How to enrol in the first year of a bachelor's degree (L1) at a French university or in the first year of a French national school of architecture by September 2025
To enrol in the first year of a bachelor's degree (L1) at a French university, you need to apply for prior admission (DAP). The same applies to enrolment in the first year of a French national school of architecture.
What is the DAP?
The DAP (application for prior admission) is a compulsory procedure for all foreign students from outside the European Union who wish to enrol in the first year of a Licence (L1) at a French university or a national school of architecture.
Important dates in the procedure :
- Application deadline: 1 October 2024
- Deadline for submission to the Service de Coopération et d'Action Culturelle at the Embassy of France in Colombo: 15 December 2024
- Deadline for French language proficiency tests: 17 February 2025
- Deadline for decisions by the educational committees of the higher education institutions: 30 April 2025
- Deadline for the students to reply to the university: 31 May 2025
Please note: it is the embassies that send the students' applications to the French universities or schools of architecture concerned (by 15 April 2024 at the latest), not the students.
How do I fill in the DAP form for universities?
To submit your application:
- Complete one form for each degree and each university applied for (maximum 3 universities);
- Attach the following documents :
- a birth certificate with translation into French or a legible copy of your valid passport or identity card with translation into French;
- a copy of your school-leaving certificate (GCE Advanced Level), including all subjects, with a certified and notarised translation into French OR a copy of your transcripts for all subjects for the previous two school years and for the first term of the current school year;
- [if possible] a copy of the diploma or a certificate of achievement for DELF B2 (or C1 and C2).
The forms for universities are available here, as are the instructions.
The forms for the National Higher Schools of Architecture are available by contacting the Service de Coopération et d'Action Culturelle of the Embassy of France in Colombo (scac.colombo-amba@diplomatie.gouv.fr).
How do I submit my application?
COMPLETE applications must be submitted before 15 December 2024 to the Service de Coopération et d'Action Culturelle of the Embassy of France in Colombo.
Don't wait until the final deadline of 15 December to submit your application!
Your application must be correctly completed and accompanied by all the documents requested. Take great care with the content of your application and with writing your reasons for applying.
Once the applications have been sent to the universities, it is no longer possible to change either the degree programme or the universities. This is why you need to prepare your project carefully before submitting your application.
If you wish to send in your application by post, make sure you calculate the deadline so that it arrives before 15 December.
REQUIRED LEVEL OF FRENCH
Your final admission to a French university depends, among other conditions, on the quality of your command of the French language. You can take your DELF B2 or DALF C1, depending on the criteria required by your school or university, or take the TEF - Test d'évaluation du français to check that your language level is suitable for the studies you wish to undertake. It is valid for 2 years.
The exam consists of 4 tests:
- oral and written comprehension, as well as written expression, are taken online over a total of 3 hours;
- oral expression is assessed face-to-face with an examiner for 30 minutes.
There is a fee of Rs. 50,000 for the TEF language verification test. A collective assessment session will be organised on 24 January 2025 by the Alliance française in Colombo, for which potential candidates can register.
For any questions or information, please contact: scac.colombo-amba@diplomatie.gouv.fr
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