France: Master 2 Scholarships in Particle Physics at Clermont-Ferrand

Master Scholarships for the Master in Particle Physics at Université BlaisePascal (1), Clermont-Ferrand, France

The 2nd year of the Master of Physics at Clermont-Ferrand1 welcomes students from France and abroad, provided they have passed the Master 1 exams, or possess the background expected after 4 years of Physics. To promote mobility and excellence, a number of 5,000 euros fellowships have been opened this year to the best candidates satisfying high level academic criteria.

Teaching program:

-200 hours of advanced lectures in particle physics include: field theory, symmetries in Physics, particle physics detectors, Quantum Electro-Dynamics, Quantum Chromo-Dynamics, Electro-Weak Standard Model. Part of the lectures are given in english; a good command of both the French and English languages is required.

-5 months of research training in a research laboratory. The LPC (Laboratoire de Physique Corpusculaire) of Clermont is one of the 18 laboratories of the French Institute for Particle Physics of the CNRS (IN2P3). Research is conducted in world-wide Particle Physics facilities, such as CERN (Geneva) or Fermilab (Chicago). For instance, research teams of the laboratory, which regularly host research trainings at the Master and PhD level, are involved in 3 of the four experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, both for instrumental developments of detectors and for the Physics analysis.

Research opportunities:
The Master diploma of the Blaise Pascal University allows holders to apply for any PhD fellowship in High Energy Physics in Europe and in the world (US, Japan). Typically 3 or 4 PhD fellowships are available each year at the Blaise Pascal University for the students having passed the Master of Physics.

Application procedure:
Applications should be sent by mail, before the 1st of May 2010 at the following address:
Michèle Chadelas, secrétariat du Master de Physique,
Laboratoire de Physique Corpusculaire (LPC), Université Blaise Pascal,
24 Avenue des Landais, 63177 Aubière Cedex.
http://www.univ-bpclermont.fr/FORMATIONS/Master/physique/

and should contain the same documents as for Master admission:
a filled registration form (available from the web site);
a statement of purpose;
a detailed CV (resume);
a copy of the passport with the photograph;
detailed transcripts of University grades for the last 3 years of study and the copies of the last diploma obtained (with a certified translation when necessary);
a recommendation letter from one close professor (confidential, in a sealed envelope);
a Campus France number (for foreign students), proving that the visa application is under way (2);

(1)The University of Clermont-Ferrand has a tradition dating back to the XIIth century. In the XXth century it was named after the famous Physicist, Mathematician, and Philosopher Blaise Pascal, who was born in Clermont-Ferrand and established the atmospheric pressure in the surrounding mountains. The University counts about 14000 students, including 2000 foreigners.

(2)Campus France is a facility which depends on french embassies or consulates, aimed at helping and centralizing the application for studying in France. http://www.campusfrance.org