Illustration Centre de langues de l'Université Paris-Saclay

Languages: A world of opportunities for learning, practising and enhancing your language skills

Education Article published on 06 July 2026

Université Paris- Saclay offers a variety of ways in which you can learn a language or improve your oral and written skills. Courses, conversation workshops, language tests, help with scientific communication... Here's an overview of some of the initiatives available to the student community, as well as to academic, scientific and administrative staff. (This article was originally published in L'Édition n°29.)

In a silent room, a student, headphones firmly on, contemplates at the computer screen waiting for the next pronunciation exercise. On a shelf nearby, French comics sit alongside English magazines and Italian books. "We have plenty of resources here to help with language learning," points out Audrey, secretary for French as a Foreign Language at the shared Language Centre of Université Paris-Saclay.

"Room 350 is the self-study language laboratory with computers on which students can access software to work on their language skills." There are over twenty-four languages to choose from, giving students the opportunity to broaden their linguistic range in their free time, in addition to classes and guided self-study, based on their available time. But this language laboratory is just one of the many facilities offered by the Paris-Saclay Language Centre, located in Centrale Supélec's Eiffel building at Gif-sur-Yvette.

"The idea of this centre was to create, for the entire Université Paris-Saclay community, a space dedicated to languages which can also host shared, in-person courses from the Orsay Faculty of Sciences, the Faculty of Pharmacy, CentraleSupélec, ENS Paris-Saclay and Polytech Paris-Saclay," explains Aline Boulahcen, now director of the centre which opened in 2018. Spread over two floors, the facility includes some fifty fully equipped classrooms, including three laboratories, as well as a lecture hall, tutoring rooms and workspaces.

Twelve modern languages and French as a foreign language

Throughout the year, it's not just English lessons that echo around the centre. "We also offer second modern language courses," adds the director. German, Spanish, Chinese, Italian and Japanese are among the twelve languages currently available, with new ones added regularly. Such is the case for Korean, which was introduced three years ago, and French sign language, which was launched this year. 

"We're seeing an explosion in demand for languages," says Kristin Kuster, head of the Language Department at Orsay Faculty of Sciences and a member of the Steering Committee for the Paris-Saclay Language Centre. "With internationalisation, students have a genuine need to learn languages so they can go abroad or work in international teams." The same trend can be seen within the Université Paris-Saclay community, which every year welcomes increasing numbers of young international students to study in France.

These young people are also welcome at the Paris-Saclay Language Centre where a number of its activities focus on teaching French as a Foreign Language (FLE). In this area, "we offer aninstitutional degree for non-French-speaking students, but there are other formats too, including intensive courses for new Erasmus students and evening classes," details Aline Boulahcen. However, the centre isn't just for the student community. Language courses, in particular, are open to all academic, scientific, administrative and technical staff at the university, as part of their continuing education, confirms Kristin Kuster, who herself has tried her hand at Swedish courses. Registration takes place twice a year, at the start of each semester.

In addition to these activities, the centre provides services that help to prepare for and take various certifications. At Université Paris-Saclay, the opportunity to take a language certification is offered free of charge to all students in their third year of an undergraduate or university technology degree (BUT).

Nearly 2,500 certifications sat at CEREL

At Université de Versailles - Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines (UVSQ), multilingualism is promoted at the Centre for Language Studies and Resources (Centre d'études et de ressources en langues - CEREL). "It's a joint university service open primarily to students with language learning needs," clarifies Florence Bourreau, the Centre's director. But "our service is also available to university staff and individuals outside the institution." 

CEREL welcomes people to its thre eoffices on the Guyancourt, Versailles and Mantes-la-Jolie campuses where there are courses and conversation workshops in English and six other languages, including Spanish, Russian and Chinese, both in-person and remotely. In terms of French as a foreign language, CEREL's offer takes the form of an annual course held from November to April, combining 150 hours of in-person and online classes. "We've specialised in FLE because there is a very high demand," explains the director. 

"We also prepare individuals for the Certificate in French Language Studies (Diplôme d'études en langue française - DELF) and the French knowledge test (Test de connaissance du français - TCF)." In addition to these, other language tests are available at CEREL, including the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) and TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) for English, and the Bright test for Spanish and German.

In the 2024-2025 academic year, nearly 2,500 students sat certifications attesting their language skills. CEREL also prepares secondary school students to take the TOEIC, which they can use to enhance their applications for higher education.

"Join the conversation": two years of speaking English

In recent years, English language training for staff has taken on a new dimension at Université Paris- Saclay, with the "Join the conversation" programme. Launched in 2022, this course is open to all members of the institution, and aims to train administrative and technical staff in oral and written English, using a progressive, practical and professional approach.

"This is a two-year course, with one hour of distance learning per week with one of ourtrainers," explains Lilia Messabihi, training assistant at the university's Institute of Staff Education and Skills Observatory. Learners are divided into groups of different levels, based on the results of tests taken on registration. In addition to lessons, in-person meetings are organised through "Get together" events, encouraging students to speak English in real-life situations and focusing on specific themes. "For example, there was a visit to La fabrique at CentraleSupélec," says Lilia Messabihi.

While the programme continues to evolve in line with learners' needs, it already seems to be producing results. Some 170 staff made up the first cohort, which ended with tests in July 2024; 44% of them advanced by one level, and 8% by two levels, based on the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). This increase in language skills is combined with a number of opportunities, such as the chance to undertake European work experience through the Erasmus + scheme.

Now it's the turn of a second cohort of 160 staff who are due to complete the course in July 2026. However, it is possible to join the course at the start of each academic year, by registering on the Geforp platform or by contacting the team responsible for the training programme.

Personalised coaching with the Academic writing center

There are other initiatives to help individuals improve their Shakespearean language skills. These include the Academic Writing Center(AWC) which is aimed specifically at the scientific and academic community and offers a proof-reading and coaching service. This ensures greater fluency in English scientific communication for articles and publications, teaching, conferences and other professional events.

Created by CentraleSupélec in late 2019, the AWC extended its services to Université Paris-Saclay as a whole in 2021. "Anyone with an affiliation to one of the university's institutions can benefit from our services free of charge," reveals Mélissa-Ann Thomas, one of AWC's four instructors. For PhD candidates, for example, "we have courses covering both written and oral scientific communication" that provide the keys to writing a scientific publication, a grant application or a job application.

In addition to courses, the AWC's distinctive feature is its one-to-one support. "People make an appointment with our team through our website, giving us an idea of what they need." This means that a researcher can use the AWC's proof reading service. "This is a unique service because nothing is sent to us in advance. We work directly with the person, whether they are preparing a manuscript or a conference.The aim is to give them tips and tricks to help them become more independent." 

Since 2019, the AWC team has delivered over 1,400 hours of coaching and 1,300 hours of courses and it regularly broadens its activities. A new course was recently launched on the impact of generative artificial intelligence on the scientific writing process. At the end of 2025, AWC instructor Michelle Awad also started a podcastin English showcasing leading figures from the Université Paris-Saclay community and their initiatives in science communication.

Language partnerships, conversation workshops, theatre...

As at the AWC, the Paris-Saclay Language Centre team is full of ideas for language learning in formats besides just lessons. Conversation workshops run by bilingual student tutors are an opportunity to practise speaking English, German or Spanish. Another example is language partnerships, which bring together an international student learning French with a French-speaking student learning the native language of the other one. 

As well as that, "there are lots of interesting projects being developed for those who already have some degree of English," adds Kristin Kuster. Debating in English has become popular in the form of a club made up of Université Paris-Saclay students (excluding CentraleSupélec, which has its ownclub). Last January also saw the launch of an English-language drama course. "The objective is to offer a sort of hybrid course that enables students to work on their English skills, improve their acting and develop their theatrical practice," says Aline Boulahcen. 

In partnership with the Department of International and European Relations (DRIE), the team is aiming to restart language cafés to encourage international meetings and develop interculturality within the university. "At the Language Centre, our role involves working with professionals from different entities and services to understand what's being done, deliver initiatives and encourage shared projects for language teaching and interculturality," confirms the director. At Université Paris-Saclay, "we're lucky to have a highly diverse student population from all over the world. So it's important to do things that help us understand each other, beyond just language," concludesKristin Kuster.

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This article was originally published in L'Édition n°29.
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