Scholarships and Part-Time Work for Students in Switzerland

Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.

Switzerland is honest about money in its own way: tuition is moderate, typically €3,277 a year for an English-taught bachelor's programme in our catalogue for a student from abroad, but there is very little scholarship money for foreign students starting a bachelor's degree. Living costs are the real burden, and the canton will ask you to prove you can cover them before it grants a study permit. This guide sets out what exists and what does not.

Cantonal grants: for residents, not for students who come to study

In Switzerland study grants (*Stipendien*, *bourses d'études*) are the business of the cantons. Most cantons have joined an intercantonal agreement that harmonises who can receive them. Its article 5 lists:

Swiss citizens living in Switzerland, and Swiss citizens whose parents live abroad, in some cases;
foreign nationals with a settlement permit (C), or who have had the right to stay in Switzerland for five years and hold a residence permit;
refugees and stateless people living in Switzerland and recognised by it;
citizens of EU and EFTA states insofar as the free movement agreements treat them like Swiss citizens for grants and loans.

The same article states that people who are in Switzerland solely for education are not eligible. A student who arrives on a study permit is therefore outside the system, whatever their grades. EU and EFTA citizens can qualify only where the free movement rules give them equal treatment, typically as workers or family members of workers in Switzerland, not as students who moved for their studies. You apply in the canton that is responsible for you under grant law, usually where your parents live.

Federal scholarships: postgraduate only

The Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships, run by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation, are for researchers who have already completed a master's degree, plus a small number of artistic master's places for some countries. There is no federal scholarship for a first bachelor's degree.

University support

Universities run their own funds, but they are designed to help students already enrolled who run into difficulty, not to finance a whole degree from the start. One example:

ETH Zurich's Solidarity Fund for Foreign Students supports foreign bachelor's and master's students with a B permit in their first degree at ETH. Bachelor's students must have passed the first-year examination and earned at least 20 ECTS in one semester or 40 ECTS over the last two. Applications are made through ETH's eSTIP portal in set windows; for spring semester 2027 it is 1 to 20 January 2027. ETH warns that its social scholarships are subsidiary and do not cover the full cost of study and living.

Other universities have social funds or fee reductions for students in hardship, usually limited to those who have completed at least a semester. Ask the financial aid office of your university what it offers and when.

The practical consequence: plan to finance at least the first year yourself. The canton checks this at the permit stage, and cantons often work with reference amounts of around CHF 2,000 a month; see student visa for Switzerland.

Working while you study

Non-EU students need the migration office's approval to work. The rules, as summarised by the canton of St. Gallen, are:

up to 15 hours a week during the semester;
full-time work during the semester breaks, with the written agreement of your university;
not during the first six months of study at a Swiss university;
a change of job also needs approval, and more than 15 hours a week needs a work permit, which is assessed like any foreign worker's.

EU and EFTA students with a residence permit for study may work up to 15 hours a week during the semester from the start, without a new application, and full time in the breaks on request.

Wages are subject to social insurance contributions, deducted by the employer, and to income tax. Students on foreign permits often pay tax at source, withheld from their pay.

Minimum wage

Switzerland has no national minimum wage. A few cantons have one. Geneva, where the minimum is indexed every year, sets it at CHF 24.59 an hour gross from 1 January 2026. Neuchâtel, Jura, Ticino and Basel-Stadt also have cantonal minimums. Elsewhere, pay is set by contract and collective agreements.

Where to find work

Your university's career services. Most universities have a careers office and a job board for students.
Jobs at the university. Teaching and research assistants, library and event jobs fit the 15-hour rule well and are advertised internally.
The local language. Outside academic jobs, employers in Zurich and Basel expect German, and in Geneva and Lausanne French.

Where to look next

Official sources

Intercantonal agreement on study grants, article 5: text in the St. Gallen law collection (in German)
SERI: Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships
ETH Zurich: Solidarity Fund for Foreign Students
Canton of St. Gallen: side jobs for students (in German)
Canton of Geneva: minimum wage for 2026 (in French)

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