Education

International faculty, small size, dynamic attitude and informal atmosphere, good infrastructures, connections to the labour market, and a favourable context within the Swiss university system – these are all elements that are much appreciated by students and that make for a rewarding study experience at USI.

USI offers quality and interdisciplinary study curricula where theory and practice go hand in hand and where students play an important role: small-sized classes are the ideal venue for exercising in groups and for each individual student to express him/herself and thus develop their personalities and their uniqueness.

Direct interaction with faculty enables students to discover unexpected realities within a cosmopolitan and friendly environment, open to international careers.

Classes are taught in Italian, mainly in the Bachelor’s programmes, and English in most Master’s programmes, in doctoral programmes and in Executive education.

USI diplomas – like all other accredited Swiss universities – comply with the ECTS system and are therefore acknowledged at European level.

 

USI study curricula

 

Key figures

 

 

The Swiss university system

The Swiss university system, which includes USI, is a renowned quality system that makes Switzerland one of the most competitive countries in the world despite its size.

There are three particular strengths of this system: :

  • International appeal – Swiss universities attract students and faculty from many different countries; altogether, a quarter of the students and half of the researchers at Swiss universities come from abroad; at USI, 65% of students are foreign, coming from 90 different countries.
  • High employment rate of graduates – on average, 1 year after graduation over 90% of graduates have joined the workforce.
  • Favourable framework conditions – Switzerland is a country with a quality of life among the highest in the world, efficient public services and a stable political system, which allow for positive interactions between the public and the private sector leading to important investments in education (around 17.500 USD per student per annum, against the OCSE average of 10.600 USD), research and innovation.