MS in France for Indian Students: Which Awards Count

19 min read · Published on August 6, 2026 · Updated on August 6, 2026

An MS in France is normally a two-year national master’s worth 120 ECTS, and an Indian bachelor’s supports M1 or M2 entry only when the programme accepts its level and subject preparation.

The letters MS or MSc do not prove that a course is France’s national master’s degree. Published master’s charges span the EUR 255 national registration amount listed by Campus France, about INR 28,000, to EUR 57,700 across HEC MiM‘s two-year schedule, about INR 63.4 lakh; business-school and specialist awards follow their own recognition and fee rules.

What is a French master’s degree?

A French national master’s is normally a two-year academic qualification. ECTS is the European credit system used to record study workload. A licence is France’s normal bachelor’s-level degree and carries 180 ECTS. The French Higher Education Ministry says the national master’s adds 120 ECTS, bringing the full higher-education total to 300 ECTS.

A normal French academic year carries 60 ECTS. Your Indian transcript may use a different credit system, so don’t multiply Indian credits by a guessed conversion. The admitting institution assesses whether your completed study is equivalent to the entry level it requires.

The Master is organized over two years, M1 and M2, and leads to 300 ECTS credits in total.Mon Master

The degree can include a thesis, research project, internship, apprenticeship or a professional period. The year-by-year curriculum reveals whether a mandatory internship or mobility period changes both the learning and the cash flow. It may also decide whether the programme suits a research career or a quicker move into work.

Entry point	Normal prior level	What you submit from India	What the institution decides
M1	Licence level or an accepted equivalent, normally aligned with 180 ECTS	Completed bachelor’s record, transcript, subject evidence and other programme files	Whether the qualification and subjects support first-year master’s entry
M2	Validated M1 or an accepted equivalent, normally aligned with 240 ECTS	Bachelor’s plus later postgraduate study, detailed transcripts and relevant syllabus evidence	Whether the prior study supports direct second-year entry
One-year school programme	Whatever the named programme publishes	Degree, tests, experience and supporting files stated by the school	Admission level and the exact qualification awarded

The entry point changes what the institution needs to establish. An M1 assessment compares the bachelor’s record with licence-level preparation, while an M2 assessment needs evidence of study beyond the bachelor’s that supports direct entry into the second year. A one-year school programme may use the word master’s without following either national entry pattern, so its own published award and prerequisites control the comparison.

Does your Indian degree qualify for a master’s in France?

Your Indian degree may qualify, but the admission decision belongs to the programme after it compares the completed study with the intended entry year and subject. A four-year engineering or professional degree can provide more study evidence than many three-year degrees, yet it still has to match the programme’s prerequisites.

The decisive issue is usually what you studied, not just how long the degree lasted. A BSc Computer Science title may look relevant to a data master’s, but the programme may expect visible mathematics, statistics or programming work. If those modules aren’t clear on the transcript, prepare official syllabus pages, course descriptions, contact hours, laboratory work and the grading scale.

Campus France explains that the host institution decides admission and level. That is why no national rule guarantees entry after every three-year Indian bachelor’s. An ENIC-NARIC comparability statement can describe the broad level of a foreign qualification, but it doesn’t force a university to admit you.

The host establishment is the only party authorised to accept the applicant and determine the level of that acceptance.Campus France

The self-check below shows whether a shortlist entry has enough evidence to be treated as ready. It is an editorial planning method, not an official admission formula. A factor receives 1 only when the programme page or the institution has made the answer clear, and 0 while the answer is missing.

Application-ready check = entry-year fit × subject evidence × study-volume evidence × verified qualification × language proof × clear application order × affordable written price

Check one programme against your recordSet each factor to 1 only when the programme or institution has made the evidence clear.

Question	Evidence you gather	Give 1 when	Give 0 when
Which entry year are you seeking?	M1 or M2 wording and the required prior level	The published level matches your completed study	The programme doesn’t state how your level will be assessed
Can you prove the required subjects?	Transcript, syllabus, project and module descriptions	Every named prerequisite is visible in official records	A required subject is missing or only implied by the degree title
Can you prove your study volume?	Transcript credits, semesters, contact hours and completion evidence	The institution confirms that the record supports its entry point	You are relying on your own Indian-credit-to-ECTS conversion
Can you identify the qualification awarded?	Current official status for the named programme, campus and cohort	You can name the qualification and show that it meets the written requirement for your intended next step	You cannot tell what the school awards beyond its marketing title
Do you meet the language rule?	Accepted test, waiver and teaching-language evidence	Every published threshold or waiver condition is met	You assume a medium-of-instruction letter will be accepted
Do you know the first portal?	Programme application page and current India instructions	The submission order is clear and avoids duplication	You assume Études en France or Mon Master always comes first
Can you afford the written price?	Fee schedule, exemption decision, deposit and funding result	The full cost works without an unawarded scholarship	The plan depends on an exemption that isn’t in writing

Consider an Indian BSc graduate applying to an M1 in data science. The programme confirms the entry level and study volume, its award status is clear, English evidence is accepted, the portal is known and the cost is affordable. The transcript does not show the required linear algebra, so subject evidence is 0.

Worked check = 1 × 0 × 1 × 1 × 1 × 1 × 1 = 0

The zero doesn’t predict rejection. It identifies unfinished evidence. The applicant should obtain the official linear-algebra syllabus or ask the programme whether another completed module meets the prerequisite before treating the choice as ready.

Which type of master’s programme fits your goal?

The right programme type depends on whether you want an academic qualification, an engineering specialisation, a management career or a multi-country degree. A useful comparison begins only after the award, duration and experience profile are known.

A consortium is a group of universities delivering one joint programme. Its mobility pattern is the set of compulsory study periods in different countries.

A diplôme national de master, shortened to DNM, is a national master’s and carries the grade de master, France’s academic master’s grade. RNCP is the national register for professional certifications. Its level 7 describes a professional qualification level, not the academic grade.

For management programmes, CEFDG is the national commission that evaluates business-school diplomas. Its programme visa is time-limited state recognition and has nothing to do with an immigration visa. CGE is the association that labels exact MSc and Mastère Spécialisé programmes. Each status answers a different recognition question in the French degree-recognition guide.

Programme type	What to verify	Good fit when	Main caution
Public national master’s	DNM, M1 or M2 prerequisites, language, portal and fee treatment	You want a recognised academic master’s with a research or professional route	Public status doesn’t guarantee the lower national fee for every new non-EU student
Engineering-school master’s	Named award, curriculum, programme fee and research or industry structure	You need a technical specialisation tied to a particular field	The school may offer several awards with different status
Business-school MSc or Master in Management (MiM)	Grade de master, CEFDG record, RNCP entry or CGE label as applicable	You want a management route suited to your experience level	An English title alone doesn’t prove a national master’s degree
Erasmus Mundus Joint Master	Named consortium, French study location, mobility pattern and scholarship route	You want structured study in at least two countries	It isn’t a France-only degree or application
Institutional diploma	Issuing body, ECTS, academic status and acceptance for your next step	The curriculum serves a clear job or further-study goal	The institution’s own diploma may not carry a national degree or grade de master

The rows are not a ranking from best to worst. They show why the same English title can lead to different academic and professional outcomes. A public national master’s carries a defined academic status, while an engineering-school or business-school course needs the exact award checked. An Erasmus Mundus programme adds compulsory mobility, and an institutional diploma is useful only when its stated status serves the intended job or further-study goal.

The Master in Management comparison belongs to applicants with little or early experience, while an MBA in France normally serves applicants with professional experience. Those are useful first distinctions, but the school’s own experience policy decides.

Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters normally run for one to two academic years, carry 60, 90 or 120 ECTS and include at least two study periods in two countries. Apply to the consortium rather than a French national platform.

Can you study a master’s in France in English?

Yes, you can complete many master’s programmes in English, but the chosen track must state the teaching language and admission evidence. PSL lists fully and partly English programmes separately, while the University of Bordeaux publishes a group of international master’s programmes taught in English. Those lists reveal possible choices, while the named programme page supplies the teaching percentage, test and waiver.

Language wording	What it may mean	What you confirm before applying
Fully taught in English	The teaching and assessment are intended to be in English	Accepted English test, minimum score and any waiver evidence
English track	One route inside a wider programme uses English	That you can select the track at application and remain in it
Partly taught in English	Some modules may still be in French	The French level needed for compulsory modules and assessment
English page with no test shown	The summary may omit detailed admission evidence	The regulations or admissions office’s written answer

There is no national French threshold for every master’s. B2 and C1 are language-proficiency bands, with C1 higher than B2. PSL says programme requirements vary and commonly sit around those two bands, while Lyon 3 generally publishes a C1 expectation for master’s applications. For a fully English course, a medium-of-instruction letter works only when the programme says it accepts one. The accepted French and English language evidence therefore needs to be known before an exam is booked.

Even when French isn’t needed for admission, it can matter for daily administration, housing, internships and jobs. Language for admission and language for living or work are therefore separate plans.

Which application portal should an Indian student use?

An Indian resident does not use one application portal for every French master’s. Études en France, shortened to EEF, is the Campus France online procedure for covered countries including India. The academic application may begin in EEF or on the institution’s own system. Mon Master is not the default for a resident applying from India.

Depending on the programme, EEF may carry your academic application or record an admission that you already received. The Campus France India procedure also includes file review and an academic interview after the required documents and motivations are submitted.

Mon Master is the national platform that lists accredited national M1 programmes and handles eligible M1 applications. Its foreign-student guidance directs residents of India to Études en France. A false residence entry does not create a valid Mon Master route.

Inception is Paris-Saclay’s own application portal. PSL is a university group with several member schools, and Dauphine is one member that may publish an additional application instruction. A direct application means sending the academic file to the university or school before the later EEF stage.

Official example	First step for a resident of India	What follows
Université Paris-Saclay international master’s	Apply through the university’s Inception system	After admission, complete the EEF accepted-candidate process
Université PSL routes	Use the member school or PSL route in most cases	For a Dauphine programme, check whether its current page also requires a direct application
Université de Bordeaux M1	Use Études en France as a resident of an EEF country	Follow the institution and Campus France steps shown for the file
Université Jean Moulin Lyon 3 M1 or M2	Use the EEF route published for EEF-country candidates	Follow the current faculty and registration instructions after admission
Business school or joint master’s	Use the school’s or consortium’s named application	Complete the applicable EEF procedure after admission

The official examples show that residence in India does not produce one universal first portal. Bordeaux and Lyon 3 place the relevant application in EEF, while Paris-Saclay starts with Inception and moves an admitted candidate into EEF later. The business-school row follows the same two-stage logic when a school portal handles selection first. Confusing the first academic submission with the later EEF record can leave one of the two stages incomplete.

Prepare your passport, CV, academic records, language evidence and motivation in the requested format.
Keep the submission confirmation, admission offer and payment receipts together.
Move to the French student visa process only with the current personal document list.

The Campus France India sequence changes according to whether you are still applying or already accepted. Academic admission, the Campus France interview and the visa decision remain separate. One does not guarantee the next.

How much does a master’s in France cost?

A master’s can cost a few hundred euros in national registration fees or tens of thousands of euros at a private or selective school. Campus France publishes both national and differentiated non-EU public master’s rates. The dated amounts appear in the comparison table below.

The 2027/28 invoice isn’t settled nationally on 6 August 2026. A May 2026 decree limits institution-awarded exemptions to 30% in 2026/27 and 25% in 2027/28. Those percentages cap the share of the institution’s relevant enrolled student population that may receive an institution-awarded exemption. They are not fee discounts. A transition exemption is a temporary policy for the 2026/27 changeover, not a promise for September 2027. For your budget, only a fee or exemption stated in writing by the university is usable. Until then, keep the differentiated amount.

For diplomas earned at French public universities, tuition fees are set by the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research.University of Bordeaux

CVEC is short for Contribution de vie étudiante et de campus, the campus and student-life contribution due before registration for most students in scope. Étudiant.gouv publishes the annual amount and exemption process. The 2027/28 amount is pending, and an exempt student still needs the exemption attestation.

Published item	Fee period	Amount (EUR)	Approx. amount (INR)	What a 2027 applicant must confirm
National public master’s registration	2026/27 academic year	255	28,000	Whether the rate changes and whether it applies to you
Differentiated public master’s registration	2026/27 academic year	3,950	4.34 lakh	Current institution policy and written exemption decision
CVEC	2026/27 academic year	105	11,500	2027/28 amount or exemption status
HEC MiM published schedule	Two years, M1 2026/27 and M2 2027/28	57,700	63.4 lakh	2027 entrant schedule, deposit and other charges
ESCP MiM published charge	One academic year, September 2026	28,000	30.8 lakh	2027 fee, duration and included service charges
emlyon MiM published total	Two years, 2026 schedule	44,000	48.4 lakh	2027 cohort price and payment schedule

Planning conversion uses EUR 1 = INR 109.90 from the ECB reference rate for 5 August 2026

The first-year cost of studying in France should also include housing setup, living costs, travel, insurance, EEF, visa costs and any deposit. The current visa resource floor is EUR 877.50 a month for files deposited from 1 August 2026. That figure is a legal minimum for resources, not a comfortable living budget or tuition payment.

Funding can change which programme is affordable, but it may arrive after you have paid early costs. The current Paris-Saclay international master’s scholarship provides EUR 10,000 a year plus up to EUR 900 for travel and visa. Admitted candidates are selected by the programme coordinator, tuition is not covered and payment starts after arrival and registration.

Erasmus Mundus scholarships currently contribute EUR 1,400 a month for the funded duration, and scholarship holders cannot be charged tuition or other mandatory participation costs. The France scholarship shortlist, Charpak route for Indian students and institution-nominated Eiffel scholarship have different application rules. An unconfirmed award cannot reduce the amount that the budget must cover.

When should you apply for September 2027?

Begin planning in August or September 2026.

France does not have one master’s deadline. EEF, university portals and national routes cover different applicant groups, while schools and consortiums publish their own rounds. The live route for the programme supplies the applicable cut-off.

Period	What you do	What remains unresolved
August to September 2026	Choose M1 or M2, map subject prerequisites, check recognition and begin language preparation	Most 2027 national application dates
September to December 2026	Watch EEF and institution openings, request transcripts and syllabus evidence, and begin early school applications	Later public-university and scholarship calendars
January to March 2027	Complete open applications and funding files	Individual response dates and later school rounds
After admission	Accept under the programme rules and complete the applicable EEF accepted-candidate steps	Visa documents depend on the personal France-Visas checklist
Before registration	Obtain the fee decision, pay tuition or deposit as required and complete the CVEC step	2027/28 national fees and CVEC amount remain pending

The preparation periods overlap because published routes open at different times. Subject evidence and recognition can be settled before most dates appear, while the application and funding files depend on live openings. Admission then changes the task from selection to EEF, visa and registration work. A copied deadline cannot substitute for this sequence because it may belong to another portal or applicant group.

One row per programme in a planning sheet can hold the entry year, prerequisites, language, first portal, fee, deposit, scholarship result and official recognition link. The same row can include any referees, tests, portfolio, interview or work evidence requested by the programme. The France intake dates page supplies the route’s calendar.

Key takeaways

A three-year or four-year Indian degree can be assessed for a French master’s, but no national rule guarantees entry.
M1 normally follows licence-level study, while direct M2 entry normally requires M1-level or 240-ECTS-equivalent preparation.
Your subject modules and evidence often decide eligibility more than the degree title alone.
Verify the award because a national master’s, grade de master, RNCP level 7 and CGE label are different claims.
An Indian resident may apply through EEF or an institution portal first, depending on the programme.
For 2026/27, public master’s registration can be EUR 255 or EUR 3,950 before any written exemption, while 2027/28 rates remain pending.

Frequently asked questions

Can I do a master’s in France after a three-year Indian bachelor’s?

Yes, some programmes may assess a three-year Indian bachelor’s for M1, but France has no national guarantee that every degree is accepted. The institution checks the qualification level, completed subjects, grades and language. Ask the programme how it assesses your named award rather than relying on a general country claim.

What is the difference between M1 and M2 in France?

M1 is the first year and M2 is the second year of a two-year national master’s. M1 normally follows licence-level study or an accepted equivalent. Direct M2 entry normally follows a validated M1 or equivalent 240-ECTS level, but the programme still checks your subjects and academic record.

Do Indian students use Mon Master?

An applicant who lives in India is normally directed to Études en France rather than Mon Master by the platform’s foreign-student guidance. That does not mean EEF always carries the first academic application. Some universities require their own portal first, followed by the EEF accepted-candidate process after admission.

Can I study a master’s in France in English?

Yes, French universities and schools offer fully and partly English master’s programmes. Check the selected track because a university may teach only part of a programme in English. Some compulsory modules or assessments can still require French. Confirm the teaching percentage and French level on the current curriculum before applying.

How much does a master’s in France cost for an Indian student?

For 2026/27, the national public master’s registration fee is EUR 255, while a new non-EU student subject to differentiated fees can pay EUR 3,950 before an exemption. Private and selective programmes can cost far more. Add CVEC, living costs, housing setup, travel, visa expenses and deposits.

Is an RNCP level 7 MSc the same as a French national master’s?

No. RNCP level 7 describes the professional qualification level and does not by itself grant the academic grade de master. Check whether the named programme also carries a national master’s degree, grade de master, current CEFDG authorisation or CGE label, depending on the award and your purpose.

Do I need IELTS for a master’s in France?

Not always. The programme decides which English test, score or waiver it accepts, and French-taught routes set their own French level. A medium-of-instruction letter is useful only where the admissions rules accept it. Verify the selected track before paying for IELTS, TOEFL, DELF, DALF or TCF.

When should I apply for September 2027?

Begin shortlisting and collecting subject evidence in August or September 2026. Watch the programme, EEF and scholarship pages from then onward. Most national 2027 dates were not published on 6 August 2026, so use each live route and do not copy a closed 2026 deadline into your plan.