 | |
| Motto | L'imagination technologique |
|---|---|
Motto in English | Technological imagination |
| Type | Grande École |
| Established | 1957 |
| Endowment | €162.3 millions |
| President | Frédéric Fotiadu |
Academic staff | 718 |
Administrative staff | 677 |
| Students | 6,300 |
| 613 | |
| Location | , France |
| Campus | LyonTech – La Doua |
| Website | www.insa-lyon.fr |
 | |
TheInstitut National des Sciences Appliquées de Lyon (French pronunciation:[ɛ̃stitynɑsjɔnaldesjɑ̃s(z‿)aplikedəljɔ̃]; "Lyon National Institute for Applied Sciences") orINSA Lyon is a Frenchgrande école and engineering school.[1] The university is located on the La Doua – LyonTech campus, in a cluster of science and technological universities and Grandes Écoles. La Doua is located inVilleurbanne, a suburb ofLyon.
The school was founded in 1957 to train highly qualified engineers, support continuing education, and conduct research. The five-year curriculum aims at training engineers who possess human qualities and are well versed in the primary areas of science and engineering. Students may pursue a PhD upon completion of the 5-year curriculum. Graduates from INSA Lyon are calledInsaliens.
The five-year academic curriculum starts with a two-year preparatory cycle where students focus on fundamental sciences such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, mechanics and computer science. This cycle aims to provide INSA engineers with a wide range of skills and competencies, thus allowing them to redirect their careers independently of their initial specialization.
Several special sections are available:
For the past ten years, INSA Lyon has been consistently the most desired Engineering school by French high school students who express their wishes through a national portal[2][3]
The second cycle lasts 3 years and trains students in 9 departments of engineering:
INSA Lyon has a policy of encouraging international education.
INSA Lyon is blessed with the largest research funding amongGrandes Écoles in France.[4] It features 23 laboratories.
In 2016, INSA Lyon had 613 PhD students and supported 155 theses.[5]
The school also offers 10 Masters of Science for students interested in research careers.
Since its creation, INSA Lyon has offered its students the possibility to live on-campus and provide various facilities including various clubs, library, restaurants...
Over a hundred associations have been registered so far, such as:
Most of the departments also have a student association (Adege for electrical engineering students,AEDI for computer science students).
| Ranking Organisation | Year | Position | Total Institutions Ranked | Percentage in Top |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| THE World University Ranking[6] | 2025 | 601 | 2,800 | Top 21% |
| QS World University Ranking[7] | 2025 | 405 | 1,500 | Top 27% |
| Ranking Organisation | Year | Subject Area | Position | Percentage in Top |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shanghai Ranking by Subject[8] | 2024 | Mechanics | 25 | Top 6% |
| Shanghai Ranking by Subject[9] | 2023 | Mathematics | 51 | Top 10% |
| QS Ranking by Subject[10] | 2025 | Electrical and Electronic Engineering | 151 | Top 27% |
| QS Ranking by Subject[11] | 2024 | Materials Sciences | 101 | Top 24% |
| Ranking Organisation | Year | Position | Total Institutions ranked | Percentage in Top |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L'Usine Nouvelle[12] | 2025 | 10 | 127 | Top 8% |
| L'Étudiant[13] | 2025 | 14 | 170 | Top 8% |
| Le Figaro étudiant (post-bac)[14] | 2025 | 1 | 92 | Top 1% |
The LyonTech campus offers many sports facilities that are also available to INSA students. INSA was awarded the title of the best sports university in France. The "Centre des Sports" (sports centre) is run by 18 specialised sports teachers and has four objectives: to supervise sports practices, to run the “Association Sportive” (Sports Association), to supervise students in the top athletes sports section, and to coordinate technological research applied to sports equipment. This association brings together students who wish to specialise in the practice of a particular sport. It runs on the basis of one or more training session per week and participates in the French University Championships Approximately one third of INSA students are licensed with the Sports Association. The Association's achievements are excellent, with many French Championship titles being won every year. INSA Lyon students are frequently selected to represent the French National University team at the various University World Championships and in the “Universiades”, participating in many of the Olympic Sports.
Top athletes
Since 1981, INSA has been entrusted by the Ministries ofNational Education andSports with the administration of a sports section called SHN (Sportifs de Haut Niveau, literally High Level Sportsmen).11 students from this section have participated in the Olympic Games.2 World Champions have graduated from INSA.François Gabart is a French professional offshore yacht racer who won the 7thVendée Globe race in 2013 and established a new record.
45°46′53″N4°52′20″E / 45.78139°N 4.87222°E /45.78139; 4.87222
