Address: 34 Cours Léopold, 54000 Nancy, Grand Est, France
Materials Science & Engineering, Computer Science & Automation, Chemical Engineering & Process
The Université de Lorraine was created on 1 January 2012 through a merger of the universities of Nancy and Metz. It is a public university in north-eastern France whose main sites are in Nancy and Metz, and its history reaches back to 1572, when a university was founded at Pont-à-Mousson; that institution moved to Nancy in 1768.
The older Nancy university was split in 1968 into three entities: Nancy 1, Nancy 2 and the National Polytechnic Institute of Lorraine, which later joined the Metz university in the 2012 merger. The process towards that merger had started in 2009 with a grouping of higher-education and research institutions.
According to its 2024 key figures, the university has about 60,000 students, more than 4,400 teaching and research staff and more than 1,800 doctoral students. Research is carried out in about 60 laboratories. Within the university, the Faculty of Sciences and Technologies was formed in 2010 from three units, and the Collegium Sciences and Technologies created in 2012 gathers it at Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy.
Domains taught:
Aerospace, AI and Machine Learning, Automation, Bioengineering, Bioinformatics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Fluid Dynamics, Food Science, Geotechnics, Industrial Design, Life Sciences, Manufacturing, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Microbiology and Genetics, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Project Management, Robotics, Software Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Doctor, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Member of Udice, Aurora European University Alliance. Strong cross-border collaborations (Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium).
Research:
Advanced materials & intelligent manufacturing, Energy transition & environmental engineering, Digital sciences & AI, Forest & wood sciences, Health engineering.
Famous Alumnis:
Henri Poincaré (studied and taught in Nancy legacy)
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
6500
Current students***:
60000
Foreign students***:
10%
Cumulative former students***:
N/A
Pros
Major research university in the Grand Est region, strong in engineering and materials science, extensive network of engineering schools (Lorraine INP).
Cons
Large and geographically dispersed across Lorraine, complex administrative structure.
Best For
Large multidisciplinary university with strong engineering and materials science programs in the Grand Est region.
Université de Rennes is a public multidisciplinary university whose fields include computer science and cybersecurity, materials science, and environmental sciences.
Université de Bourgogne in Dijon lists materials science and engineering next to food science and agri-environment, a close match for Lorraine's mix.
Nantes Université offers materials science and marine and coastal sciences in a public university setting.
Université de Poitiers, public and located in Poitiers, covers mechanics, energy and materials engineering as well as chemistry.
Université Clermont Auvergne in Clermont-Ferrand is a public university with physics and materials science, chemistry and chemical engineering among its main fields.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
Universität des Saarlandes (Germany) in Saarbrücken is a public university whose main fields are computer science and AI and materials science and engineering.
Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg (Germany), public and based in Freiberg, joins geosciences and mining engineering with materials science.
Universiteit Twente (Netherlands) is a public university in Enschede with nanotechnology, biomedical engineering and robotics as its main fields.
Università degli Studi di Trento (Italy) is a public university in Trento strong in information and communication technology, materials science and cognitive science.
Université de Fribourg (Switzerland) is a public university in Fribourg with materials science, biology, chemistry and computer science.
*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 Lorraine established?
It was created on 1 January 2012 by merging the universities of Nancy and Metz. Preparations had begun in 2009.
How old is its academic tradition?
A university was founded in Pont-à-Mousson in 1572 and was transferred to Nancy in 1768. After the French Revolution it was suppressed and later reopened.
How many students does it have?
The university's 2024 key figures speak of about 60,000 students. They are spread over several sites in Lorraine.
How many researchers and staff work there?
Its 2024 key figures list more than 4,400 teaching and research staff and more than 1,800 doctoral students. It has about 60 research laboratories.
Where are its main sites?
Nancy and Metz are the main centres. The university's website lists 38 campuses in all.
What happened to the former universities of Nancy?
In 1968 the Nancy university was split into Nancy 1, Nancy 2 and the National Polytechnic Institute of Lorraine. In 2012 these merged with the Metz university to form today's institution.
Where do I find official admission information?
The official site univ-lorraine.fr lists courses by collegium and by training unit. As the main language of teaching is French, applicants should check the language rules for their course.
Additive Manufacturing, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Digital Twin, Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Materials, Robotics, 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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