Address: École Navale, BP 600, 29240 Brest Armées, Bretagne, France
Naval Engineering & Hydrography, Maritime Operations & Energy, Computer Science for Naval Systems
École Navale is the French naval academy. It was instituted in 1830 and began as a school aboard ships anchored in Brest, the successive training ships carrying the name Borda in honour of Jean-Charles de Borda. It moved ashore in Brest around 1914, and after the Second World War it settled at Lanvéoc-Poulmic in Finistère, where the current buildings were inaugurated in 1965 by Charles de Gaulle.
The academy trains officers for the French Navy and also works as an engineering school. The engineering course runs for three years, and since 2009 the engineer’s title has carried the grade of a master’s degree; the programme is recognised by the Commission des titres d’ingénieur. Research takes place at IRENAV, the academy’s multidisciplinary research institute oriented towards maritime and military fields.
Former students include Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Éric Tabarly, François Darlan and Michel Serres.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, AI and Machine Learning, Automation, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Geotechnics, Logistics, Manufacturing, Marine Science, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Metrology, Military, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Project Management, Robotics, Signal Processing, Software Engineering, Sound Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics, Transportations
Diplomas*:
Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Under Ministry of Armed Forces. Partnerships with Naval Group, Thales, and other defense industries. Research links with civilian universities.
Research:
Hydrodynamics and naval architecture, Maritime cybersecurity, Marine renewable energies, Navigation and sensor systems, Underwater acoustics.
Famous Alumnis:
Éric Tabarly, Jacques-Yves Cousteau (attended)
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
300
Current students***:
700
Foreign students***:
N/A%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Prestigious military academy, trains officers for the French Navy, strong focus on maritime engineering and operations.
Cons
Military institution with specific admission and career paths.
Best For
French naval academy for training officers and maritime engineers.
École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr, a public military school in Guer, lists military engineering, defence systems and technology.
École de l'Air et de l'Espace is the air and space force counterpart, located at Salon-de-Provence with aerospace systems engineering and piloting.
IMT Atlantique has a campus in Brest and offers digital technologies, energy and environmental engineering, and industrial and nuclear engineering.
École Centrale de Nantes, public and located in Nantes, is listed for mechanical engineering and for marine engineering and hydrodynamics.
École Nationale Supérieure de Techniques Avancées is a public school in Palaiseau focused on applied mathematics and mechanical engineering.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Università degli Studi di Genova in Liguria, Italy, is listed for naval and maritime engineering and robotics.
Gdańsk University of Technology in Poland works on naval architecture and ocean engineering.
Kobe University in Hyogo, Japan, covers maritime sciences and engineering.
University of South-Eastern Norway offers maritime operations and micro and nano systems technology.
Universität Rostock in Germany is known for maritime systems and ocean technology.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
FAQ
When was École Navale founded?
It was instituted in 1830 and was first based on ships in the harbour of Brest. Later it moved ashore, and the current site was inaugurated in 1965.
Where is the academy located today?
It is at Lanvéoc-Poulmic in Finistère. The buildings there were inaugurated by Charles de Gaulle in 1965.
Why do the old training ships carry the name Borda?
The successive school ships were named after Jean-Charles de Borda. The name stayed in use for the vessels that housed the school before it moved ashore.
What qualification do graduates receive?
Graduates earn an engineering title that has carried the grade of master's degree since 2009. The programme is recognised by the Commission des titres d'ingénieur.
What research does the academy carry out?
Research is organised in IRENAV, a multidisciplinary institute oriented towards the maritime and military domain. The academy's own website describes its chairs and focus areas.
Which well-known people studied there?
Former students include Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Éric Tabarly, François Darlan and Michel Serres.
How can applicants learn about entry routes?
The academy's website describes pathways for career officers, contract officers and other categories, and it states that the school delivers an engineering diploma. Conditions are updated each year, so the official pages are the reference.
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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