Specialised research
Thanks to its six CNRS joint research units, research at École Centrale de Lyon holds an eminent position internationally. Research is organised around five principal domains: nanotechnology and nanomaterials, transport, energy, the environment and bio-engineering.
The quality of the research conducted at Central Lyon is demonstrated by the participation of the institute’s laboratories in several projects of excellence that are funded by the Investment for the Future Programme in the form of laboratories of excellence (LABEX), which are unique in Europe, or high-quality research infrastructures known as facilities of excellence (EQUIPEX).
Structured international collaborations
The laboratories of École Centrale de Lyon also partake in structured international collaborations, including international laboratories, where joint research projects are pursued and result in jointly-authored international publications. The strong ties between these partners provide numerous opportunities for international collaborations and exchanges during and after the writing of doctoral theses and even for post-doctoral research.
Theses with direct links to business
The promotion of research and the relationships maintained with companies are another valuable resource provided by École Centrale de Lyon. Research is strengthened by the long-lasting partnerships of the institute’s laboratories and businesses, from SMEs to multinationals, which are further buttressed by the laboratories’ participation in federated organisations such as the Institut Carnot Ingénierie@Lyon, competitiveness hubs and others. This web of academic-industrial relations enables the institute’s laboratories to propose a multiplicity of theses with direct business links, for example, as part of Industrial Training Through Research Contracts (CIFRE).
Centrale Lyon offers doctoral students a "Skills for business" training course to help them acquire a certain number of skills expected by companies and improve their professional integration. This one-year training consists of a "theoretical" part of 70 hours to be composed according to a wide range of modules (intellectual property, entrepreneurship, labor law, management, project management, etc.) and a “practical” part with a mandatory business experience of at least 30 hours.
Excellent conditions for preparing a thesis
For École Centrale de Lyon, education through research is an important goal. The quality of human and material resources provided by the institute, the breadth of its network and the dynamic activity of its doctoral students have a direct influence on the excellence of doctoral research. École Centrale de Lyon has produced many D.Eng. graduates who now hold essential positions in businesses (from start-ups to multinationals) and in academia.
