The Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (National Center for Scientific Research) is a government-funded research organization, under the administrative authority of France's Ministry of Research.

Founded in 1939 by governmental decree, CNRS has the following missions:

To evaluate and carry out all research capable of advancing knowledge and bringing social, cultural, and economic benefits for society
To contribute to the application and promotion of research results
To develop scientific information
To support research training
To participate in the analysis of the national and international scientific climate and its potential for evolution in order to develop a national policy CNRS research units are located throughout France, and employ a large body of tenured researchers, engineers, and support staff. Laboratories are all on renewable four-year contracts, with bi-annual evaluation.


There are two types of labs:

CNRS intramural labs: fully funded and managed by CNRS (called UPR, or unitйs propres de recherche, in French)
Joint labs: partnered with universities, other research organizations, or industry (called UMR, or units mixtes de recherche, in French)


As the largest fundamental research organization in Europe, CNRS carried out research in all fields of knowledge, through its six research departments:

Mathematics, Physics, Earth Sciences and Astronomy (MPPU)
Chemistry
Life Sciences
Humanities and Social Sciences
Environmental Sciences and Sustainable Development (EDD)
Information and Engineering Sciences and Technologies (ST2I)


and two national institutes:

The National Institute of Nuclear and Particle Physics (IN2P3)
The National Institute of Earth Sciences and Astronomy(INSU)


CNRS encourages collaboration between specialists from different disciplines in particular with the university thus opening up new fields of enquiry to meet social and economic needs. Interdisciplinary research is undertaken in the following domains:

Life and its social implications
Information, communication and knowledge
Environment, energy and sustainable development
Nanosciences, nanotechnologies, materials


Astroparticles: from particles to the Universe CNRS's annual budget represents a quarter of French public spending on civilian research. This funding comes from various sources:

Government and public funding CNRS funds, primarily from industrial and EU research contracts and royalties on patents, licenses, and services provided.

• CNRS — Institut FEMTO-ST, Département LPMO
• CNRS, Institut de Mécanique des Fluides
• Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris
• Institut Montpelliérain Alexander Grothendieck
• Institute of Mathematical Research of Rennes
• Laboratoire Aime Cotton
• Laboratoire de Photonique et de Nanostructures, CNRS
• Laboratoire Hubert Curien, CNRS
• University of Rennes 1
• University Rennes 1, Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes