Top Universities in Switzerland Notify Massive Increase in Tuition Fee

Swiss authorities have decided to increase tuition fees for international students. Starting in the fall semester of 2025, foreign students pursuing Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at ETH Zurich or EPFL will face a threefold increase in tuition fees, according to Schengen.News.

Under a transitional arrangement, currently enrolled students will be able to complete their degrees without facing the fee increase.

The fee hike reflects the Federal Parliament’s expressed will and aims to provide a quickly implementable solution. Despite the ETH Board’s decision in March not to raise fees, emphasizing the importance of internationalism and attracting top talent, the Swiss Federal Council has moved forward with the increase.

Currently, tuition fees at ETH Zurich and EPFL are CHF 730 (€749.42) per semester for both Swiss and international students. At ETH Zurich, over 7,300 of the 21,000 students are international, while at EPFL, about half of the 13,000 students are from abroad.

The ETH Board also proposed linking tuition fees to the national consumer price index to prevent further devaluation due to inflation.

Some Swiss universities already differentiate fees between local and international students. For instance, at the University of St. Gallen, domestic students pay CHF 1,229 (€1,260) for a Bachelor’s degree, while international students pay CHF 3,129 (€3,210).

During the summer session, the House of Representatives decided that students with foreign degrees studying in Switzerland must pay at least three times the tuition fees of students with Swiss degrees. The Senate’s responsible committee supported a doubling of the fees instead and plans to discuss this in the fall session, with a resolution expected by the end of the year.

According to the Swiss Federal Statistical Office, 76,257 international students are currently enrolled in higher education institutions in Switzerland, with 17,850 of them in Bachelor’s degree programs.