Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a federal parliamentary republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is a favorite study destination for international students seeking foreign education in Europe for many reasons, amongst which one reason stands out.
Unlike some European Countries that offer tuition-free education, many others charge tuition from foreign students. Among those that charge tuition, Swiss universities appear to charge relatively lowest, with some enrolling foreign students for as low as $1,500 a year, thus endearing Switzerland to international students.
To further cushion the effect of living costs, Study & Scholarships has compiled the below list of Scholarships in Switzerland for international students.
A]. Swiss Government Scholarships for Foreign Students
- Swiss Excellence Scholarships for Foreign Students
The Swiss Government, through the Federal Commission for Scholarships for Foreign Students (FCS), awards various postgraduate scholarships to foreign scholars and researchers, thus providing graduates from all fields with the opportunity to pursue postgraduate studies or research in Switzerland at one of the public funded university or recognized institution. The awards consist of monthly payments and covers a student's living expenses. Deadline to apply is the 30th of November every year...read more. - Erasmus Mundus Scholarship Programs in Switzerland
Swiss Universities participate in several study programs funded by the Erasmus Mundus Scholarships. By this, these universities enable international students to undertake participating Erasmus Mundus study programs for free. You may want to go through the complete list of Erasmus Mundus Master Courses and PhD Courses. To access Erasmus Mundus funded courses conducted in Switzerland, you NEED to search through the list of Masters Course and PhD Courses...read more.
Related: List of Erasmus Mundus Scholarships for International students - Swiss Government Excellence Scholarships for Nigerian Students
Every year, the Swiss Government offers scholarships to foreign students, among whom are nigerian scholars. The Government of Switzerland, through its Federal Commission for Scholarships for Foreign Students (FCS), awards various postgraduate scholarships to Nigerian students in three categories: Excellence Research Scholarships, Excellence PhD Scholarships, AND Excellence Post-doctoral Scholarships. These scholarships provide monthly payments, exemption of tuition fees and other benefits. Application deadline is 30th of November...read more. - Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) Funding Scholarships
The Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) offers a wide range of research funding schemes which are open to scientists and academics of any nationality working in Switzerland. It has funded research work in all scientific fields on behalf of the Swiss Confederation. With few exceptions (mainly research programmes), the topics and scope of the research can be defined by the researchers themselves. Each SNSF research funding scheme has its own budget. In so doing, it seeks to implement the principle of fair competition: applications must always be evaluated in a competitive procedure through comparisons with similar applications...read more.
B]. Swiss Universities Scholarships for International Students
- ETH Zurich Scholarship Programmes
ETH Zürich (also called the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich) supports excellent students wishing to pursue a Master’s degree at ETH with two scholarship programmes: the Excellence AND the Master Scholarship Programmes. The ETH Excellence Scholarships is the flagship scholarship. Successful students must belong to the best 10 percent of their Bachelor programme. The scholarships covers the full study and living costs during the Master degree course. Deadline is in mid-December...read more. - University of Lausanne Master’s Grants for Foreign Students
The University of Lausanne (aka UNIL) in Switzerland offers the UNIL Master’s Scholarship Grants to international students wishing to pursue a Masters Degree at the University.
The amount of the grant is CHF 1,600.- per month from 15 September to 15 July, for a duration not exceeding the regulation minimum period of the programme (according to the programme, one-and-a-half years or two years subject to deduction for paid placements or exempt semesters, if any)...read more. - University of Bern Masters Scholarships for Outstanding Foreign Students
The University of Bern offers Master Grants for international students who wish to do a Master’s programme at the university. All outstanding foreign students are eligible for monthly financial support for the duration of a Master’s programme.
The grant consists of 1600 Swiss Francs (CHF1600) per month for the duration of the Master’s programme. Besides this, it also covers the ordinary registration - as well as semester fees for the entire regular study period...read more. - EPFL Excellence Fellowships
Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) offers a limited number of fellowships at the Master level to students with outstanding academic records. Anyone holding a Bachelor’s degree is eligible to apply to the EPFL Masters Programmes and by consequence to an EPFL fellowship. Each fellowship consists of a financial package of CHF 16,000 per academic year (thus, a maximum of CHF 32’000 for a two-year Master) for external applicants. - Graduate Institute Full Scholarships
A significant number of scholarships are awarded each year to students attending Master and PhD programmes at the Graduate Institute Geneva. All candidates to the Institute’s regular Master and PhD programmes are eligible to apply.
Full scholarships generally amount to CHF 18,000 per year and include an exemption of the Institute’s tuition fees. Some full scholarships are awarded subject to specific conditions (duration of study and/or geographical origin of students).
=>> See also Global South Scholar-in-Residence Programme which is open to outstanding young professors from universities from developing and emerging countries pursuing advanced research in areas bridging the fields of international and development studies, broadly defined, and working in disciplines such as anthropology, history, law, politics and political science, and economics. - IMD MBA Scholarships
IMD offers a number of scholarship programs for international students from different countries and backgrounds. Each scholarship program awards around CHF 25,000-50,000. You need to have already submitted your admissions application to the full-time IMD MBA program to be considered for one of these IMD MBA scholarships, and will only be awarded a scholarship if you are accepted into the program. - University of Geneva Excellence Master Fellowships
The University of Geneva Faculty of Science, in collaboration with several sponsors, established an Excellence Fellowship Program to support outstanding and highly motivated candidates who intend to pursue a Master of Science in any of the disciplines covered by the Faculty. Application for an Excellence Fellowship is open to students from any university with very good performance in their studies (belonging to the best 10% of their bachelor’s program).
The Excellence Fellowship consists of a grant amounting to CHF 10,000 to CHF 15,000/year (no teaching duties); it is awarded for one year and extended for the regular duration of the chosen Master’s programme (three or four semesters) provided the applicant is academically successful at the end of his/her first semester of studies.
C]. Other Scholarships and Awards in Switzerland
- The Global Environments Summer Academy for Activists, Students and Professionals
The Global Diversity Foundation (GDF) runs the Global Environments Summer Academy, in collaboration with the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) of the University of Bern (Switzerland). Accompanied by international and multidisciplinary resource people, participants are encouraged to expand their understandings of policy, develop academic insights and competence, and transcend disciplinary and place-based boundaries. Resource people and fellow participants offer personalised support in research design, conceptual and theoretical frameworks, fieldwork methods and data analysis throughout the course...read more. - The P&G® European Financial Seminar Scholarships for students from Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA)
The European Financial Leadership Seminar (EFS) is a 5-day working session that was established in 1990. During these five days, you and other excellent students from around the world will run a multi-national business, developing your management and financial skills by working in teams and interacting with experienced P&G executives.
The EFS will expose you to real-life business case study, which challenges you to develop strategies and drive decisions together with top students from all over the EMEA region. P&G pays for ALL expenses, including your flight, transportation, food and lodging...read more.