread over the weekend for 2 or 3 years. DU are organized by a single

university A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

, while DIU combine several universities to organize the same course (which often takes place in different cities). They do not fit in the

- PhD diagram and no university may require obtaining a DU "complementary" to validate a state diploma (although in practice this dual training is often recommended).Diplôme universitaire
/ref> These qualifications are managed in local autonomy, that is to say, out of the overall budget of the Ministry (endowment per student) and their prices are aligned with those of the private sector training. They are particularly numerous in the field of

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

, " alternative medicine", dentistry, pharmacy and

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...

. Universities are free to set tuition fees to a DIU, contrary to the cost of national degrees.

Particular case

Some university degrees are known by specific titles, names reminiscent Degree Anglo-Saxon, such as

LL.M A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

or MSc. There are no national diplomas, even if their name is reminiscent of the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Diplome universitaire Academic degrees of France