Application Master
Depending on your educational background, there are different requirements for your application to our Master's degree programmes. The basis for admission is ALWAYS your Bachelor’s degree. This also applies if you already have a Master’s degree and you would like to follow another Master’s degree programme.
Chances of admission
ETH Zurich ranks as one of the top international universities in the technical and scientific disciplines. Admission to its Master's degree programmes is highly selective. We are looking for applications from excellent Bachelor graduates from universities comparable to ETH Zurich.
Firstly, the admission is based on whether your Bachelor's degree complies with the requirement profile of the programme you want to apply for. Every profile lists the qualifying degrees as well as the specific subject related prerequisites and their mandatory minimum percentages.
Satisfying these prerequisites, however, does not guarantee admission, since the holistic evaluation takes into account all the elements of an application, such as: the performance in the undergraduate programme, the ranking of the university, the background in the chosen field of study, the scores in standardized tests (like GRE, if required), the letter of motivation and the letters of recommendation. All these facets will be assessed by the members of the Admission Committee in their decision-making.
Switzerland’s education system is very selective, commencing in high school. ETH Zurich's undergraduate programmes are highly competitive and only the very best students pass the rigorous exams in the first years of the Bachelor’s degree programmes. The level of basic education is thus very high and the Master's degree programmes build on this foundation.
Hence, we expect no less from candidates that are admitted to our graduate programmes and, in general, only strong students from internationally reputed universities are accepted.
The international university landscape is highly diverse and offers countless options. The chances of being admitted to one of the Master’s degree programmes at ETH Zurich are better for applicants who have been educated in a relevant subject area at a comparable level and have achieved excellent academic results.
When evaluating international applications, we orientate ourselves to the established university rankings (THE, QS, etc.) as well as to previous admission experiences. We also look favourably at candidates from nationally top ranked universities.