The French Interdisciplinary Group (FIG)

The French Interdisciplinary Group (FIG) was founded in 1996 to foster familiarity and engagement with French-language scholarship in all fields of the arts and sciences at Northwestern University. FIG organizes presentations, seminars, and colloquia on French or francophone studies, on French scholarship, and hosts French academic visitors in all disciplines, from the humanities to the sciences.

FIG encourages and facilitates graduate student research in France and other francophone countries. It collaborates closely with the Paris Program on Critical Theory. It pioneered the development of the dual international PhD by forging partnerships in graduate education with top-flight institutions of higher education in France.

FIG continues to work to form new partnerships and programs with French institutions of higher education. FIG collaborates closely with the Office for International Program Development and The Graduate School to develop such programs. It also oversees regular faculty exchanges with Sciences Po, EHESS, the École Normale Supérieure, and the École Normale Supérieure–Lettres et Sciences Humaines in Lyon.

FIG Affiliates number well over 50 faculty members and as many doctoral students from every school of the University, and from most departments of the Weinberg School of Arts and Sciences. FIG is associated with the Buffett Center for International and Comparative Studies, with which it cooperates to advance the internationalization of education and scholarship at Northwestern.

FIG is supported by the Buffett Center for International and Comparative Studies, the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, the Services Culturels of the French Embassy, and a grant from the Florence Gould Foundation.

The FIG Room

FIG events, unless otherwise indicated, take place in the FIG Room, Crowe 2-130. The FIG Room is open from 9 am to 5 pm, Monday through Friday. Faculty and students are invited to browse our collection of current francophone publications, watch French television, or use our computer. Although the FIG Room’s purpose is to host our events and serve as a reading room, departments and programs may schedule occasional events by calling the Buffett Center at 847-467-2770.

French Interdisciplinary Group at Northwestern University
1902 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208-4005 (postal address)
2-130 Crowe Hall (FIG room)

Phone: 847/467-2770 | Fax: 847/467-1996
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