Graduate employability: top universities in France ranked by employers 2020

French universities producing the most employable graduates have been ranked by companies around the world in the Global University Employability Ranking 2020

November 19 2020
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There are 18 French universities in the Global University Employability Ranking 2020, designed by HR consultancy Emerging and published exclusively by Times Higher Education. The ranking reveals which universities recruiters at top companies think are the best at preparing students for the workplace.

The grandes écoles – elite French institutions set up to produce civil servants and businesspeople – do particularly well in the employability ranking.

Business schools also feature prominently, including HEC Paris and ESSEC Business School. The majority of universities on the list are located in Paris.


Employability rankings by country

Top universities in the world for employability
Top universities in the United States for employability
Top universities in the UK for employability
Top universities in Canada for employability
Top universities in Australia for employability
Top universities in the Netherlands for employability
Top universities in Germany for employability


Top three universities in France for graduate employability

1. CentraleSupélec

In 2015, the merger of two of France’s leading engineering universities led to the creation of CentraleSupélec.

The two schools that formed CentraleSupélec were the École Centrale Paris and the École Supérieure d’Electricité. Over the years, both schools gained an international reputation for excellence in their fields, and their graduates were some of the highest-earning in France.

2. HEC Paris

HEC Paris is an international business school set up in 1881 by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

The university’s flagship course is a master’s in management. The institution also offers 11 specialised MSc programmes and a PhD programme.

Notable alumni include Louis Dreyfus, chairman of newspaper Le Monde; Jean-Paul Agon, CEO of L’Oréal; and René Proglio, chairman of Morgan Stanley France.

3. École Polytechnique

École Polytechnique was established in 1794 and previously served as a military academy under Napoleon I in 1804. Although it is no longer a military academy, the institution is still supervised by the French Ministry of Defence.

It focuses on teaching science and engineering, but students can also take courses in humanities, social sciences and languages.

Students are expected to do an internship during their time at the university to gain some work experience.


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Top universities in France for graduate employability 2020

Click each institution to view its full World University Rankings 2021 results.

France Rank 2020 Employability Rank 2020 Employability Rank 2019 Institution City
1 22 44 CentraleSupélec Various
2 24 22 HEC Paris Paris
3 30 28 École Polytechnique Paris
4 34 30 Paris Sciences et Lettres – PSL Research University Paris Paris
5 36 39 EMLYON Lyon
6 40 41 Mines ParisTech (PSL) Paris
7 59 60 EDHEC Business School Various
8 63 66 Sorbonne University (Faculty of Science and Engineering) Paris
9 80 83 ESSEC Business School Cergy
10 112 111 Paris-Sud University Paris
11 115 117 ESCP Europe Paris
12 138 143 Sciences Po Paris
13 142 142 Paris Dauphine University (PSL) Paris
14 150 182 Arts et Métiers ParisTech Paris
15 177 169 École des Ponts ParisTech Paris
16 178 167 École Centrale de Lyon Lyon
17 240 249 SKEMA Business School Various
18 244 217 Télécom Paris Paris

See the full results of the Global University Employability Ranking 2020

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