Our strategy

The University of Bordeaux, a melting pot of in-depth scientific knowledge, is striving to reassert the value that it brings to society, through its leading role on the local, national and international scale, through its performance in research, innovation and education, especially on the doctoral level, through its actions aimed at the success and integration of its students and, last but not least, through its action promoting environmental and societal transitions.

The University of Bordeaux has officially defined its transformation strategy for 2030 based on a participatory approach. Combining academic excellence, environmental and societal transitions and well-being objectives, the strategy is being deployed in a series of institutional projects.
To achieve its goals, the University of Bordeaux has adopted a national investment strategy that will help structure its development in the coming years.

Strategic Horizon 2030

Since its creation in 2014, the University of Bordeaux has sought to officially define its strategy by clarifying and prioritising its key concerns, principles and objectives. In 2015, it adopted a 10-year strategic plan (U25) based on an in-depth analysis of its strengths and weaknesses in the international environment of higher education and research.
In 2021, the university updated its strategic plan based on a participatory approach that led to the drafting of the framework document Strategic Horizon 2030, which outlines its goals. In the document, the University of Bordeaux puts forth a new model for a multidisciplinary and international research university, firmly rooted in its region.

In 2010, the French government launched the PIA (Programme d’Investissements d'Avenir) with the aim of stimulating employment, reinforcing productivity and increasing national competitiveness. Among the measures implemented were Initiatives of Excellence (IdEx), integrated investment programmes allocated to higher education and research sites.

In the wake of Opération Campus Bordeaux, a label awarded in 2008, the founding institutions of the University of Bordeaux (Université Bordeaux 1 Sciences et Technologies, Université Bordeaux 2 Victor Ségalen, Université Bordeaux 4 Montesquieu) had set themselves the goal of becoming a single major multidisciplinary research university of world renown. The IdEx programme emerged naturally as the lever for that transformation and as an accelerator for merging the three universities.

Thanks to their excellence, the University of Bordeaux research units and laboratories have gained international recognition and forged a wide range of collaborations.

Its Major Research Programmes (GPRs) spearhead all of its fields of investigation, which range from neuroscience to the economics of innovation, including materials chemistry, laser physics, public health, international law, artificial intelligence and environmental science... They are focused on major environmental and societal issues, and innovation challenges.

In 2019, the University of Bordeaux entered the Top 100 most innovative universities in the world (Reuters) and ranked 24^th in Europe. It is a major player in innovation in its region. Its innovation policy, linked to its network of scientific and socioeconomic partners, aims to accelerate and intensify the transfer of knowledge, in all its forms, to society.

The University of Bordeaux is pursuing an open science policy, aware of the need to guarantee access in research results.
That is why it has launched two iconic and ambitious projects: OSKAR Bordeaux, the publication filing and distribution platform and OpenU, the platform for open-access to scientific journals.

Interconnecting all the university's programmes with research is a requirement in terms of quality course content.

This interconnection is also essential in helping to develop research-related skills and to promote a culture of ethics and scientific integrity. It must be reflected in the implementation of courses both with and through research, to varying degrees, in all courses and at all levels of study.

In addition to the possible introduction to research starting at the Bachelor level, laboratory internships available at the Master level and doctoral programmes, the University of Bordeaux offers highly-internationalised Graduate Programmes of excellence at the Master and Doctorate levels. 

For several years, the University of Bordeaux has been involved in a continuous and structuring transformation of its educational offer, with one goal: to promote the success and integration of its students by enabling them to achieve the best balance between their learning path and their professional/personal objectives. It is also striving to develop lifelong learning.

Preparing students to enter the workforce successfully is an essential objective. This is reflected by internships and apprenticeships being an integral part of all programmes and by preparing students for employability throughout their education.

With students and in conjunction with our socioeconomic partners, several assessment tools help us to continuously improve the programmes we offer and adapt them to the needs of society.

The University of Bordeaux, asserting itself as a major player in lifelong learning, is striving to develop its offer and make it more visible. Thanks to its multidisciplinary nature and its synergies with economic stakeholders, the university can help job seekers and employers to grow in many areas of expertise, linked with the major scientific and technical advances in which it plays a role.

Lastly, the University of Bordeaux's educational strategy involves strengthening the internationalisation of its programmes, starting with the undergraduate level. The aim is to prepare students to advance in a globalised, interdependent world, in which open-mindedness and intercultural understanding are fundamental skills. The levers to achieve that aim are intercultural exchanges, learning one or several languages and diversifying mobility experiences and formats.