Welcome and support

Centrale Lille has put in place a number of welcome and support measures to ensure that its international exchange students receive the best possible welcome upon their arrival and throughout their stay. 

Welcome and support systems

Associations for international students 

Two student associations have been set up at Centrale Lille to facilitate the lives of international students, from preparing their arrival, to the end of their mobility, including integration into the institution and local life.  

During your mobility, the international associations also offer you many cultural and integration activities such as evenings out, cookery workshops, conversation sessions, as well as trips and visits in France and Europe, promoting the exchange of experiences and cultural diversity within the institution  

Depending on the school you are joining, contact the appropriate association: Club TIME for École Centrale de Lille and Welcome Club for ENSCL. Both associations are made up of international and French students.  

Contacter Club Time :  

Contacter Welcome Club :  

Thanks to their close contact with the school’s administration, these associations contribute to a high-quality welcome, ensuring you to start your mobility with all the information you need to integrate, whether it’s practical, academic, or related to student life.  

etudiants internationaux

Systems and events 

Centrale Lille’s international student associations are responsible for putting incoming international students in touch with second-year students and introducing them to Centrale Lille student life. These sponsors help them to integrate and answer all their practical questions. 

When students arrive in Lille to begin their new academic adventure, they are welcomed by one of the members of Centrale Lille’s international student associations. They are taken directly to their accommodation, where they learn about their surroundings: the nearest metro station, essential shops, how the hall of residence works, etc. 

The start of each academic year at Centrale Lille is preceded by a welcome week for international students joining the school. This week, devised by the International and Academic Relations Office with the support of the student associations Club Time (École Centrale de Lille) and Welcome Club (ENSCL), is designed to facilitate the arrival and integration of international students before their immersion in Centrale life. 

The welcome and integration week is also punctuated by events organised by the student associations to enable new arrivals to meet their fellow students. They have the opportunity to enjoy convivial moments through a visit to Lille, sports activities, meals, and other festive activities. Additionally, the associations offer them the chance to collect furniture, kitchen utensils, and other items left by former students to equip their accommodation easily and economically. 

Joining the school as an international student involves a number of administrative formalities that can seem complex. A number of these procedures can be carried out online before your arrival. One of the aims of the welcome week is to make it easier for you to complete the few administrative formalities you’ll need to do once you’re here. Whether it’s obtaining a residence permit or visa validation, arranging health insurance or supplementary coverage, signing a rental agreement, opening a bank account or completing administrative registration, the student associations and the school authorities can help you with completing or finalising all these formalities. 

Courses in French as a Foreign Language and mathematics

The welcome and integration week also includes courses in French as a Foreign Language (FLE). Students enrolled in a double degree at École Centrale de Lille also benefit from tutoring in mathematics during the first few months of their course. 

The French as a Foreign Language (FLE) courses, which are given throughout the year, aim to position students according to their level, to improve their command of the French language, and to learn about the cultural aspects of the country and the region. FLE teaching takes place in small groups, during the welcome and integration week and then throughout the year. 

These sessions help international students tackle the weeks that follow more calmly, as they become fully integrated into the student community of their host school. 

Apsytude

Well-being at Centrale Lille

Like any student, an international student at Centrale Lille may encounter difficulties or distressful situations that can hinder their personal and academic progress. 

To deal with this, Centrale Lille works with the non-profit association aPsytude which offers Happsy Hours, individual consultations with a psychologist. 

Consultations are paid for by Centrale Lille and reserved for Centrale Lille students (including international students). Sessions can be conducted in French.