Industrial Agreements for Training Through Research (CIFRE) aim to develop public-private research partnerships based on theses jointly financed by firms and the National Association for Research and Technology (ANRT). The firm concerned, eligible for Research Tax Credit (CIR), receives an annual grant from the ANRT, on behalf of the State, for three years (€14,000 in 2009). Under the tutelage of the Ministry in charge of Research, the CIFRE programme not only gives firms access to cutting-edge public research, but also helps the students to get a foothold in the firm in terms of their future job prospects.

Candidates for a CIFRE contract must have passed their second year of a Masters degree, M2 in French, less than a year before applying. It identifies the recognised academic research laboratory that will provide the scientific resources and the French firms that will give the students their research mission in contractual association with this laboratory. Once the partnership has been formed it is submitted to the ANTR, which evaluates the conditions of the project before deciding whether or not to deliver an agreement.

There are lots of advantages for students with a CIFRE contract: they benefit from a long-term or minimum 3-month employment contract and build up recognised professional experience while also earning a gross minimum annual salary of €23,484 (€1957/month), according to the figures in 2009. Once they finish their thesis, they tend not to have any trouble entering the professional world: in 2008, 96 % of them found a job within a year at the most.