Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales
Institut national des langues et civilisations orientales is a French research institution teaching languages that span Central Europe, Africa, Asia, America, and Oceania. It is often informally called Langues O’ or more recently by the acronym Inalco.
2011 Inalco centralizes all of its taught courses under one roof at 65 rue des Grands Moulins in Paris
Studies
The undergraduate, graduate and continuing education courses offered at Inalco allow students to gain
mastery of a language and a thorough knowledge of the corresponding civilization over a degree program;
specific expertise to complement other qualifications.
These courses lead to career paths in international business, international relations, communication and intercultural training, language teaching and multilingual computing.
Bachelor's degrees: courses by language and region that can include a professional specialization.
Master's degrees: regional programs targeting a research discipline or professional direction.
Doctorate: PhD research at Inalco's Doctoral School.
Diplomas: certificates, introductory diplomas, language and civilization diplomas, professional master's degrees.
Difficulty of programs
INALCO is considered as being the most difficult institution in which to learn oriental languages in France. Although the Institute does not make any selection by exam, endemic failure rates every year show the difficulty of most programs. Failure rates are particularly significant among students studying Japanese, Chinese, Russian and Arabic, historically the largest departments. Below is a table with approximate students numbers, successful students numbers and failure rates in the first, second and third year of the Department of Japanese Studies.
Level
Total number
Successful students
Failure rates
First year
650
250
66.66%
Second year
300
120
60%
Third Year
150
110
26.66%
Research
Research at Inalco combines area studies and academic fields. Researchers study languages and civilizations that are increasingly in the spotlight — Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and as far as the Arctic — and are central to the major issues of the 21st century. Fourteen research teams, often partnered with other research organizations, PhD programs, and a publishing service form the backbone of research at Inalco. Inalco also has a project management and knowledge transfer service. The research teams, administration offices and doctoral school are housed in a building dedicated entirely to research, with access to a full range of support functions: assistance in preparing research proposals and grant applications, organizing scientific events, looking for partnerships and funding, publication support, internal funding, and communication.
270 faculty members
300 PhD students
14 research teams
100 scientific events per year
Presidents (from 1914 to 1969, Administrators)
International
Inalco conducts research projects in over one hundred countries and offers joint programs with foreign universities. This allows Inalco students and the students of international partners to complement their studies with an immersion experience. Inalco offers distance courses via videoconferencing and online learning content: Inuktitut, Estonian, and soon Swahili. Inalco is an active member of Sorbonne Paris Cité, with 120,000 students, 8,500 faculty members, and 6,000 technical and administrative staff. Branches have been opened in Singapore, Buenos Aires and São Paulo. The foundation strives to develop the preservation, study, transmission, development and interaction of languages and cultures in France and around the world with projects involving the Institute's expertise: education, research, advancing knowledge and skills in a globalized world. More than 120 nationalities are represented by Inalco faculty and students. The Institute, along with its teachers, students and partners, organizes over a hundred cultural events a year. Inalco also participates in several international film festivals and makes every effort to share its knowledge and expertise with society.
