Université de Poitiers

Presentation

The Université de Poitiers is an old multidisciplinary university, one of the oldest in France, whose arts programmes are mainly delivered by the UFR Sciences humaines et arts. This is a university curriculum: the training is theoretical, historical and methodological, and not centred on studio practice as in an art school.

Disciplines

Two bachelor's degrees structure the arts offering:

• Histoire de l'art et archéologie, covering periods from Antiquity to the contemporary era, with an introduction to archaeology, heritage and methods of analysing artworks;
• Arts du spectacle, oriented towards theatre and cinema: history of forms, aesthetics, analysis of performances and films, with supervised practical workshops.

These bachelor's degrees lead on to master's programmes (research, heritage, mediation, teaching professions) and to heritage and culture civil service exams (concours).

Strengths

Poitiers is a recognised centre for medieval studies: the Centre d'études supérieures de civilisation médiévale (CESCM), an internationally renowned research laboratory, trains and hosts researchers and advanced students there, particularly around Romanesque art, epigraphy and iconography. The city itself, rich in Romanesque and medieval buildings, provides a direct field of study.

The local cultural environment (scène nationale, film and theatre festivals, museums) also offers internship and observation opportunities useful to students in arts du spectacle.