Entente Cordiale Scholarships
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The Entente Cordiale Scholarship scheme ('' Bourses Entente Cordiale'') is a selective Franco-British scholarship scheme. It provides funding for British and French students to study for one academic year on the other side of the Channel. The scheme is administered by the French embassy in London for British students, and by the
British Council The British Council is a British organisation specialising in international cultural and educational opportunities. It works in over 100 countries: promoting a wider knowledge of the United Kingdom and the English language (and the Welsh lan ...
France and the UK embassy in Paris for French students. Funding is provided by the private sector and foundations. The scheme aims to favour mutual understanding and to promote exchanges between the British and French leaders of tomorrow.


History

The creation of the Entente Cordiale scholarships was announced on 30 October 1995 by British Prime Minister
John Major Sir John Major (born 29 March 1943) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party (UK), Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997, and as Member of Parliament ...
and French President
Jacques Chirac Jacques René Chirac (, , ; 29 November 193226 September 2019) was a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. Chirac was previously Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, as well as Ma ...
at an Anglo-French summit in London. They said: “Young people in our two countries represent our shared future. The more they learn about their near neighbour as they advance in their education, the more they can contribute to the enlightened partnership and growing opportunities, which we are now developing in an enlarged Europe.” The programme was initiated by Sir Christopher Mallaby, British ambassador to France between 1993 and 1996. During his first months as ambassador in France, he decided he had to move quickly if he was to do anything “to try to reduce the ingrained suspicion that can arise between the British and the French.” The problem, he explained, “arises from past rivalry and current ignorance.” He therefore encouraged the Entente Cordiale scholarship scheme, which funds studies for postgraduate students across the Channel “at an age when impressions and friendships are forged for life.” Another strong support of the scheme was French writer and politician
Maurice Druon Maurice Druon (23 April 1918 – 14 April 2009) was a French novelist and a member of the Académie Française, of which he served as "Perpetual Secretary" (chairman) between 1985 and 1999. Life and career Born in Paris, France, Druon was the s ...
, who was appointed an Honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his work in wartime London and for his broadcasts to occupied France from the BBC. Of the Entente Cordiale, he said in 2004 during the celebrations held for the centenary of the alliance: “Cordial understanding! What a classic piece of British understatement. It is not a cordial understanding - it is an alliance. And it is one that saved Europe twice!” The first Entente Cordiale scholars studied during the academic year 1995-1996. The Entente Cordiale Scholarships scheme is administered by two trusts, one in the United Kingdom, the other in France. These trusts are independent, but work in close cooperation.


Goal

The stated goal of the Entente Cordiale Scholarship scheme is to “promote contacts and increase exchanges between tomorrow’s decision-makers in the United Kingdom and France,” and “to build an influential and widespread network of alumni and sponsors.” Sir Christophe Mallaby, founder of the scheme, hoped it would increase understanding between the two countries. “Some of the scholars will go on to become influential men and women. (…) I hope that as a consequence, there will be among British and French decision-makers more and more people with deep knowledge of the other country. Knowledge overcomes prejudice, and should lead to more temperate opinions at high levels of responsibility on either side of the Channel.”


Organisation and selection criteria

This scheme is Franco-British, and funds postgraduate students for one academic year in France for British scholars and in the United Kingdom for French scholars. On the British side, the scholarships are managed by the French embassy in London. On the French side, the scholarships are managed by the British Council France and the British embassy in Paris. Funding is provided by the private sector, while administrative costs are borne by the British and French governments. The selection of the scholars is based not only or their academic success, but also on their professional ambitions and their desire to become influential in their domains of expertise. Also taken into account is their ability to invest themselves and develop links between the United Kingdom and France in their field of activity. The scholarships are awarded in a broad range of academic subjects, ensuring a diversity of profiles and backgrounds among scholars.


Past and current sponsors

Companies currently funding the Entente Cordiale Scholarships scheme are the following: Rolls-Royce, Rothschild, Areva, Schlumberger, Herbert Smith. In the past, the following companies have supported the programme:
Académie Française An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...
, Alstom, Arjo Wiggins, Banque
Paribas The Banque de Paris et des Pays-Bas (“Bank of Paris and the Netherlands”), generally referred to from 1982 as Paribas, was a French investment bank based in Paris. In May 2000, it merged with the Banque Nationale de Paris to form BNP Paribas ...
, British Airways,
Cap Gemini Capgemini SE is a multinational information technology (IT) services and consulting company, headquartered in Paris, France. History Capgemini was founded by Serge Kampf in 1967 as an enterprise management and data processing company. The compa ...
, Charles Schiaffino, European Investment Bank, GlaxoWellcome SA, Groupe Axa, Groupe Saint Louis, Institute of Applied Languages, JCB, Lagardère, Matra BAe Dynamics, Louis Dreyfus & Cie SA, L'Oréal, Le Progrès, Messier Dowty International Ltd, Pernod Ricard, Redlands Granulates, Rothschild & Cie, Rover France, Saint Gobain, Société des Bourses Françaises, H.H. Prince Karim Aga Khan, CCF, Fondation Singer-Polignac, Groupe RMC, Groupe
Darty Groupe Fnac Darty, formerly Kesa Electricals plc, Darty plc and Darty Limited, is a multinational retail company headquartered in Ivry-sur-Seine, France. It was formerly a public limited company (PLC) listed on the London Stock Exchange, until ...
, Institut de France, Linklaters and Alliance,
Turbomeca Safran Helicopter Engines, previously known as Turbomeca, is a French manufacturer of low- and medium-power gas turbine turboshaft engines for helicopters. The company also produces gas turbine engines for aircraft and missiles, as well as turbin ...
, Blue Circle (Lafarge), Corus, Financial Times, Madame Alice Goldet, Roy Jenkins Memorial Trust, Unilever, Arcadian International, Axa UK, BP Amoco Foundation, British Midland, BT, CGNU, The Dulverton Trust,
EDF Energy EDF Energy is a British integrated energy company, wholly owned by the French state-owned EDF (Électricité de France), with operations spanning electricity generation and the sale of natural gas and electricity to homes and businesses through ...
, Hillsdown Holdings plc, Kingfisher, NatWest Bank, Mr Paul Minet, The Reuters Foundation, The
Rhodes Trust Rhodes House is a building part of the University of Oxford in England. It is located on South Parks Road in central Oxford, and was built in memory of Cecil Rhodes, an alumnus of the university and a major benefactor. It is listed Grade II* ...
, The Savoy Educational Trust, Securicor plc, Sir Patrick Sheehy, Steelite International plc, UBS, Xerox UK Ltd,
EDF EDF may refer to: Organisations * Eclaireurs de France, a French Scouting association * Education for Development Foundation, a Thai charity * Électricité de France, a French energy company ** EDF Energy, their British subsidiary ** EDF Luminus, ...
,
Vodafone Vodafone Group Public limited company, plc () is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Telephone company, telecommunications company. Its registered office and Headquarters, global headquarters are in Newbury, Berkshire, England. It ...
Foundation UK, Dassault Systèmes,
Boucheron Boucheron () is a French luxury jewellery and watches house located in Paris, 26 Place Vendôme, owned by Kering. History At the origins The House of Boucheron is a French family dynasty founded by Frederic Boucheron in 1858, with the opening ...
. Additionally, in 2011 a scholarship was funded entirely by donations from alumni.


The Entente Cordiale Herbert-Smith Scholarship

The Entente Cordiale
Herbert Smith Freehills Herbert Smith Freehills is an international law firm with headquarters in London, United Kingdom and Sydney, Australia. It was formed on 1 October 2012 by a merger between the United Kingdom-based Herbert Smith, then a member of the " Silver ...
Scholarship, first awarded in June 2012, funds a French law student to study for an LL.M. in a British university.http://www.britishcouncil.fr/en/education/scholarships-herbert-smith-freehills Entente Cordiale - Herbert Smith Freehills scholarship on the British Council France website Apart from the field of study, the criteria of selection remain similar. When back in France, the scholar is offered a placement with the law firm Herbert Smith Freehills.


References


Sources


Cross Current Channels: 100 Years of the Entente Cordiale
Edited by Richard J. Mayne, Douglas Johnson and Robert Tombs, 2004
Are International Exchange and Mobility Programmes Effective Tools of Symmetric Public Diplomacy ? Iain Wilson, Aberystwyth University, 2010

Crossing the Channel, Promoting academic mobility within Europe

The Entente Cordiale Scholarships on the website of the French embassy in the UK

The Entente Cordiale Scholarships on the website of the UK embassy in France

The Entente Cordiale Scholarships on the website of the British Council France

Website of the Entente Cordiale alumni

Regards Voices-Around the world in seven Entente Cordiale scholars'stories


See also

{{Foreign relations of France Scholarships in the United Kingdom