French diplomas explained: RNCP, Bachelor, Master & équivalences

The French framework was deliberately built with 8 levels, like the EQF, and the level numbers are identical to the European ones (French niveau N = EQF/CEC level N). The official correspondence runs 2 → 8; the level scale was fixed by Décret n° 2019-14 du 8 janvier 2019, replacing the old Roman-numeral system (I–V). The corresponding CEC/EQF level is printed on every RNCP fiche.

French niveau	EQF / CEC level	Typical diploma	ECTS / years
3	3	CAP, BEP	-
4	4	Baccalauréat, Brevet professionnel (BP)	-
5	5	BTS, BUT/DUT (2 yrs), DEUST	~120 ECTS / bac+2
6	6	Licence, licence professionnelle, BUT (3 yrs), bachelor (school title)	180 ECTS / bac+3 (or bac+4)
7	7	Master, diplôme d'ingénieur	120 ECTS after Licence = 300 total / bac+5
8	8	Doctorat, HDR (habilitation à diriger des recherches)	bac+8

The number is the universal shorthand. A "Titre RNCP niveau 6" reads as "bachelor-level / EQF 6 / bac+3"; "niveau 7" as "master-level / EQF 7 / bac+5" - in any of the 30+ countries that use the EQF, no conversion needed. That holds even when the programme is run by a private school and is not a university Licence/Master.

This is the single most confusing part of the French system: four different things, four different meanings.

What it is	Meaning
Diplôme national	Created and regulated by the State (Ministère de l'Enseignement supérieur). Licence, Master and Doctorat are diplômes nationaux - same value everywhere in France whichever institution delivers it, and recognised internationally because it fits the LMD/Bologna scheme. The gold standard.
Grade	The academic rank conferred "au nom de l'État" (grade de licence, grade de master, grade de doctorat). A holder of a diplôme national automatically gets the matching grade. The grade can also be conferred on certain other diplomas - e.g. a bachelor of a business school, a diplôme d'ingénieur (grade de master), the DCG (grade de licence).
Diplôme visé	A school diploma (often private, bac+3 to bac+5) to which the Ministère grants a "visa" - a State guarantee of the quality of the training. The visa is granted to a diploma, not an institution, for 6 years maximum, with continuous quality control. Some diplômes visés also confer the grade de licence or de master.
Titre RNCP	A State-recognised professional certification with a niveau 3–8, frequently delivered by private schools and job-market oriented. Recognised by France Compétences and employers - but on its own it does not confer a university grade and is not a diplôme national.

Recognition ladder, strongest first (for a private-school programme): grade de licence/master > diplôme visé > titre RNCP niveau 6/7 > a simple "certificate" with no State registration.

What this means for you: if you plan to continue into a university Master/Doctorate later (in France or abroad), a diplôme national or a grade gives the smoothest path; a bare titre RNCP can be accepted, but is assessed case by case. For work in France, a titre RNCP niveau 6/7 is genuinely recognised by employers. For visa / immigration steps, what usually counts is the level and whether the school is recognised by the State - always check the specific programme's status before enrolling.

Both can be EQF level 6 / bac+3, but they are not the same legal object.

	Licence	Bachelor (French usage)
Type	Diplôme national of the university	Usually a school title (private / business / engineering school)
Delivered by	Universities (State)	Schools - title value depends on its status
Duration	3 years (6 semesters)	3 or 4 years
Credits	180 ECTS	Variable; often registered as Titre RNCP niveau 6
Grade	Confers the grade de licence automatically	Only if specifically authorised to confer the grade
International recognition	Strong (Bologna/LMD)	Very good if it carries the grade de licence or a visa; otherwise judged case by case

Before enrolling, ask the school three questions: (1) Is it a diplôme national / does it confer a grade? (2) Is it visé? (3) Is it registered in the RNCP, and at which niveau? The answers tell you exactly how portable the diploma will be.

Only one of these is the State diploma. The others are school labels - useful, but legally different.

Name	Who delivers / labels it	Legal nature	Level / notes
Master (DNM)	University / accredited grande école (Ministère)	Diplôme national, confers the grade de master	120 ECTS, 2 yrs after Licence, niveau 7 / bac+5
MSc – Master of Science	CGE label (created 2002)	Diplôme d'établissement (school diploma), not a diplôme national	Bac+5, taught ≥50% in a foreign language, international focus
Mastère Spécialisé (MS)	CGE label (created 1983/86)	Diplôme d'établissement, not a diplôme national	Post-master specialisation (often bac+6); entry usually bac+5; ≥4-month company mission
MBA	School (no single national status)	School title; not a diplôme national	Aimed at mid-career professionals moving into management

Key line to remember: the national Master is the only State diploma; MSc, Mastère Spécialisé and MBA are establishment diplomas, labelled (for MSc/MS) by the Conférence des Grandes Écoles. For maximum academic portability (e.g. entering a PhD or being recognised abroad), the diplôme national de master is the safest. A CGE-labelled MS/MSc is well-regarded professionally, especially internationally, but is not automatically the grade de master.

The Bologna Process (launched 1998–1999) created the European Higher Education Area to make European degrees comparable, organised around three cycles: Bachelor – Master – Doctorate. In France this became the LMD reform (Licence – Master – Doctorat).

ECTS = European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System, a central tool of the Bologna Process for making studies more transparent. 60 ECTS = one full year of study. The French LMD credit map:

• Licence = 3 years = 180 ECTS
• Master = +2 years = 120 ECTS (a Master holder has 300 ECTS after the bac)
• Doctorat = ~3 years after the Master (no fixed ECTS; bac+8)

ECTS is your portability currency. If you complete part of a degree in your home country, those ECTS can be transferred toward a French qualification (and vice versa) via a Learning Agreement and a Transcript of Records - the mechanism behind Erasmus-style mobility and credit recognition.

ENIC-NARIC France is the French information centre on the academic and professional recognition of diplomas, part of the international ENIC-NARIC network, attached to France Éducation International (FEI) since 2004. It can deliver three main documents:

• Attestation de comparabilité - describes the level of the foreign diploma and compares it to the French level (situates it against the French and European frameworks).
• Attestation de reconnaissance d'études / de formation - when the curriculum is incomplete (unfinished final year, undefended thesis).
• Attestation de reconnaissance de diplôme de réfugié (European Qualifications Passport for Refugees).

⚠️ The single most important point: this is NOT an automatic "equivalence." France does not grant legal diploma equivalences. Since 1 September 2009, ENIC-NARIC France uses a comparative approach. The attestation is an advisory comparison document, and the final decision stays with each institution or employer:

• For studies: recognition of your foreign diploma can only be granted by the receiving institution in France - admission to higher education is decided solely by the institutions.
• For employment (non-regulated): it is your future employer who evaluates the qualifications presented.

Eligibility & exclusions: only a diploma officially recognised in its country of issue can get an attestation; purely linguistic diplomas and diplomas tied to a regulated profession are excluded. Regulated professions (doctor, nurse, lawyer, etc.) follow a different path - the attestation is not an authorisation to practise, and ENIC-NARIC is not competent for medical/paramedical professions; EU/EEA holders go through the relevant competent authority (EU directive 2005/36/CE).

The reverse direction: because France has referenced its framework to the EQF, a French qualification carries an EQF level (1–8) that other European countries read directly - Master = EQF 7, Licence = EQF 6, Doctorat = EQF 8 - the common European "translation layer". Within the European Higher Education Area, credits earned at one institution can count toward a qualification at another through ECTS.