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International Research

INRS enjoys an enviable worldwide reputation and regularly joins forces with others to bring innovative projects to fruition.

At INRS, state-of-the-art research facilities, highly qualified staff, distinguished faculty, and colleagues from diverse backgrounds come together to create a vibrant research and training environment where knowledge acquisition and innovation come naturally. INRS fosters research and training partnerships that transcend organizational and geographic boundaries, and its research teams play an important role in international scientific networks.

As a globally oriented institution, INRS has established more than 100 international collaboration agreements with partners in some 30 countries. More than half of our faculty publications are produced in collaboration with international researchers, and students from France, Tunisia, China, Iran, Italy, Vietnam, Morocco, and other countries make up more than 60% of the student body at our four thematic research centres in Quebec City and Greater Montreal.

INRS offers several dual-degree programs in partnership with French, Moroccan, and Icelandic institutions and also encourages students to acquire experience abroad through thesis cotutelle arrangements and research internships.

Over the years, INRS has developed a number of international partnerships focusing on research, education, and knowledge transfer.

Alliances around the world

International alliances are based on complementary expertise and provide access to state-of-the-art equipment that allows researchers to explore new directions, accelerates R&D in highly competitive international niches, and contributes to top-quality training

With the internationalization of knowledge, the exchange of expertise between Canada and other countries helps foster a globally minded approach and the development of lasting partnerships—a mutually beneficial process that allows everyone to better respond to current and future needs.

One-of-a-kind research facilities

INRS boasts a wide array of state-of-the-art equipment that supports scientific and technological innovation and facilitates fundamental and applied research in highly specialized strategic sectors.

INRS houses the Advanced Laser Light Source Laboratory (ALSS), a world-class research centre focused on developing a new type of laser. ALLS develops radiation sources ranging from infrared to very-high-energy and ultrashort-pulse X-rays. It brings together several Canadian institutions and most major laser research laboratories in the United States, France, Austria, Sweden, Germany, Italy, Greece, and Japan. ALLS draws on the expertise of over 70 first-class researchers specializing in physics, laser and optics, chemistry, computer science, biology, medicine, and biochemistry.

INRS owns the only laboratory in Canada accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and several international sports federations—the Doping Control Laboratory. As part of its efforts to fight doping in sports, the laboratory performs analyses to the highest scientific standards and develops methods to detect and identify increasingly sophisticated doping agents. INRS was among the first laboratories accredited by the sports community in 1976 and has maintained WADA and IOC (International Olympic Committee) accreditation since 2004.

Unique in North America, INRS’s Environmental Hydraulics Laboratory is one of five large-scale, multi-purpose canals used to simulate the type of waves, tides, and high-flow currents that affect many coarse-bedded waterways, including the St. Lawrence and other rivers. Opened in 2011, the laboratory contributes to the development of sustainable shoreline management approaches to counter erosion caused by climate change.

Distinguished faculty from around the world

Hailing from India, Portugal, Italy, France, China, and Quebec, our faculty members transcend the frontiers of knowledge to meet the scientific and societal challenges of tomorrow.

Whether it’s to fight doping in sports, provide renewable energy for all, analyze social issues on different continents, or find innovative solutions to climate change, cancer, or social inequalities, INRS faculty are widely sought after for their expertise in many fields—water sciences, health sciences, urban studies, nanofabrication, ultra-fast photonics, telecommunications—and are recognized both nationally and internationally.

Many research projects are conducted in partnership with teams from various countries, and INRS is also active in a number of international scientific networks.

A multicultural community

INRS is home to students from some 40 countries including Morocco, Tunisia, Italy, India, Iran, China, and Vietnam. In fact, international students account for more than 60% of the student body. Studying at INRS means learning to do research at a leading international graduate research and training institution in a stimulating, friendly, and cosmopolitan environment where you can contribute to scientific advances in fields that are beneficial to everyone.