SERVICE DE COOPERATION

ET D’ACTION CULTURELLE

FRENCH GOVERNMENT SCHOLARSHIPS

Application file
Explanatory note 2020-2021

This explanatory note will help you to understand better how to make a good application file for
the French Government Scholarship program.

Please read it carefully and entirely before starting the application process.

1. The French Government Scholarships (BGF)

The French Government Scholarships are open to Master and Ph.D. students.
There are two types of scholarships:
 The social protection scholarship1 only covers tuition fees and social security during the
stay in France. No allowance is given to the student;
 The full scholarship covers the followings :
- your daily expenses thanks to a monthly allowance (around 700 € in Master and
1 015 € in Ph. D.);
- a round-trip airplane ticket from Cambodia to France and back;
- your tuition fees in a public French university or up to 5 000€/year for the
privates ones;
- your health insurance (medical expenses reimbursed by the French government
if you have a health issue);
- a priority access to government subsidized student housing2;
- the “scholarship alder student status” which will give you many discounts in
France;
- a repatriation insurance.

Applications in any field of studies will be accepted, with a special interest given to the following
fields:
- international and public law ; economy ; linguistics ; history and archaeology ;
anthropology ;
- agroecology ; vulnerabilities and inequalities in access to and uses of natural resources ;
- engineering sciences : mechatronics ; network and telecommunications ; energy
engineering; industrial engineering ; food engineering ; water and environmental
engineering.

1
The social protection scholarship cannot cover all students’ expenses in France. It is best fitted for cofounding.
2
Being a French Government Scholarship awardee helps accessing student housing subsidized by the government.
Nonetheless, we cannot guaranty to all students their placement in such facilities. Housing remains students’
responsibility!
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 2. French Government Scholarships duration

The French Government Scholarships duration is as follows:

Master 10 months a year (September – June)

Ph.D. 18 months over 3 years of thesis

Here is an example of a possible 18 months Ph.D. scholarship management:

D1 6 months (doctoral training)

D2 9 months (field research)
D3 3 months (redaction supervision and defense; )

The 18 months’ scholarship repartition must be decided over the 3 years of the Ph.D. by the
students together with their thesis direction.

Please note that only PhD students under joint supervision can stay in France less than 6 months.
Moreover, 18 months is a maximum duration. If the research topic and/or the research schedule
do not justify 18 months of presence in France, awardees may receive a lesser duration (12
months for instance).

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 3. Eligibility criteria

Before applying, candidates must check they meet the BGF eligibility criteria below:
1. To submit a complete application file
2. To be a Cambodian national;
3. To have at least a Bachelor degree at the time of departure (September 2020);
4. For candidacies in French taught programs, good French language proficiency is required.
Students will be asked to provide an official DELF B2 diploma, or to have received a French
higher education diploma (baccalaureate, bachelor or master taught in French).
ATTENTION: if you are taking the March 2020 DELF exam, you will have up until April 15 to
submit your results to the Embassy;
5. For candidacies in English taught programs, a good English language proficiency is required.
Students will be asked to provide an official English certification, such as the IELTS, or to
have received a French higher education diploma (baccalaureate, bachelor or master
taught in English). The level required has to be equivalent or superior to the B2 level of the
Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (see the annex 3)
6. To have started the registration and diploma equivalence requests processes with the
intended French university;
7. For a civil servant: to have the hierarchy’s agreement to pursue a master or a Ph.D. abroad.

Note: All candidacies will be reviewed with respect to gender equality.

ATTENTION: The French Government Scholarship application and the French university
application are two different processes. It is each applicant’s responsibility to do:
 their administrative registration in the French university they wish to join ;
 their French Government Scholarship application.
 The applicants that will be selected for a BGF in 2020 that won’t be selected by their
first choice university will have the opportunity to keep their scholarship for their 2nd
and 3rd choices. The candidates that will make only one choice will not have this
opportunity.

Applications with a co-funding (from a Cambodian ministry or university, a French university, a

research laboratory, or a private partner) will be favored.

 Application not meeting the eligibility criteria will not be considered 

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 4. Documents to attach with the application

A complete application file is made of:

0. The application form (a sample, duly completed, is enclosed in annex) ;

1. The applicant curriculum Vitae ;
2. A copy of the candidate’s passport or ID card ;
3. A cover letter, in French or in English, depending on the language chosen for the studies in
France, clearly stating the applicant’s study project in France and their professional project
after the completion of their curriculum in France (1 single-sided page maximum) ;
4. The applicant’s registration certification in their intended French university (or, if not
possible, an email exchange with the French university explaining the current state of the
application process);
5. The intended program’s schedule (including thesis defense date);
6. Certified copies of all diplomas and transcripts since high school graduation;
7. For French taught programs: a DELF B2 diploma;
For English taught programs: a English B2 level diploma (annex 3);
8. For all students: the current Cambodian university’s registration certificate;
9. For Ph.D. applicants: a 3 to 5 pages research abstract;
10. For Ph.D. applicants: a letter from their thesis direction stating and justifying the wished
scholarship duration over the 3 years of thesis;
11. For civil servants: a letter from their hierarchy agreeing to their studying abroad.

Note: optional recommendation letters can be added to the file.

Applicants will not have to provide a French DELF B2 diploma if:

- they have a French baccalaureate, Bachelor or master degree taught in French;
- they want to follow an English taught program (they will then have to provide an English
proficiency certification equivalent to a Common European Framework of Reference for
Languages B2 level, or a French bachelor or master degree taught in English).

 Incomplete files will not be considered. 

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 5. File submission

The form and all the attached documents shall be submitted to the Cooperation and Cultural
action department of the Embassy of France in Cambodia.

Submissions have to be made at the Embassy of France, 1 Bvd Monivong, from Monday to Friday,
from 8:30 to 12:00 and from 14:00 to 17:00 or by email to scac.phnom-penh-
[email protected]

If submission at the Embassy of France, files shall be complete and put in an envelope stating the
applicant’s name, surname and intended field of study and diploma.

 The submission deadline is: March 27, 2020 at 5:00 pm 

6. Applicants assessment process and results proclamation

After reviewing all the applications, the best candidates will be invited at the Embassy (or via
skype) for an interview.
I you’re not invited to an interview at the end of April, you can consider that your application
hasn’t been selected.
Then, the finale selection of the 2020 French government Scholarship awardees shall be made by
a jury of scholars and specialists of the candidates’ fields of study. This jury will gather in May,
2020. Its decision will be based both on the quality of the application file and on the applicant’s
oral performance on the day of the interview.

Results shall be published mid-May, 2020, on the Embassy’s website: www.ambafrance-kh.org and
on Campus France Cambodge’s website: www.cambodge.campusfrance.org

ATTENTION: Please note that no scholarship will be considered as definitively awarded so

long as all documents and certifications have not been submitted. In particular: bachelors,
masters, French university registrations and language certifications obtained after the 23rd
of March will have to be submitted to the Embassy before the launch of the scholarship.

Contact :

Lisa CASAMAJOU
Higher Education Project Officer
Embassy of France in Cambodia
1, Bd Monivong - BP18 - Phnom Penh
Phone: +855 (0) 23 430 032
Email: [email protected]

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ANNEX 1: Scholarship application form

The first document to complete in the application file is the application form, including the list of
all the attached documents needed (in annex 2).

Here is a sample complete form:

Last name: ……SOK…………….……………………………………………………………………

First name: ……Bernadette………………………….……………………………………………….
Sex:  Male X Female Date of birth : …01…/…01…/…1995…….
Status: X Student  Professor  Civil servant  Other:…………………………..……
Address in Cambodia: ……# 218, street 184, Daun Penh, Phnom Penh...........................................
………………………………………...………………..……………………….……………………..
Email address:...… [email protected] ………………………............................................
Phone number:…… 023 430 032...........................................................................................................
English level : X IELTS  TOEIC  TOEFL (iBT / CBT / PBT)  Other (……………….)
Score: ……5.5...…….
University of origin in Cambodia:... ……University of Battambang……………………………….
Last diploma: ……..…………BSc (Food Processing)…………………...…………………………..
Year of graduation: …………2018 (work in progress)……..………………………………….……
French Diploma : □ Yes □ No If yes, which teaching language : ………………………….

Intended program of studies in France n°1 : X 1st year of Master 2nd year of Master  Ph.D.
Name of the program: …….…….Master in Sustainable Food Manufacturing Management……
Welcoming university in France:………… Institut catholique de Lille………………………..…...
Field of Studies : Law, Economics and management  Education, Linguistics, French
 Architecture/Archeology X STEM (Sciences, Technologies, Engineering Mathematics)
 Tourism  Other: ……………………
Specialty:………Food processing……………………………………………………………..…….

Intended program of studies in France n°2 : Same

Intended program of studies in France n°3 : Same

(Optional) Cofunding:……None……..…………………………...…………………………………
Have you been awarded a scholarship in the past?  Yes  No
If yes, which institution funded that scholarship (attach proof)?
…………………………………………………………………………………………………...

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ANNEX 2 : List of the documents to provide with you application

Please attach this page to your application.

Attached (check
Mandatory documents to attach to your application form
the box)
1 Curriculum Vitae
2 ID card or passport copy
3 Cover letter in English (1 page recto)
4 Certificate of registration or pre-registration in the intended French
university 0. (or, an email exchange with the French university explaining
the current state of application the process);
5 Study / research schedule for the intended study program (including thesis
defense dates)
6 Certified copy and transcripts by a translator certified by the French
Embassy of all Khmer diplomas since high school graduation
7 For French taught programs applicants: a diploma certifying a French
proficiency equivalent to DELF B2 (DELF, DALF, TCF)
N.B : You don’t have to submit this document is you already have a French
high school or university diploma taught in French
7 For English taught programs applicants: a diploma certifying an English
proficiency equivalent to the IELTS 5,5 (see table below), or the upcoming
exam registration receipt
N.B : You don’t have to submit this document is you already have a French
high school or university diploma taught in English
8 For students: a copy of the current Cambodian university registration
certificate
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For Ph.D. applicants: a research abstract of 3 to 5 pages
10 For Ph.D. applicants: a letter from your thesis director stating and
justifying the number of months of scholarship asked over the 3 years of
your Ph.D.
11 For civil servants: a letter from your hierarchy giving you the right to leave
office for a Master or a Ph.D. in France

ANNEX 3: English DELF B2 equivalence diplomas table

TOEIC 785 +
TOEFL iBT 87+
TOEFL CBT 227+
TOEFL PBT/ITP 543+
IELTS 5.5+
CAMBRIDGE FCE (= B2), CAE (=C1) or CPE (=C2)
BULATS 36+
PTE 59+
BEC Vantage

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ANNEX 4 : List of the translators certified by the French Embassy