Frequently Asked Questions
General Logistics
Most of the websites I visit to gather useful logistic information are in French, how can I do ?
Nowadays, online services as deepl.com provide an excellent translation. Some browsers, as Chrome, have an embedded plugin supporting automatic translation of webpages while surfing.
Where are the courses located?
Most of the courses will be located at the Cnam headquarters in Paris downtown, in the St Martin campus (292 rue Saint Martin, 3ème) and the Montgolfier campus (2 rue Conté, 3ème). One course per semester will take place at Sorbonne University, Marie Curie (Jussieu) Campus (4 place Jussieu, 5ème), as drawn below.
How can I get a SIM card ?
The fastest and easiest way is to go in physical stores of mobile operators, many are able to give you a SIM card immediately upon presentation of ID and payment information. For instance, you can go to the Free store in Chatelet and with a simple credit card and ID you can obtain an active SIM card.
Accommodation
Am I eligible for the “Aide Personnalisé au Logement (APL)” / Personalized Housing Assistance ?
The APL is a monetary help to cover for part of the rent students can ask. It is given by a state company called CAF. More informations and links are at this page.
Are there university residences available?
This is the official French government page for helping you with an accommodation application in a public residence.
If you are already resident in France at the time of acceptance, you are free to apply to the Crous Paris public residence. Room prices are much lower than those in the private sector; from about 250€ to 550€ per month (covering electricity, Internet and water).
If you are not already resident but you come from abroad and are applying for a VISA, you can file an application via the Cnam: Cnam has a limited number of rooms available in Crous residences: candidates having applied before the extra-EU master application deadline, each year, will be contacted by the master administrative staff to file, if interested, an accommodation request endorsed by the Cnam international affairs office; in case of more demands than rooms available, priority will be given to candidates having applied the earliest to the master programme.
Additional information on the preparation of your arrival are at this page.
General advices from the government on student housing are at this page.
I obtained a room at a Crous residence, what are the next steps ?
The next steps are resumed in this useful step-by-step chart from the Crous housing services.
Agreement with STUDAPART
Cnam Paris has signed an agreement with STUDAPART, an apartment rental company that offers, besides studios and apartments, simplified and online procedures, including garantor and insurances. See the STUDAPART advertisement text below:
Book your accommodation with Studapart ! 🚀
Looking for a place to live? Use our online housing platform.
In partnership with Studapart, access hundreds of exclusive offers for periods of 1 to 24 months near your campus but also throughout France during your search for internship: studios, flatshares, rooms in private homes … and benefit from a personalized support throughout your rental!
Sign up on cnam-paris.studapart.com/en
From the rental file to the reservation of the accommodation, all the steps are done online. The rental file is simplified and in 100% digital format. Studapart stands by you during the whole duration of your stay !
⚡ Exclusive offers to students of CNAM Paris
💸 Verified ads and secured payment
🤝 Simplified rental file & 100% online procedures
💪 Subscribe to the Home Insurance by Studapart & enjoy the Benefits Assistance by Studapart to get your state housing allowances (APL/ALS)
To get started, click on the tenant space and create an account on our platform!
You don’t have a guarantor living in France?
Thanks to the Studapart guarantee, Studapart is your guarantor for the whole duration of your rental. 😏 To be eligible, all you have to do is submit your ID and proof of admission on the platform.
A multilingual team awaits you at booking@studapart.com
How can I find a “garant” (garantor) for my accommodation rent ?
A “garant” is a person that guarantees that if you fail to pay, he/she will pay the rent on your behalf. It is required in Paris by most of the apartment renters, accommodation agencies, Crous residences. If you do not find one, you may use available services online: Visale or Guarantme. More information on Visale in this Campus France website page.
Do I really need to do an “assurance habitation”?
Yes, an insurance for your accommodation (assurance habitation) is compulsory in France. You should include in this insurance the option “responsabilité civile”. It is typically about a few euros per month using insurances like MACIF.
Admission
I have not a bachelor in computer science, can I apply ?
Yes, if you have a bachelor in computer engineering, electrical engineering, telecommunications, multimedia and similar matters with fundamental courses in networks, computer systems, programming.
What is the CVEC ?
CVEC (Contribution de vie étudiante et de campus) is a monetary contribution that every student of public universities in France has to pay before starting each academic year. Its amount changes every year and students with scholarships from public institutions can be waived; useful informations can be found at this page. Select Cnam Paris in the forms.
I am applying, and filling the Campus France form. What should I select?
You should look for Master in Computer Networks and IoT systems, from the Taught in English Campus France catalogue. Select “Cnam Établissement Public – EPN5” in the form to proceed.
I am admitted without having applied before the Campus France deadline using the Campus France form; I have now received an email from Campus France asking to proceed, but how can I do it?
Once admitted, if you are not an EU resident and did not originally apply to the master using the Etudes en France platform, you will receive an email in French with subject “Etudes en France : création de dossier pour admission sur formation”.
You have then to login at this page, with your email as login (reset the password if needed), then click on the top-left tab “I am already accepted (pre-consular)”. You should get the following page:
Choose English as language if needed. The admission letter we sent you have to be uploaded in the page after clicking on “Consult”. Then in the following page:
click on “Attachments(0)” to upload the admission letter you received by email. Then do not click on Cancel, and go back to the previous page and fill the personal information and complete the general form. Campus France will then process your file. If problems, please write us to master-roc@cnam.fr.
I have applied but I have not heard from you yet, what is the status of my application?
If you have not heard from us and have not been interviewed yet, it means that your application is being studied by the admission committee, please be patient. If you have already done the interview, it means that your application is in the waiting list. All applications will get a definitive reply in June for the first two admission deadlines, and end of August for the last wave.
What are the criteria used to be waived of the last installment of the tuition fees ?
You should have passed all the exams with positive marks (higher or equal than 10/20), and either be ranked among the first ones in terms of average mark or have excelled in one course with outstanding results in proposed tasks (e.g. worth a scientific publication).
Are there scholarships available?
There are a number of scholarships opportunities listed here. Additional scholarships may be offered by private and public organisations in your country. In addition, private companies can sponsor the master and offer partial coverage of the tuition fees. More informations are at this page.
How can I apply to the Eiffel scholarship ?
The Eiffel scholarship competition has a submission deadline in early January each year. Cnam does a first selection based on the CVs. Then the Eiffel office perform an additional selection. You have to manifest your interest after filing the application form as soon as possible and no later than December 15, every year, by including it in the cover letter and writing to master-roc@cnam.fr
Visa Application and Languages
Do I need to pass a French language test to be admitted and/or to get the Visa ?
It is not required for the admission, and it is not compulsory for the Visa as the master is taught in English. In the admission letter, we stress this aspect and we also mention that a French as a Foreign Language (FLE) course of 6 ECTS is included in each year of the master program. Nonetheless, for extra-EU students, if you have a minimal knowledge of French, it is wiser to take the TCF French language test. Including it in your visa application, it can ease its processing.
Can I take extra French classes during the master program?
Yes, you can take extra French classes at Cnam to increase your fluency in French. In the first semester of each year, you have a French class included in the master program, counting 6 ECTS. If you want to continue with a French class in the second semester to increase your level, you can take an evening class at Cnam as an extra course at a moderate cost (about 180€).
I have been admitted, but I did not apply via Campus France / Etudes en France, what shall I do ?
The Cnam administratif office will be adding you manually to the Campus France / Etudes en France platform to allow you to complete your visa application, shortly after the registration form is completed.
Alternatively, once you have completed the registration items after receiving the admission letter, you may also use the form “I am accepted” in the Etudes en France platform, using the admission letter; in this case, please write to master-roc@cnam.fr to notify this operation.
I am from a country with no Campus France office, how can I do?
You should apply using the university application form. The sooner the better because the visa obtention delays may be longer for you than for countries with a Campus France office.
I have been admitted, when shall I file the visa application at the local consulate?
The consulates typically indicate no earlier than 3 months before the planned arrival date. We suggest you plan to arrive in Paris at least 2 weeks before the courses start, that is, few days before Sept. 15. So we suggest you file your application starting by mid June.
Job Opportunities
Will it be possible to do internships during the master?
Yes, a total of 10-11 months of paid internship can be done during the 2 years, 4 months in the first year and 6-7 months in the second year. More information at this page.
How much are master internships remunerated in Paris?
A minimum of about 600€/month, and up to 1800€/month, and in some cases even more, depending on your experience and on the company.
What are the typical salary ranges in Paris for graduate students in the networks and IoT systems area?
Our former students typically get a salary in the range 33000€ – 45000€ per year. Ph.D. student graduates typically can get a salary in the range 38000€ – 80000€.
If I decide to stop at the M1 level, will I obtain a certificate?
Though we strongly suggest you to continue to the M2 level as that is recognised as a Master of Science level at companies and internationally, it is possible to stop at M1 level. In such a case you will obtain a certificate stating that you did the M1 with a detailed description of the courses taken with marks; it may or may not be counted by the human resource offices of companies, depending on the local policy.
What is the local industry offering job opportunities in networks and IoT R&D?
Paris is probably the most important hub in Europe in terms of R&D in telecommunications, networks, IoT, cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. We can mention Orange Labs, Nokia France and Nokia Bell Labs, Ericsson Research France, Google, Facebook, Apple, Huawei, Cisco Research Center, SAFRAN, SAGEM, Thales, SMILE, Airbus, QUALCOMM, to name a few. Some of them were recently created in the last few years given the high concentration of skills in these fields, such as the QUALCOMM, Ericsson, Huawei, Google, Facebook and Apple ones.
What are the research groups of the Cnam research department?
The Cnam CEDRIC research department regularly hires its students as master interns and Ph.D. candidates. The lab has 8 teams: the ROC team coordinates the master and that works in networking, IoT Systems, cybersecurity and network artificial intelligence. The other groupes are the SYS team on computing system reliability, the LAETITIA team on radio-communications, the Vertigo team on machine learning, the OC team on combinatorial optimization, the ISID team on information systems, the MSDMA team on statistics applied to computing, and the ILJ team on IHM.
What are the academic research laboratories hiring Ph.D. students in networks and IoT systems in Paris?
Paris is fortunately extremely rich in academic research labs. Besides the Cnam CEDRIC lab and the other Cnam research labs, the most active labs in the field of the master in Paris downtown are LIP6, LIAFA, LAMSADE, LIPADE. In the greater Paris metropolitan area we can mention the LTCI, L2TI, LIGM, SAMOVAR.
Will I be able to apply for the “Authorization Provisoire de Séjour (APS)” after graduation ?
Yes, you will be able to apply for Temporary Resident Permit (“Authorization Provisioire de Séjour (APS)”) to look for work or launch a company after graduation as the master is a national diploma.
