Skema’s is extending its global reach – it also plans to open a campus in Brazil – but Chiche-Portiche suggests that in general, France has been slow to grow offshore. Specialist schools like HEC, ESSEC and Central often have an offshore presence but it tends to be limited. There is also the French University in Cairo, the Ecole Centrale in Beijing and the Scientific and Technological University in Hanoi, but Chiche Portiche says that the country’s only very well known, large-scale branch campus is the Sorbonne in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

Fioraso has signed with her Chinese counterpart the establishment of Paris Tech in Shanghai

“In general we’re behind, and Campus France is working with its university members to help them access information and advice on branching out overseas,” he says. “There is growing interest in it and the French regions are working together to promote campus development in markets like Brazil.”

There has also been a recent renewal of interest in North and West Africa with a number of French universities involved in courses in African institutions at Bachelor and Masters levels. Minister Fioraso herself has signed with her Chinese counterpart the establishment of Paris Tech in Shanghai, and the Qatari government recently signed an MOU with a group of institutions who will help prepare Qataris for study in France through French language pathways, not a facility widely used in France itself.

Although no exact figure could be obtained for the number of students at French offshore institutions it runs into the thousands and clearly the impetus is there.

Researching to assess reputation

Nevertheless, France’s efforts to engage foreign students are almost certain to be fixated on home turf. Detailed and recurring research by Campus France and opinion research body TNS Sofres shows a high level of satisfaction with various elements of the French study experience.

Campus France has researched foreign students and found 9/10 would recommend France as a study destination

Over 20,000 students were polled in 2010/11 across various indicators. It was found that 9 out of 10 would recommend France as a study destination; 45% of those choosing France for the quality of the education, 37% for their own understanding of the French language, 33% for the value of the degrees and 31% for reasons of cultural interest.

Over 90% cited a cultural or touristic interest in France and Groupement FLE know that this is important.

“France benefits from a fantastic worldwide reputation as a tourist destination, with many varied regions and landscapes, not to mention its world-renowned ‘savour-vivre’ typified by its good food and wine, culture and fashion,” says de Bouter.

“Schools teaching French as a foreign language reflect this diversity, in terms of their location, size and course range. As well as learning the language, students can take part in a varied programme of activities and excursions to help them discover the country and its culture.”

“This attitude is grounded in the national predisposition towards all that is public”

Some of the buoyant private French language teaching companies in the country do complain of a focus on the “public sector” from government-backed organisations. “There is a general reluctance amongst the public structures supporting French education to accept the essential basic input of language schools in the process,” comments Tom Maitland of language school French in Normandy.

“This is grounded firstly in the national predisposition towards all that is public as opposed to private, even/especially when the latter proves more effective, but also in the intellectual snobbery of the educational establishment.”

He adds, “Luckily the private sector has not been quietly waiting for official backing.”

Smoother integration between HE and the language teaching sector, also represented by l”Officeand UNOSEL, could help link access into the French medium opportunities.

Other challenges, identified in  ‘Les GrandesTendancies’ survey by Campus France were criticisms from students polled such as the cost of living (53% dissatisfied rate), bureaucracy (53%), accommodation (45%) and the difficulty of integrating (33%).

These annoyances are not, of course, the major stumbling blocks that France will face in holding its own in the international student market. Competition with Spanish as a language of business, the slow build of the agent network and English medium education because of institutional resistance may also stymie rapid growth.  The absence of pathway courses could be another criticism levelled at the French market, but many HE institutions have their own French language courses already.

Like the hexagon the country is sometimes likened to, France has many facets, ones that will continue to attract students to it. Meanwhile many of the students are coming from the right places, places like Africa and China, where the trend of students travelling overseas has been particularly marked.

• This article appears in The PIE Review 3, available now.