A first-year undergraduate student does not always know what the six semesters they will validate mean, nor how their credits will be interpreted by a partner university abroad. However, the LMD system structures their entire academic journey, from L1 to the thesis defense.
Legal framework of the LMD: what institutions must comply with
The LMD system is often reduced to a division into three levels. In practice, it is primarily a legal framework enshrined in the Education Code. According to the updated document on Legifrance dated April 18, 2025, university degrees and titles “certify the various levels of higher education common to all fields of study.”
In concrete terms, this means that an institution cannot award a bachelor’s or master’s degree without accreditation. The conditions relate to the association with research and quality control of the programs. A private school that announces a “master’s” without ministerial authorization issues a title, not a degree recognized in the sense of the LMD.
To learn everything about the LMD bachelor’s degree, it is essential to distinguish the university degree (protected by law) from the simple commercial title displayed by some training organizations.
ECTS credits in bachelor’s and master’s: how they work in practice
The system is based on ECTS credits (European Credit Transfer System). Each validated semester corresponds to 30 ECTS credits, which are capitalizable and transferable from one country to another. A complete bachelor’s degree thus represents six semesters and 180 credits. A master’s degree adds four semesters, or 120 additional credits.
The problematic point on the ground is the capitalization. A student who validates a teaching unit retains the associated credits even if they change institutions or interrupt their studies. Feedback on this point varies among universities, as some educational committees require additional documentation during a reorientation, despite the theoretical portability of the credits.
European mobility and diploma recognition
The Bologna Process, signed in 1999 by the ministries of higher education from several dozen European countries, gave rise to the LMD in France. The goal was to make degrees readable and comparable from one country to another.
In practice, a French student in a master’s program can spend a semester at a partner university and have their credits validated upon return. ECTS credits serve as a common currency among European institutions. Without this mechanism, each university would have to evaluate foreign coursework on a case-by-case basis.
Bachelor’s, master’s, doctorate: duration, degree, and real opportunities
The LMD organizes higher education into three cycles, each with distinct durations and purposes.
- The bachelor’s degree (bac+3) is completed in three years after the baccalaureate. It opens access to the job market or applications for a master’s program. Professional bachelor’s degrees, in particular, aim for direct employment.
- The master’s degree (bac+5) lasts two years after the bachelor’s. It combines disciplinary deepening and introduction to research or professionalization. Admission to the master’s program is selective since the reform of selection in M1.
- The doctorate (bac+8) generally extends over three years after the master’s. It is based on writing and defending a research thesis, supervised within a doctoral school.
The doctorate remains the highest university degree awarded in France. It mainly concerns students aiming for research or higher education, although some doctors also work in the private sector (R&D, consulting, data).
University degree or school title: a common confusion
On the ground, the most common confusion concerns the difference between a degree conferring a grade and an institutional diploma. A master’s degree awarded by an accredited university confers the master’s grade. A “specialized master’s” awarded by a grande école is a label from the Conference of Grandes Écoles, not a grade in the sense of the Education Code.
This distinction has direct consequences. For pursuing a doctorate, only a degree conferring the master’s grade grants access by right to enrollment in a doctoral school. A holder of a specialized master’s must go through a validation commission.
Check the accreditation before enrolling
Before choosing a program, one can consult the national directory of professional certifications (RNCP) or the website of the Ministry of Higher Education. A degree “recognized by the State” and conferring a grade guarantees recognition within the LMD framework. A degree simply “registered in the RNCP” attests to a level of skills but does not necessarily confer the corresponding grade.
The difference also plays out internationally. A recruiter or foreign university will recognize a French master’s degree through the ECTS system. A school title without a grade will need to be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, complicating mobility.
The LMD system is not just a stacking of three degrees. It is a legal framework, a mechanism for transferable credits, and a shared reading grid at the European level. Ensuring that one’s program indeed awards a grade, and not just a title, remains the first reflex to have before any enrollment.
