| Paul Cézanne University Aix-Marseille III |
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| Université Paul Cézanne Aix-Marseille III |
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| Established | 1409 |
| Type | Public |
| President | Marc Pena |
| Academic staff | 760 |
| Admin. staff | 930 |
| Students | 22,500 |
| Location | Aix-en-Provence and Marseille, France |
| Affiliations | Aix-Marseille University, Mediterranean Universities Union (UNIMED), Association of MBAs (AMBA), European University Association (EUA), European Quality Improvement System (EQUIS) |
| Website | http://www.univ-cezanne.fr/ (in French) |
Paul Cézanne University (or Paul Cézanne University Aix-Marseille III) is a public research university located in the heart of Provence (South East of France), in both Aix-en-Provence and Marseille. It is one of the three Universities of Aix-Marseille and is part of the Academy of Aix and Marseille.
The University was founded on 9 December 1409 as a studium generale by Louis II of Anjou and recognized by Papal bull in 1413.[1][2] Today it enrols 22,500 students, including more than 3,000 international students from 100 different countries. It is a multidisciplinary university offering a range of more than 210 national diploma programmes and 150 university degrees in the humanities, law, political science, economics, management, environmental studies, and science and technology.[3]
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The University of Aix-Marseille III has an established reputation as one of the oldest and most respected academic institutions in France.[4] Many prominent government leaders have studied at the University's Institute of Political Studies (Institut d'études politiques d'Aix-en-Provence),[5] also known as Sciences Po Aix. Established in 1956, it is one of a network of 9 world-famous IEPs (Instituts d’Etudes Politiques) in France, including those in Bordeaux, Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Paris, Rennes, Strasbourg and Toulouse.[6][7] The IEP is a Grande école in political science and its primary aim is to train senior executives for the public, semi-public, and private sectors.[8] Although the IEP offers a multitude of disciplines, its main focus is on politics, including related subjects such as history, law, economics, languages, international relations, and media studies. It should be noted that IEP’s admissions process is among the toughest and most selective in the country. Among the best-known people who graduated from Sciences Po Aix are the current Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Christine Lagarde,[9] the current Minister of Labour, Employment and Immigration of Luxembourg, Nicolas Schmit,[10] former Minister of Justice of France, Élisabeth Guigou,[11] former Presidents of the National Assembly of France, Philippe Séguin[12] and Patrick Ollier.[13]
The law school at the University of Aix-Marseille III dates back to the University's foundation in 1409. The school had far-reaching influence, since written law, which in France originated in Aix-en-Provence, spread from there, eventually replacing the common law practiced throughout the rest of Northern Gaul.[14] It is one of the largest law schools in France today, and is considered to be one of the nation's leading centres for legal research and teaching.[15][16] The school is unique among French law schools for the breadth of courses offered and the extent of research undertaken in a wide range of fields. Other than Pantheon-Assas Paris II University, the school has attracted the most prestigious law faculty in France.[17] The teaching faculty comprises 155 professors and 172 adjunct lecturers, the latter drawn from private practice, the civil service, the judiciary and other organizations. Much of the legal research at the University is done under the auspices of its many research institutes – there is one in almost every field of law. Research activity is buttressed by a network of libraries. The University library holds an impressive collection of monographs and periodicals, including an important collection of sixteenth century manuscripts. Moreover, the libraries have several specialized rooms dedicated to specific fields of law, in particular in International and European Law and Legal Theory.[18] Also noteworthy is the large number of luminaries in law and politics that the law school has produced, including the 2nd President of the French Republic, Adolphe Thiers[19] and former Prime Minister of France, Édouard Balladur.[20][21] The school has also educated two Nobel Laureates: René Cassin, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize,[22] and Frédéric Mistral, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature.[23] In addition, from 1859 to 1861, complying with his father's wishes, a prominent French artist and Post-Impressionist painter Paul Cézanne attended the school, while also receiving drawing lessons.[24]
The University of Aix-Marseille III is composed of teaching and research faculties. Its 42 recognized research laboratories make it a centre of international excellence in social and natural sciences. With more than 230 international agreements, the University takes part in the construction of European area of education and research. A policy in the direction of developing countries in Asia has led to increase its enrolments of excellent international students. The share of international students represents 12 percent of the total number. Programmes in French and/or English have been organized in order to favour the welcome and the integration of international students, in particular thanks to the presence within the University of the Institute of French Studies for Foreign Students (Institut d'Etudes Françaises Pour Etudiants Etrangers (IEFEE)). The IEFEE was founded in 1953 and is regarded as one of the best French-language teaching centres in the country.[25] About a thousand students from 65 countries attend the institute throughout the academic year. The institute is also a notable centre for teachers of French as a foreign language, and its function is to provide training and perfecting of linguistic abilities in French as a scientific and cultural means of communication.
The University’s Institute of Business Administration (Institut d'Administration des Entreprises), commonly known as IAE Aix-en-Provence, was the first Graduate School of Management in the French public university system.[26][27] IAE Aix is “a prestigious, double-accredited institution, with an international approach to business combining both classic and innovative teaching methods”, according to The Independent.[28] The school offers graduate level programmes in general management, international management, internal audit of organisations, service management, internal and external communications management, management and information technologies, international financial management and applied marketing. In 2011, the MSc in General Management was ranked 2nd in France[29] along with the M.Sc. in Services Management and Marketing being ranked 3rd[30] and the M.Sc. in Audit and Corporate Governance also being ranked 3rd in the country by SMBG.[31] In 1990, IAE Aix and the École supérieure des sciences économiques et commerciales (ESSEC) signed an agreement to unite and offer a joint Doctorate Programme, allowing ESSEC professors to teach in the Research Oriented Master programme in Aix-en-Provence. Furthermore, after Research Oriented Master graduation, students can attend the ESSEC Doctorate seminars and have an ESSEC Research Advisor (Directeur de Recherche). In the same way, ESSEC students can enroll in the IAE Aix's Research Oriented Master and Doctorate programmes. In both cases, the members of the thesis juries come from both IAE Aix and ESSEC. The Doctorate title is awarded by the University of Aix-Marseille III.[32][33]
The total budget volume of the University is equal to 44.93 m €, the main funding resources being the Ministry of Higher Education, fees and investment revenues. This amount does not include the civil servant salaries that are directly paid by the Trésor public. There are 1,329 civil servants including 678 faculty members. Their salaries roughly amount to the initial budget figure to give a total budget of 100 m €. The University is split in 16 sites located in five cities. The overall area occupied by the University is equal to 225,000 square meters.
There are six major components in the University of Aix-Marseille III which benefit from financial autonomy:
The University of Aix-Marseille III is governed by three councils: two of them (the council of studies and student life for the teaching side and the scientific council for research matters) have an advisory role, the third one (the administrative council) is the decision body under the direction of the President of the University. The President is elected for a 5-year period by the assembly of the three councils. The members of the councils are representatives of the students, the administrative staff, the faculty, or external personalities. The University statutes define the division into different schools or institutes. Each one of those, headed by a dean or a director, has its administrative council that decides on policy issues.
If the President of the University is the most important actor in defining the mission and the strategies of the University, he also has the necessary power to impulse or to sustain the projects that relate to these strategies. Before implementing these projects, they have to be accepted by the University Council and if necessary they have to be included in the planning processes.
There are two main planning processes in the definition of projects in the University that have to be followed in order to be financed or even authorised and accredited by the public (national and local) authorities.
The first process takes place every six years and involves the central government, the region as well as the University. It is devoted to major investment projects, for instance building a new school, a new campus, a new library, etc. It is a catalogue of projects and for each of them it defines the financial burden accepted by each partner in the contract.
The second process covers four years (for instance for 2004–2007), and has to be approved by the French Ministry of Education. In this process, the University sets its objectives at the pedagogical and research levels (new degrees, research projects).
This planning process is very important because the University is free to define its own strategy, to be approved by the decision makers. Each process generates an important brainstorming period at all levels of the University in order to identify and build new ideas, new needs, and opportunities, to prioritise them, after an analysis of strengths and weaknesses. Other choices can be made after each process is closed, but they are more difficult to implement because other sources of funding and other ways of authorisation must be found.[34]
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