Address: 19 place Marguerite Perey, 91120 Palaiseau, Île-de-France, France
Digital Technologies, Data Science & AI, Cybersecurity
Founded in 1878, Télécom Paris is a prestigious public grande école specializing in digital technologies, information and communication sciences, and engineering. It is a member of Institut Polytechnique de Paris.
Télécom Paris traces its history to 1878, when the École supérieure de télégraphie was created to train engineers for the telegraph network. It became the École supérieure des postes et télégraphes in 1888, then the École nationale supérieure des télécommunications in 1942, and later took the names Télécom ParisTech and Télécom Paris. It is a public grande école for digital technologies, with about 1,500 students and 500 staff. It belongs to the Institut Mines-Télécom, the French group of engineering schools for the digital and industrial sectors.
The school is a founding member of Institut Polytechnique de Paris, together with the École polytechnique, ENSTA Paris, ENSAE Paris and Télécom SudParis, and its campus is on the Plateau de Saclay in Palaiseau, where it moved in 2019 from the centre of Paris. The engineering programme covers computer science, networks, artificial intelligence, data science, cybersecurity, signal and image processing, electronics, mathematics, and the economics and social aspects of digital technology.
Research at Télécom Paris is conducted in the Laboratoire traitement et communication de l’information, LTCI, a joint unit with the CNRS and the Institut polytechnique. It works on machine learning, quantum communications, security, telecommunications, audio and video analysis and the social impact of digital tools. Many graduates found technology firms or work in the telecom industry, banks, consulting, research and public administration.
Admission is through competitive exams after two years of preparatory classes and through other paths at different levels, including programmes for international students. Some master’s programmes and the executive education are taught in English, and the main programme is in French. Check the current tariff for fees.
The Saclay area is a science and technology district. It is reachable by RER B and buses, and student housing is available near the campus. Companies and research centres in the area offer internships and apprenticeships, and the school has a large alumni network in the technology sector.
Domains taught:
AI and Machine Learning, Automation, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Ergonomics and UX, Mathematics, Optics, Project Management, Quality, Robotics, Signal Processing, Software Engineering, Statistics, Telecommunications
Diplomas*:
Doctor, Graduate Certificate, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Founding member of Institut Polytechnique de Paris. Part of IMT (Institut Mines-Télécom). Partnerships with Orange, Thales, Google, etc.
Research:
AI & Machine Learning, Cybersecurity, IoT & Networks, Data Science, Digital Innovation & Entrepreneurship.
Famous Alumnis:
Jean-Louis Gassée, Frank Esser
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
500
Current students***:
1500
Foreign students***:
40%
Cumulative former students***:
20000
Pros
Top-tier school for digital technologies, excellent research in ICT, strong industry connections in the tech sector.
Cons
Highly specialized in digital fields, very selective, located in Palaiseau campus.
Best For
Leading grande école for digital engineering, data science, and cybersecurity.
Télécom SudParis overlaps with this institution on ergonomics and UX, quality and optics, so the two are easy to compare, and it is also a public institution and does not run the graduate certificate programmes found here.
Where this institution leans on ergonomics and UX, optics and signal processing, ISTIC does the same, and it has almost the same size, at about 1,500 students, and is also a public institution.
In terms of fields, Télécom Saint-Étienne is the nearest neighbour, with ergonomics and UX, optics and signal processing again at the core; it covers manufacturing and physics as well, and is smaller, enrolling about 500 students against roughly 1,500 here.
Another national school that puts quality, project management and statistics at the centre is ENSAE Paris, and it does not run the graduate certificate programmes found here, and is smaller, enrolling about 700 students against roughly 1,500 here.
ENSIIE shares the core fields of this institution, namely ergonomics and UX, quality and signal processing; it is also a public institution and does not run the graduate certificate programmes found here.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
The closest overseas parallel on ergonomics and UX, optics and signal processing is University of Aizu, located in Japan; it is also a public institution and also offers bachelor's programmes.
Students considering a move abroad can look at Hiroshima City University in Japan, where ergonomics and UX, optics and signal processing also form the core, and it covers sound engineering and process control as well, and is slightly larger, at about 2,000 students against roughly 1,500 here.
Barcelona School of Telecommunications Engineering brings a Spain setting to the same core fields, optics, signal processing and computer vision, and it also offers bachelor's programmes and covers nanotechnologies and bioengineering as well.
In Switzerland, Hochschule Luzern, Departement Informatik teaches much the same core subjects, quality, signal processing and project management, and it is also a public institution and also offers bachelor's programmes.
If this school is on your list for ergonomics and UX, quality and signal processing, University of Information Technology and Management in Rzeszów in Poland deserves a comparison, because it is far larger, with about 6,000 students against roughly 1,500 here, and is private, whereas this school is public.
*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
Where is Télécom Paris?
On the Plateau de Saclay, in Palaiseau, south of Paris, since 2019.
When was it founded?
In 1878, as the École supérieure de télégraphie.
How large is it?
About 1,500 students and 500 staff.
Which groups does it belong to?
Institut Polytechnique de Paris and the Institut Mines-Télécom.
Which schools are in Institut Polytechnique de Paris?
The École polytechnique, ENSTA Paris, ENSAE Paris, Télécom SudParis and Télécom Paris.
What does it teach?
Computer science, networks, artificial intelligence, data science, cybersecurity, signal and image processing, electronics and mathematics.
What is LTCI?
The Laboratoire traitement et communication de l'information, a research unit working on machine learning, security, telecommunications and audio and video analysis.
How do students enter?
Through competitive exams after two years of preparatory classes and through other paths, including programmes for international students.
What is the language of teaching?
The main programme is in French, with some master's programmes in English.
What does it cost?
Check the current tariff for fees.
Agile Methodology, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cybersecurity, Internet of Things (IoT), Machine Learning, Software Development Kit (SDK)
*: 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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