Université Paris-Saclay and Macquarie University strengthen their strategic partnership

Macquarie University has officially recognised Université Paris-Saclay as a strategic partner within its Global Engagement Framework, the highest level of international cooperation the Australian university can confer. This status reflects both institutions’ ambition to move beyond existing thematic collaborations and build a deep, long-term institutional alliance. The partnership is expected to open up new opportunities for research and student mobility between France and Australia.

Twenty years of fruitful cooperation

The relationship between the two universities dates back to 2006, with the organisation of an initial workshop in Sydney. Since then, the partnership has continued to strengthen, with more than fifty master’s internships completed in Australia between 2009 and 2019, around fifteen of which were hosted by Macquarie University (photonics, materials science and engineering), as well as the signing of a student exchange agreement in 2021 (undergraduate and master’s levels) and an Erasmus KA171* programme in 2022 (undergraduate and master’s levels, with Polytech and the Faculté des Sciences d’Orsay). In September 2025, a framework agreement for joint doctoral supervision was initiated, followed by Macquarie University’s commitment to co-fund up to three half doctoral scholarships per year.

Concrete ambitions for the future

The roadmap is ambitious. From 2026, the joint doctoral supervision agreement will enter an operational phase, allowing doctoral candidates from both institutions to benefit from dual recognition.

Macquarie University and Université Paris-Saclay aim to further develop study mobility. The goal is clear: to promote more full study semesters, not just short internships. A jointly designed Master’s programme in photonics and computer science is under discussion, led by Matthieu Lancry, head of International Relations at Polytech Paris-Saclay. This programme would allow students to benefit from the expertise of both institutions in these cutting-edge fields.

Université Paris-Saclay also aims to establish a centre of excellence in lower back pain, movement and medical imaging. This project, made possible through the partnership with Macquarie University and expected MIC** funding, illustrates the extension of cooperation into the health sciences. 

The strengthening of this collaboration reflects a shared ambition: to make this Franco-Australian partnership a global benchmark for university cooperation.