ETH" redirects here. For other uses, see ETH (disambiguation).

ETH Zurich
Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) Zürich

Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, German: Polytechnikum

Other name
(colloquially)
Former name eidgenössische polytechnische Schule[1]
Type Public
Established 1855; 166 years ago
Budget CHF 1.897 billion (2019)
President Joël Mesot
Rector Sarah M. Springman
6,455 (530 professors of all ranks) (full-time equivalents 2017, 29.5%
Academic staff
female, 70.2% foreign nationals)[2]
Administrative 2,658 (full-time equivalents 2017, 42.5% female, 24.4% foreign nationals)
[2]
staff
Students 22,200 (headcount 2017, 31.8% female, 38.7% foreign nationals)[2]
Undergraduates 9,262[2]
Postgraduates 6,158[2]
Doctoral students 4,170[2]
Other students 1,095[2]
Rämistrasse 101
CH-8092 Zürich
Switzerland
,
Address Zürich

47°22′35″N 8°32′53″ECoordinates: 47°22′35″N

8°32′53″E
Campus Urban
Language German, English (Masters and upwards, sometimes Bachelor)
Colors   Black,   White[3]
Affiliations CESAER, EUA, GlobalTech, IARU, IDEA League
Website [Link]
ETH Zurich (English: ETH; Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich; German:
Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich) is a public research university in the city of
Zürich, Switzerland. Founded by the Swiss Federal Government in 1854 with the stated mission
to educate engineers and scientists, the school focuses primarily on science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics.[4] Like its sister institution EPFL, it is part of the Swiss Federal
Institutes of Technology Domain, part of the Swiss Federal Department of Economic Affairs,
Education and Research.[5]

In the 2021 edition of QS World University Rankings, ETH Zurich was ranked 6th in the world,
placing it as the second-best European university after the University of Oxford. In the 2020 QS
World University Rankings by subject, it ranked 4th in the world for engineering and technology
(2nd in Europe) and 1st for earth and marine science. Also, ETH was rated 8th in the world in
the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of 2020.

ETH Zurich has a world-class reputation in academia and industry.[citation needed] As of 2020 there
are 22,200 students from over 120 countries, of which 4,180 are pursuing doctoral degrees.[6]

As of November 2019, 21 Nobel laureates, 2 Fields Medalists, 2 Pritzker Prize winners, and 1
Turing Award winner have been affiliated with the Institute, including Albert Einstein. Other
notable alumni include John von Neumann and Santiago Calatrava.[6] It is a founding member of
the IDEA League and the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU), and a member
of the CESAER network.

ETH Zurich
Location: ETH Zurich, Switzerland

Contents
 1 History
 2 Reputation and ranking
 3 Admission and education
 4 Campus
o 4.1 Main building
o 4.2 Hönggerberg campus
 o 4.3 Commuting between the campuses
 4.3.1 ETH Link
 4.3.2 Bike share
 4.3.3 ETH Laboratory of Ion Beam Physics
 5 Student life
o 5.1 Tuition and financial assistance
o 5.2 Student associations
o 5.3 Sports
 6 Innovation
o 6.1 Student Project House
o 6.2 Spin-offs
 7 Competition Team
o 7.1 ARIS
 7.1.1 Achievements
o 7.2 AMZ
 7.2.1 Achievements
o 7.3 Swissloop
 8 Traditions
 9 Notable alumni and faculty
 10 Related organizations
o 10.1 Collegium Helveticum
o 10.2 ETH Zurich Foundation
o 10.3 Military Academy
o 10.4 Swiss National Supercomputing Center
 11 Gallery
 12 See also
 13 References
 14 Further reading
 15 External links

History

Main building and surrounding campus.

The Hauptgebäude, constructed in 1864, is the Polytechnikum's original and main building

ETH Zurich was founded on 7 February 1854 by the Swiss Confederation and began giving its
first lectures on 16 October 1855 as a polytechnic institute (eidgenössische polytechnische
Schule) at various sites throughout the city of Zürich.[1] It was initially composed of six faculties:
architecture, civil engineering, mechanical engineering, chemistry, forestry, and an integrated
department for the fields of mathematics, natural sciences, literature, and social and political
sciences.

It is locally still known as Polytechnikum, or simply as Poly, derived from the original name
eidgenössische polytechnische Schule,[7] which translates to "federal polytechnic school".

ETH Zurich is a federal institute (i.e., under direct administration by the Swiss government),
whereas the University of Zurich is a cantonal institution. The decision for a new federal
university was heavily disputed at the time; the liberals pressed for a "federal university", while
the conservative forces wanted all universities to remain under cantonal control, worried that the
liberals would gain more political power than they already had.[8] In the beginning, both
universities were co-located in the buildings of the University of Zurich.

From 1905 to 1908, under the presidency of Jérôme Franel, the course program of ETH Zurich
was restructured to that of a real university and ETH Zurich was granted the right to award
doctorates. In 1909 the first doctorates were awarded. In 1911, it was given its current name,
Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule. In 1924, another reorganization structured the university
in 12 departments. However, it now has 16 departments.

ETH Zurich, the EPFL, and four associated research institutes form the "ETH Domain" with the
aim of collaborating on scientific projects.[9]

Reputation and ranking

University rankings
Global – Overall
ARWU World[10] 20 (2020)
QS World[11] 6 (2021)
[12]
THE World 14 (2021)
[13]
USNWR Global 26 (2020)
ETH Zurich is ranked among the top universities in the world. Typically, popular rankings place
the institution as the best university in continental Europe and ETH Zurich is consistently ranked
among the top 1-5 universities in Europe, and among the top 3-10 best universities of the world.

Historically, ETH Zurich has achieved its reputation particularly in the fields of chemistry,
mathematics and physics. There are 32 Nobel laureates who are associated with ETH Zurich, the
most recent of whom is Richard F. Heck, awarded the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 2010. Albert
Einstein is perhaps its most famous alumnus.[14]

In the 2021 edition of the QS World University Rankings, ETH Zurich again ranked 6th in the
world,[15] having first achieved this position in 2019, thereby overtaking the University of
Cambridge and becoming the second-best European university after the University of Oxford.[16]
[17]
Also, ETH was ranked 8th in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings of
2020.[18][19] In the 2020 QS World University Rankings by subject, it was ranked 4th in the world
for engineering and technology (2nd in Europe) and 1st for earth & marine science.[20][21]

In 2018, QS World University Rankings placed ETH Zurich at 7th overall in the world.[22] In
2015, ETH Zurich was ranked 5th in the world in engineering, science and technology, just
behind the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University and Cambridge
University. In 2015, ETH Zurich also ranked 6th in the world in Natural Sciences, and in 2016
ranked 1st in the world for Earth & Marine Sciences for the second consecutive year.[23]

In 2016, Times Higher Education World University Rankings placed ETH Zurich 9th overall in
the world and 8th in the world in engineering & technology, just behind the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, Stanford University, California Institute of Technology, Princeton
University, Cambridge University, Imperial College London and Oxford University.[24]

In a comparison of Swiss universities by swissUP Ranking and in rankings published by CHE

comparing the universities of German-speaking countries, ETH Zurich traditionally is ranked
first in natural sciences, computer science and engineering sciences.

In the survey "CHE ExcellenceRanking" on the quality of Western European graduate school
programs in the fields of biology, chemistry, physics and mathematics, ETH Zurich was assessed
as one of the three institutions to have excellent programs in all the considered fields, the other
two being Imperial College London and the University of Cambridge, respectively. ETH Zurich
had a total budget of CHF 1,897 billion[25] in the year 2019.

Admission and education

Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology (ETH) Domain

2019 budget (millions of CHF)

ETH Domain 2616
 Federal institutes of technology
 ETH Zurich 1298

 EPFL 686

Federal research institutes

 PSI 321

 Empa 124

 Eawag 54

 WSL 59

 v
 t
 e

For Swiss students, ETH Zurich is not selective in its undergraduate admission procedures. Like
every public university in Switzerland, ETH Zurich is obliged to grant admission to every Swiss
resident who took the Matura.[26] Applicants from foreign countries are required to take either the
reduced entrance exam or the comprehensive entrance exam although some applicants from
several European countries are exempted from this rule. An applicant can be admitted to ETH
Zurich even without any verifiable educational records by passing the comprehensive entrance
exam.[27]

As at all universities in Switzerland, the academic year is divided into two semesters.
Examinations are often held during examination sessions which are immediately before the
beginning of the next semester (only a few select courses offer an exam immediately after the
semester ends). After the first year of study, bachelor students must pass a block examination of
all courses taken in the first year, called the Basisprüfung (basis examination). If the weighted
average score is not sufficient, a student is required to retake the entire Basisprüfung which
usually means having to re-sit the whole first year. The structure of examinations in higher
academic years is similar to the Basisprüfung, but with a higher success rate. The regular time to
reach graduation is six semesters for the Bachelor of Science degree and three or four further
semesters for the Master of Science degree. The final semester is dedicated to writing a thesis.

Education at ETH Zurich generally focuses more on theoretical aspects than application and
most degree programs contain a high amount of mathematical training. The main language of
instruction in undergraduate (Bachelor) studies is German and for admission a proof of sufficient
knowledge of the German language is required for Bachelor students.[28] Most Master's programs
and doctoral studies are in English.