The Université de Bordeaux is a public research university in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, in south-western France. The first university of Bordeaux was established by Pope Eugene IV on 7 June 1441, when Bordeaux was an English town, and the National Convention abolished it in 1793 during the French Revolution. The present institution was created on 1 January 2014 through the merger of Bordeaux 1, Bordeaux 2 and Bordeaux 4, while Michel de Montaigne University, Bordeaux 3, stayed independent.
It has campuses in Bordeaux, Dax, Gradignan, Périgueux, Pessac and Talence, and smaller teaching sites in other towns such as Bayonne. The Peixotto, Bordes and Montagne-Montesquieu campuses form a continuous university area south of the city centre in Talence and Pessac, while the Victoire campus on Place de la Victoire is home to psychology and the social sciences and was formerly the seat of the medical school. The former Bordeaux 1 site in Talence houses laboratories such as the Centre de Neurosciences Intégratives et Cognitives and the Laboratoire Bordelais de Recherche en Informatique.
The university has about 54,000 students, more than 6,000 of them from abroad, and around 6,000 academic staff including 3,200 professors. It appears in the 201–300 band of the ARWU Shanghai ranking (2025), in the 401–500 band of the Times Higher Education ranking (2025) and in joint 494th place in the QS ranking (2026). Its psychology programmes ranked fourth in France in a 2023 Le Figaro ranking, and its alumni include three Nobel Prize winners.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, AI and Machine Learning, Astroscience, Automation, Bioengineering, Bioinformatics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Food Science, Geotechnics, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Marine Science, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Microbiology and Genetics, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Robotics, Software Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Part of ENLIGHT European University Alliance, Udice. Strong collaborations with research organizations (CNRS, INSERM, INRAE) and local industry (aerospace, optics).
Research:
Advanced materials, Neuroscience, Photonics and laser technologies, Digital sciences (AI, data), Environmental and climate sciences, Archeology.
Famous Alumnis:
Serge Kampf
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
5600
Current students***:
56000
Foreign students***:
10%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
High research intensity, internationally recognized in specific fields, dynamic campus environment, good quality of life in Bordeaux.
Cons
Large university, some faculties are located outside the main Talence campus.
Best For
Leading research university with strengths in materials science, neuroscience, and optics.
Université de Strasbourg has about 57,000 students and is strong in chemistry, life sciences and health, and physics, a large multidisciplinary university of about the same size as Bordeaux.
Université de Lille enrolls about 74,000 students and covers sciences and technologies as well as health and the humanities in the north of France.
Aix-Marseille Université is one of the largest French universities, with about 78,000 students and wide offerings in sciences, including physics, materials and environmental sciences.
Université Grenoble Alpes counts about 59,000 students and focuses on physics and nanosciences as well as computer science and artificial intelligence.
Sorbonne Université has around 55,000 students in physics, chemistry, biology and earth sciences, a Paris university of similar size.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
University of Barcelona in Spain enrolls about 63,000 students and teaches biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics among its many fields, a large public university comparable to Bordeaux.
Università degli Studi di Bologna in Italy, with about 90,000 students, covers engineering and technology and natural sciences, and it is one of the oldest universities in Europe.
Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg in Germany has about 29,000 students and is strong in physics and astronomy as well as chemistry and geosciences.
Universiteit Gent in Belgium counts about 49,000 students and works in life sciences, engineering and biotechnology.
University of Valencia in Spain has about 55,000 students and teaches medicine, sciences, law and economics, close to Bordeaux in size and breadth.
*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 the University of Bordeaux founded?
The original university was established by Pope Eugene IV on 7 June 1441, when Bordeaux was an English town. It was abolished in 1793 during the French Revolution, and the present university was created on 1 January 2014.
Which universities merged in 2014?
Bordeaux 1 (sciences and technologies), Bordeaux 2 (Segalen) and Bordeaux 4 (Montesquieu) merged to form the present university. Michel de Montaigne University, Bordeaux 3, did not take part and remains independent.
Where are the campuses?
The university has campuses in Bordeaux, Dax, Gradignan, Périgueux, Pessac and Talence, plus smaller teaching sites in towns such as Bayonne. The Peixotto, Bordes and Montagne-Montesquieu campuses form a continuous area south of the city centre.
How large is the university?
It has about 54,000 students, more than 6,000 of whom are international, and around 6,000 academic staff including 3,200 professors. This places it among the largest universities in France.
How is the university ranked?
It is in the 201–300 band of the ARWU ranking (2025), the 401–500 band of the Times Higher Education ranking (2025) and joint 494th in the QS ranking (2026). Rankings change every year, so applicants should check the latest editions.
What is the university known for?
Its psychology programmes ranked fourth in France in Le Figaro’s 2023 ranking, and it has laboratories in neuroscience and computer science on the Talence campus. Three Nobel Prize winners are among its alumni.
What is the university motto?
The motto, in Latin, is “Sit lumine illustrant millennii”, which means that the light may illuminate the millennia.
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Environmental Engineering, Optics, Sustainable Development
*: 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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