The "Pôle Universitaire de Vichy" (previously called Pôle Universitaire et Technologique Lardy), born from a project of thermal waste land rehabilitation and launched during the mid-nineties, is an economic priority. This campus accommodates 600 students in the downtown area, in ten areas of study including the fields of biotechnology, international trade, multi-media and languages. The CAVILAM - Alliance Française (Centre of Live Approaches to Languages and the Media), created in Vichy in 1964, is located in the Pôle Universitaire de Vichy.