Bachelor's Degrees in English in Switzerland: Where They Are and What They Cost

Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.

Swiss universities teach bachelor's degrees in the language of their region: German, French or Italian. English is the norm in master's programmes, but at bachelor's level it is the exception, and much of what exists is bilingual. This guide shows what our catalogue holds and what to check before you apply.

How many programmes

Our catalogue lists 67 bachelor's programmes with English as a language of instruction, out of 607 in Switzerland. You can browse them on the English-taught list for Switzerland.

Read the language line of each programme carefully. Only about a third are taught entirely in English. The rest combine English with German, French or both, and in some of them English is a minor part of the teaching. If you speak no German or French, filter for programmes listed in English alone.

Where they are

Almost all are at public institutions, and many are at universities of applied sciences rather than academic universities:

Universities of applied sciences: the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, Bern University of Applied Sciences, the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW) in Basel, Olten and Muttenz, HES-SO in Western Switzerland, OST in Rapperswil-Jona, ZHAW in Winterthur, the Graubünden University of Applied Sciences in Chur and SUPSI in Ticino.
Universities: Lucerne, which runs a group of bilingual German-English degrees in the social sciences, Bern, St. Gallen, EPFL in Lausanne, Basel, Fribourg, Neuchâtel, Zurich and the Università della Svizzera italiana in Lugano.

By city, Lucerne and Bern have the most, followed by Basel, Lausanne, Neuchâtel, Zurich, Lugano and St. Gallen.

Which subjects

Business administration and international business lead, followed by computer science and information technology. Then come English language and literature, social sciences at Lucerne (anthropology, sociology, political science, communication), tourism and hospitality, and a few engineering, design and law programmes. Medicine is not taught in English, and as a rule Swiss medicine is closed to applicants who live abroad.

What it costs

Swiss fees are moderate, but most universities charge more to students who finished school abroad, and that is the figure we show.

EU students: €1,670 to €8,456 a year, typically €2,357.
Non-EU students: €1,670 to €10,570 a year, typically €3,277. Some universities of applied sciences charge applicants who live outside the EU and EFTA considerably more: FHNW, at the top of the range, asks at least CHF 5,000 per semester from them, against CHF 1,000 for residents of the EU or EFTA.

Fees are set in Swiss francs, so euro figures move with the exchange rate. Living costs, above all rent, are a much larger part of the budget than tuition. See how much it costs to study in Switzerland.

How to apply

There is no central system: you apply to each institution directly, usually in spring for an autumn start.

Universities and EPFL check your school-leaving certificate against the swissuniversities requirements for your country. Some certificates are accepted only with an additional entrance exam.
Universities of applied sciences expect a vocational baccalaureate or, with a general school-leaving certificate, usually a year of relevant work experience. This rule surprises many international applicants, so check it first.

The full route is in how to get into a university in Switzerland. See also document recognition in Switzerland and, for IB students, IB Diploma admission in Switzerland.

Proof of English

Expect B2 or C1, proved by IELTS, TOEFL, a Cambridge certificate or schooling in English. For bilingual programmes you also need the second language, often at a similar level. See IELTS and TOEFL for European universities.

Do you need the local language?

For a bilingual programme, yes, from the first semester. For a programme taught only in English, not for the classes, but almost certainly for internships, which are a compulsory part of many applied-sciences degrees, and for part-time work, housing and dealing with the canton. In Zurich, Basel or Bern that means German, and Swiss German in everyday speech; in Lausanne, Geneva or Neuchâtel, French; in Lugano, Italian.

Non-EU students need a visa and a residence permit from the canton; see the student visa for Switzerland.

Where to look next

Official sources

swissuniversities: admission to universities
Study in Switzerland+: official portal for international students
State Secretariat for Migration: entry and residence

Always check current information on the official website of the university before you apply.