About us

The Maison Française d'Oxford was founded at the end of the Second World War at the joint instigation of the Universities of Paris and Oxford. With the support of the Chancery of the Universities of Paris, it maintains close links with French universities and the other French institutes of higher education.  Associated with the University of Oxford, it is a hub of Franco-British academic collaborations. As a member of the network of research institutes established abroad by the French Ministry of European and Foreign Affairs and the National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), the MFO has become a research centre of the Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (INSHS) of the CNRS. It develops research programmes with academic institutions of the University of Oxford and other British universities.

The MFO hosts a team of senior researchers from the INSHS who conduct their own research at the University of Oxford but, more importantly, organise interdisciplinary programmes, conferences, seminars and other events in collaboration with members of the University. The MFO organises and/or hosts events ranging from single-speaker lectures or seminars (such as the "Collège de France in Oxford" series), day-workshops on specialist topics, through to two or three-day conferences.

The MFO is also home to a group of junior researchers (post-docs or research fellows) and research students, reading for Master's degrees or doctorates. The research students are affiliated to institutes and colleges of the University, and take part in the activities of the MFO. To that end, the MFO collaborates with several French research institutions and universities whose students spend periods of three months to an academic year there.

The MFO is a hub for research collaborations between French and British universities, first and foremost with the University of Oxford. It helps French scholars of all levels to access the wealth of resources provided by Oxford, and also helps Oxford academics to start joint projects with French researchers. Acknowledged by the surrounding academic community, the MFO works towards a better integration of French research in the humanities and social sciences in international networks, especially in the English-speaking world. Acting as a true Institute for Advanced Studies, the MFO plays a central role in developing the internationalisation and prestige of French research.