An internship in a general bachelor's degree: compulsory, optional or absent?
The licence générale is a three-year course at a French university, corresponding to 180 ECTS credits. It offers above all a grounding in a discipline: history, literature, law, life sciences, economics, languages, mathematics or psychology. Unlike a professional bachelor's degree, it does not always include a period in a company.
Three situations occur depending on the field of study and the university:
- a compulsory internship, more common in tracks aimed at a profession (teaching, social work, applied languages, information and communication);
- an optional internship, offered as a free elective module that earns credits;
- no internship in the curriculum, in which case no agreement can be signed.
The first step is therefore to read the curriculum for your field and to ask the teaching secretariat or the year coordinator.
Why a signed agreement is essential
Since the French law of 2014 on internships, an internship must form part of an educational programme. Taking a short holiday internship unrelated to your studies, outside any university framework, is in principle no longer possible: the host organisation must hold an agreement signed by the student, the university and itself.
The agreement sets out the dates, the number of hours, the tasks, the organisation's tutor, the supervising teacher and the way the internship is assessed. It provides cover in case of accident and makes the internship recognised by the university. It must be validated before the assignment starts, never after the fact.
An internship cannot exceed six months in the same organisation within one academic year, and it must not be used to fill a post on a lasting basis. The precise rules, notably the permitted periods, are set by each university in its own regulations.
What an internship can bring to a bachelor's student
The value of an internship during a bachelor's degree rarely lies in a sharp technical skill. It lies rather in testing your discipline against a real setting. A history student discovers what source analysis becomes in an archive service or a museum; a law student sees how a rule applies in a charity or a legal department; a biology student watches the working gestures of a laboratory.
Using the discipline in this way helps answer questions the lectures leave open: do I really like this job? Which tasks motivate me? Do I need a specific master's, a professional bachelor's or a school? An internship that leads you to rule out a path is a success, because it spares you a costlier mistake in your choice of studies.
It also enriches a CV that is still short and gives you concrete examples to talk about in an interview or in a master's application.
Where and how to look when you have no network
General bachelor's students often have neither a list of partner companies nor an address book. The university department in charge of guidance and career entry is then the first resort: it offers vacancies, CV workshops and sometimes a dedicated internship platform. Some universities also publish practical guides explaining how their system works.
Possible hosts are varied: local authorities, charities, libraries and media libraries, firms, publishing houses, health facilities, research laboratories. A literature student might aim at a bookshop, a communications team or a digital publishing project; a mathematics student, an engineering office or a data team.
It works better to make a precise request, along the lines of a three-to-four-week assignment on managing a document collection, rather than simply an internship in history, which is too vague for the organisation.
Length, timing and stipend
The length depends on the university and the type of internship. An optional internship often takes place outside teaching periods, for example at the end of a semester or over the summer, whereas a compulsory one is slotted into the curriculum. Several institutions limit a free internship to a few weeks and award credits in proportion.
When presence in the same organisation exceeds two months, or 44 days, a stipend (gratification) is compulsory. The minimum hourly rate is 15% of the hourly social security ceiling, that is 4.50 euros per hour under the rules applying in 2026. Below that threshold, the organisation may or may not pay something, depending on its own policy.
An internship is not an employment contract: the student is not an employee, does not pay contributions as one and keeps their university status, with the obligation to attend exams.
An illustration: three weeks in a cultural outreach department
Here is a fictional case with rounded figures. A second-year art history student enrols on an internship module lasting fifteen working days.
- Preparation: she has her plan approved by the head of the programme and obtains an agreement.
- Assignment: she prepares a visitor booklet for school groups, accompanies two groups and collects the children's questions.
- Review: she writes a six-page report, sets out what she did on her own and what she only observed, then asks her tutor for a written assessment.
Outcome: the student realises she enjoys designing tools for the public, but less so handling logistics. She therefore steers her master's choices towards outreach and mediation rather than curatorship. The example shows the value of a well-put-into-words review, far more than the length of the internship.
From internship to choosing a master's, a professional bachelor's or a school
The review of a bachelor's-level internship sheds light on several routes. A professional bachelor's, open after two years of higher education, suits someone who wants a trade in the short term; a master's lengthens specialisation; some schools recruit at third-year level. A well-analysed internship helps you tell apart a taste for the discipline from a taste for a job.
To structure your thinking, draw three columns: the tasks you liked, the tasks you found hard going, and the skills you lacked. The second column is often as instructive as the first.
The university's guidance advisers can help you interpret these findings, identify matching master's programmes and prepare applications. It is worth doing this thinking before the end of the second year, when the choices for the third year and for a master's are being prepared.
Common mistakes and alternatives to an internship
- Starting without an agreement: the student is then not covered in the way provided for.
- Aiming for prestige rather than the assignment: a small organisation that entrusts you with a real project beats a large one that offers only observation.
- Not keeping a log: without records, the review stays vague.
- Neglecting exams: an internship placed in the middle of an assessment period weakens the semester.
If your degree offers no internship, other experiences exist: a student job linked to your plans, voluntary work, a civic service placement, peer tutoring, a supervised project, university workshops. They too feed a career path, provided you describe them with precise facts.
Frequently asked questions
Can you do an internship if your degree does not provide for one?
A university framework has to exist: a free elective module, a supervised optional internship or an institutional scheme. Without a link to the course, the agreement cannot be signed. The student should therefore ask their department, which will say whether and how an internship can be validated.
Is an internship in a general bachelor's degree paid?
A stipend is compulsory when the internship exceeds two months of presence in the same organisation, with a minimum of 4.50 euros per hour under the rules applying in 2026. Below that it remains optional. The amount is set by regulation and changes over time, so check it before signing.
When should you do an internship during the degree?
The timing depends on the curriculum. An optional internship is better placed between two semesters or over the summer, so as not to cut into classes and exams. A compulsory internship has a set date. If in doubt, the year coordinator can tell you which periods are allowed.
Who signs the internship agreement?
The student, the university, represented by the authorised person, and the host organisation. The tutor and the supervising teacher are named in it. All signatures must be in place before the first day. Without this, the student may find themselves without cover in case of an accident or a dispute about their tasks.
Can an internship during a bachelor's help you get into a master's?
Yes, because it gives concrete examples to present in an application or an interview, and shows interest in a field of application. It does not replace academic results, which selection panels look at first. An internship counts most when it is clearly tied to the master's project.
Can you do a general bachelor's degree as an apprenticeship?
It is less common than for a professional bachelor's or a BUT, but some universities open apprenticeship places in a few fields or tracks. Consult the institution's course catalogue and contact the apprenticeship training centre (CFA) to learn the conditions and the timetable.
What can you do if you cannot find any internship?
You can ask the university's career-entry service for help, widen the search to charities or local authorities, reduce the target length or choose an equivalent experience, such as a supervised project or recognised voluntary work. A conversation with your supervising teacher helps in finding a solution.