Frequently asked questions

No. The École du Louvre has the status of a public institution of higher education under the Ministry of Culture. Its tuition fees are set by interministerial decree and are similar to those of a university.

No.

No. The École du Louvre provides theoretical courses in archaeology, art history, history of civilizations, epigraphy and museology. Its courses do not include practical instruction in drawing or restoration.

No.

No. However, the École du Louvre is a partner of Paris-Nanterre University, the Rodin Museum and the Centre de Restauration des Musées de France in preparing students for the competitive examination to become restorers. This preparation takes place at L3 level. Find out more

Many of the courses offered to students are open to auditors, with no prerequisite for a diploma and subject to availability.
Other courses are open to a wider public: introductory courses, courses in the history of art and civilizations, discovery cycles, junior classes, summer courses, regional courses.
These courses do not lead to a diploma.
Registration dates and fees differ according to the course.

There is a reduced rate for jobseekers for auditor courses.
To take a training course as part of a return to employment, find out about the conditions from France travail and the École du Louvre's continuing education department.

An open house is held in January every year. But it's also possible to come to the École du Louvre for information at the pedagogical reception center from Monday to Friday, 9:30am-12:00pm and 1:30pm-4:00pm (except Wednesdays), throughout the school year (the school is closed during the Christmas and Easter vacations and in August).

Pupils at the School enjoy student status.

The tuition fees charged by the École du Louvre are set by interministerial decree and are similar to those charged by universities. They differ according to the cycle (1st cycle, 2nd cycle, 3rd cycle, preparatory class for curatorial examinations)

Yes, all candidates, regardless of nationality or level of diploma, are required to sit the competitive entrance exam if they wish to enter the first year of the 1st cycle.

Registration for the competition is via Parcoursup according to the official timetable announced on the platform. The École du Louvre operates a preselection based on Parcoursup data. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to take part in the competition. High school students enrolled in the "History of the Arts" option or specialization are automatically preselected. Candidates must be at least in their baccalaureate year (or equivalent). The entrance exam takes place on a Saturday in mid-April.
More information on the entrance exam.

Yes, a ranking will be made at the end of the competition and integrated into Parcoursup, according to the platform's procedures.

Administrative registration takes place in accordance with the Parcoursup calendar from July onwards. The necessary information is sent by email. Pedagogical registration takes place in September.

Whether by passing the May-June exams or by entry by equivalence, application files are sent out in the second half of July. Administrative and pedagogical registration takes place in September.

The École du Louvre offers partnerships with French universities (Paris Nanterre, Paris Cité, EPHE, Poitiers, Strasbourg, Tours, etc.) and foreign universities (Montreal, Heidelberg, Venice, Neuchâtel, Leiden, etc.), as well as partnerships with grandes écoles (Science-Po, Essec, Audencia, etc.).
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In the first year, the École du Louvre offers courses in applied modern languages (English, German, Spanish, Italian and French as a foreign language for non-French-speaking students), enabling students to acquire a vocabulary specific to art history. In the third year, these courses take the form of tutorials in front of works in foreign languages and a core module in English.
A course in Arabic, in partnership with Inalco, is offered to second-year students.

Yes, the École du Louvre offers courses in epigraphy (Akkadian, Coptic, Elamite, Egyptian, Hieratic, Semitic, Sumerian, Old Persian, Greek).
Other epigraphy courses can be taken through partnerships with Parisian institutions.

Knowledge of Latin and ancient Greek is not essential to follow the curriculum at the École du Louvre. However, it is strongly recommended for certain courses, particularly in archaeology.

• Common core (general art history, technique, iconography, collecting, methodology): 4h30
• Tutored work in front of the works: 4h
• Language course: 1h30
• Specialty course: 1h organic course, 1h synthesis course and 1h30 to 2h practical work, i.e. around 4h.

• Epigraphy, archaeological drawing, numismatics or heraldry courses: 1h

  Total: between 14h and 17h, for those taking only one specialty.
  Personal work: between 25h and 35h per week

In the first year of the second cycle, approximately 25h per week depending on the options chosen. A dissertation is also required.

• In the second year of the "research" second cycle:
  First semester: 2 specialization seminars of 24 h each and 2 opening seminars of 24 h each, 12 h of methodology, 20 h of language courses, 24 h of courses on digital tools.
  Second semester: 20 h of language courses, 12 h of methodology, 2-month full-time internship.
  A research dissertation must also be completed (assessed at 400 h of work).

   

• In the second year of the "professionalizing" second cycle:
  First semester: 4 specialization seminars of 24 hours each and 1 opening seminar of 24 hours, 20 hours of language courses, 12 hours of methodology, a 24-hour course on digital tools.
  Second semester: 20 hours of language courses, 12 hours of methodology, 3-month full-time internship.
  An internship dissertation must also be completed (assessed at 400h of work).

Depending on the level of their diploma, students can take part in a number of competitive examinations for the French civil service or local authorities, particularly in the fields of heritage conservation, documentation, tourism... In the private sector, there are a wide range of career opportunities (cultural mediation, art market, documentation, tourism, publishing...). Career roundtables and pre-professionalization courses enable students to meet professionals throughout their course to fine-tune their orientation. Section orientation

The student handbook

Holders of a state-recognized degree in art history or archaeology may enter by equivalence in the undergraduate course or in the graduate, post-master and post-graduate courses.
The equivalence commission also examines applications from holders of degrees in the Humanities with a significant Art History component (minimum 1/3 of credits).

Equivalence agreements have been signed between the École du Louvre and three Paris universities: Paris 1 (Panthéon-Sorbonne), Paris 4 (Paris-Sorbonne) and Paris 10 (Paris Nanterre). Admissions subject to availability.
Requests for equivalence between degrees in art history or archaeology from other universities and those from the École du Louvre are submitted to the École du Louvre's Schooling Committee.

Yes, course cycles are organized in other cities in France. They do not lead to a diploma (regional courses). The École du Louvre's regional courses do not lead to a diploma.

No, courses intended for free auditors are open to all without diploma requirements.

No diploma, or even end-of-year certificate, is issued on completion of the training courses taken within this framework.

No, they do not confer student status. Auditors cannot therefore benefit from the advantages of this status (social security, internship agreements, CROUS, etc.).

Summer courses: March-April

Day courses: second half of June

Evening courses: late May-early June

Initiation courses: early May

History of art and civilizations courses and tutorials in front of the works: mid-June

Junior classes: summer

"Discovery" cycles: consult the programmes of the cycles

Courses in the regions: consult the various programmes.

They are listed on the online registration portal of the Ecole du Louvre and by teaching type.

Contact the auditor registration office by mail, phone or email.
Tel: 01.55.35.19.23
Email: [email protected]

Auditors are notified of schedule changes by a Extranet message. Consult your extranet under "planning".

The École du Louvre Carte d'auditeur libre* provides free, unlimited access for the duration of the course to the permanent collections and temporary exhibitions:

• at the Musée du Louvre,
• at the Musée Eugène Delacroix,
• at the Musée d'Orsay,
• at the Musée de l'Orangerie.

It offers a reduced rate:

• at the musée national des arts asiatiques - Guimet,
• at the musée Rodin,
• at the musée national d'art moderne (Centre Pompidou).

The free listener card for the Introduction to the World History of Architecture course also gives free, unlimited access for the duration of the course to the permanent collections of the Cité de l'architecture et du patrimoine.

*Except for the free listener card for regional courses.

You can find your teaching resources on the Moodle platform by logging in with your login and password.

Contact the department responsible for the digital campus at [email protected]

No, registration for tutorials in front of the works is subject to registration for an annual course cycle.

No, the library is reserved for students for reasons of space availability.

Only the Master's course listed in the professional titles directory can be financed through the use of the Personal Training Account. The School's other courses can be paid for by companies as part of their continuing education budget. Fees and registration procedures vary according to the course.

Any enrolment in continuing education requires prior contact with the continuing education department ([email protected]).
An agreement can only be drawn up after the department concerned has assessed the applicant's individual situation.

Any request to draw up an estimate must reach the department by July 31 of the year preceding the academic year in question.

As an auditor, all courses programmed by the École (day courses, evening courses, summer courses, regional courses) are open to continuing education. As a student, the diploma courses (1st cycle, 2nd cycle, 3rd cycle) are open to continuing education, subject to eligibility by the Registrar's Office. Please contact the Continuing Education Department as soon as your application has been validated by the Registrar's Office. All requests for quotations must reach the continuing education department before registering as a student.

The auditor training courses offered by the École (general history of art and civilizations courses, introductory courses, discovery cycles, summer courses, regional courses) do not lead to any diploma, but allow attendance certificates to be obtained.

Yes, as far as entry to the first year is concerned (registration on Parcoursup), or to provide proof of a diploma in art history and archaeology to enroll by equivalence in the 2nd or 3rd year. The financing of the course is the subject of an agreement between the student and the employer prior to any enrolment.

Yes, a VAE procedure is possible. Find out more from the schooling department: [email protected].

Yes, but only to its students.
Getting an internship is subject to the signature of a tripartite agreement between the École du Louvre, the student and the host establishment.

They are in the second year of the second cycle and must be either three or two months (depending on the course) full-time.
Internships are recommended from the third year of study onwards, in view of the professional experience they can bring.

Please note, internships are not grounds for exemption from course attendance.

Yes, the École du Louvre's international department does, mainly at the graduate level.

Students at the École du Louvre can benefit from CROUS grants. Applications for higher education grants based on social criteria will be processed by the CROUS as part of the Dossier Social Étudiant (DSE).
The site messervices.etudiant.gouv.fr

Since the start of the 2021 academic year, around 50 places have been available at the Maison des Élèves. Those admitted to the first year of undergraduate studies can submit an application (selection criteria: economic and social situation of the household, distance from the family home and age of the student [email protected]).

Thanks to an active sponsorship policy, the École also offers living grants to its students.

Ecole du Louvre students benefit from the services offered by CROUS (center régional des œuvres universitaires et scolaires): university restaurants, accommodation in university halls of residence... The dossier Social Étudiant enables students to apply for a grant and accommodation in CROUS halls of residence from the same file.
The site messervices.etudiant.gouv.fr

The École du Louvre has a Maison des Élèves that can accommodate 50 first-year undergraduate residents each year.

The Ministry of Culture, on which the École du Louvre depends, awards a merit scholarship to baccalaureate graduates who have obtained the distinction TB.

The student handbook

Students of foreign nationality are admitted to the School's undergraduate, graduate, post-master's and post-graduate courses under the same conditions as students of French nationality, on the basis of their applications and after approval by the schooling committee and subject to verification of their command of the French language. Each application is processed on a case-by-case basis and within the limits of available places.
To enroll in the first year of undergraduate studies, they must have applied on Parcoursup and passed the competitive entrance exam.

The competitive entrance examination is sufficient.
In the case of entry by equivalence, the student will need to submit a language level attestation (level B2 for undergraduate access and level C1 for graduate, post-master and post-graduate access).
If it is clear from the equivalence application that the student has completed secondary or university studies in a French-speaking country, no attestation is required.
On the other hand, for students from non-French-speaking countries, attestation is essential, even if they are French-speaking themselves (TCF and DELF or DALF are accepted).

Registration is automatic, and the card issued by the School gives access to the library.

Consultation is possible for documents that cannot be found in any other library. External researchers should send a reasoned request to: [email protected]