Before being appointed as the Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, Frédérique Vidal had been the President of the University of Nice Sophia-Antipolis (UNS) since 2012.

She holds a master’s degree in biochemistry from the University of Nice Sophia-Antipolis, a post-graduate degree from the Institut Pasteur and a doctorate from the University of Nice Sophia-Antipolis where she became a lecturer in 1995.

Since 2004, Frédérique Vidal has been a professor of biochemistry, molecular and cell biology at the UNS.

In addition, she was Associate Dean of the Department of Life Sciences from 2007 to 2009 and was appointed Research Assessor to the Dean of the Faculty and then Dean of the Department in 2009.

Previously, she was responsible for internships before becoming the Deputy Director of the post-graduate diploma in Pharmacology.

An outside member of the INSERM Regional Scientific Council from 1999 to 2003, Frédérique Vidal has been on the assessment panel for the master’s degree in virology at the UPMC-Paris Diderot-Institut Pasteur since 2004. She was also co-responsible for the European Tempus project in relation to the implementation of the LMD system in the Balkans, from 2006 to 2009.

Frédérique Vidal has been a “Chevalier” of the French Legion of Honour since 2013.