Welcome

Cellule AcOr will welcome you for a presentation of your course and to help you get sorted. Check your emails and your timetable. The school’s faculties and departments will communicate with you using the email system (@ensta.fr). This email system should continue to be used as a priority.

If you have any problems

Cellule AcOr is available to answer any of your questions: please do get in touch with us (Ms Guidal and Ms Gautier)

Administrative priorities

Pay the student services fee (CVEC): you can do this whenever, but make sure you upload your proof of payment to Aurion from August 1 

Everything you need to know about the CVEC, the mandatory contribution towards student and campus life.

Opening a bank account

To make your payments  easier in France, you would be advised to open a bank account. That way you will have a payment or credit card and a checkbook (to be requested when opening the account). The latter may well prove useful.

To open a bank account, you will need 3 documents :

• A passport
• Proof of address (If you are living at the student residence, you can obtain this from Madame De Castro Vieira Catherine - +33 (0) 2 98 34 88 02 - Bureau P005 – If you are living off-campus, you can ask the landlord for this)
• A school attendance certificate (If you are enrolled in the engineering program with student status (FISE), your contact is Marie Pierre Cabon +33 (0)2 98 34 87 85 – Office A103 – If you are enrolled in a Master’s or specialized Master’s degree or undergoing continuing professional education, your contact is Christelle Le Duff +33(0) 2 98 34 87 93 – Office A105)

Don’t forget to close your bank account if you decide to change banks or you leave France!
NB: right to have a bank account

Getting a cell phone plan with a local provider

To get a cell phone number, you need to take out a phone plan with a phone provider. The same applies for an Internet subscription.

Make sure you have the following documents ready:

• An ID document (Passport or national ID card)
• Proof of address: if you are living at the student residence, you can obtain this from Madame De Castro Vieira Catherine - +33 (0)2 98 34 88 02 - Office P005 – If you are living off-campus, you can ask the landlord for this
• Your bank account details (which obviously means you need a bank account…).

Social security registration

Social security enables students to benefit from health insurance during their studies in France (reimbursement of your medical expenses: hospitalization, dental care, seeing a GP, etc.)
Registration is mandatory, but free of charge, for students.

Find out more about how to register 

Information on complementary health insurance

A supplementary health insurance is a contract that aims to complement the reimbursements of the Social Security. These contracts allow all or part of these expenses to be covered.

For example, if you consult your GP, who is a general practitioner, for a consultation costing €30, the health insurance system will reimburse 70%, i.e. €21 (minus the €2 fixed contribution). The remaining 30% will be paid by you. If you have a complementary health insurance, it will reimburse all or part of this amount.

It is not compulsory but strongly recommended

Registration with the Family Benefits Fund (CAF)

As a student, you can apply for Personalized Housing Assistance (APL) to help you pay your rent. You need to submit your application on the CAF website to see if you are eligible.

When you arrive, you will not be considered a recipient (beneficiary of the assistance) and will therefore have to register. The website has an assistance simulation tool which you can use to find out how much financial assistance you could potentially receive depending on your housing and your financial situation.

We recommend that you do this as soon as you have signed your rental agreement.

Link to the CAF website

What you will need:

You will need an email address to make your housing assistance (APL) application online. Make sure you have these documents on hand:

• your identity document or passport
• your bank account details (if you are not yet a recipient)
• your rental agreement

Long-stay visa/residence permit and registering with the CMI welcome service

Article 1 of Regulation (EU) No 265/2010 of the European Parliament and of the Council of March 25, 2010 states: “Visas for stays exceeding three months (long-stay visas) shall be national visas issued by one of the Member States in accordance with its national law or Union law. […] Long-stay visas shall have a period of validity of no more than one year. If a Member State allows an alien to stay for more than one year, the long-stay visa shall be replaced before the expiry of its period of validity by a residence permit.”

Dated March 18, 2021, the French Ministry of the Interior further clarifies: “France requires all nationalities to apply for a long-stay visa with the exception of EU citizens and nationals of Member States of the European Economic Area (Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein), as well as, pursuant to bilateral agreements, Monaco, Andorra, San Marino and the Holy See.”

The replacement of a long-stay visa by a residence permit is done online. You can consult the following website of the CMI to find out more.

You will need to have the following documents ready to complete your registration on the platform:

• a valid email address
• your passport and visa
• the address of where you are staying in France
• your payment or credit card to pay the fee for the issue of the residence permit (amount indicated at the time of payment)

Please contact the International Mobility Center (CMI). Make an appointment with them so that they are able to help you with all your formalities.
The email address: etudiant@cmibrest.fr 

The Student's Union will come to meet you at the station or airport.

In the event of any problems (no one is there to meet you for example), please call:

• From 16/08 : Student's Union Bde-brest@ensta.fr  or instagram BDE instagram
• From 18/08 : Cellule AcOr +33 (0) 2 98 34 88 63 or +33 (0) 98 34 87 37 and email AcOr

We will find a solution to come and get you.

- If you’ll be living at ENSTA Brest student residence:

• a student from the Students’ Union will be on duty to welcome you on-campus
• at the warden’s desk, you will be able to collect your room keys and a welcome envelope
• take your time settling in
• go and meet the other students on campus once you’ve rested

 information about the opening of the student residence and the dining hall

- If you’ll be living off-campus :

• Your landlord will begin with a tour and an inventory.
• You will jointly complete a document attesting to the state of the accommodation on your arrival.
• Check everything carefully before signing this document.
• Look at the state of the accommodation and point out any problems that the landlord has not indicated, as if you do not, you could be held responsible for them later when doing the moving-out inventory.
• You will need to supply all of the documents requested (guarantor, etc.)

If you would like to arrive on campus before your official start date, please contact the Students’ Union

Inform the student office and the acor cell to arrange for you to be picked up in Brest

The student office (BDE) will arrange for you to be picked up at the train station or at the airport

email Bde-brest@ensta.fr or instagram BDE Instagram

Picking you up is free of charge. In order to arrange for you to be picked up properly, please fill in the form to be found at the following link: Form

(Don't worry, you can change your information at any time by logging back in.)

This reservation must be made no later than 8 days before your arrival. Don't forget!

Contact the student residence or your landlord

• Indicate your exact time of arrival so that you can move in without any problems