Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne Admission Requirements 2027

Requirements

Bachelor

• A foreign upper secondary certificate granted after at least 12 years of education, either accepted directly into the Cours de mathematiques speciales preparatory route (specific subjects including maths and physics at the highest level, both graded at least 80 percent of the maximum, and an 80 percent overall average) or via EPFL's own entrance examination, open with no quota to any applicant.
• CEFR B2 in French for bachelor's study (C1 strongly recommended); international applicants without French in their prior schooling must provide separate proof.
• Application by 30 April for first-year entry, or by 31 July for late applicants who meet specific published conditions.
• CHF 150 registration tax for the entrance-examination route with a foreign school-leaving certificate; CHF 50 for other applicants.

Master

• A bachelor's degree, or recognised equivalent, in a field related to the chosen EPFL master's programme; a strong academic record.
• Academic transcripts, referee contact details (unless the referee is at a Swiss institution or at EPFL), and, for applicants changing field, a written rationale.
• Strong English for the many programmes taught in English; EPFL's admission pages do not publish a required test score.
• Application in one of two windows: mid-November to 15 December (decision by late March) or 16 December to 31 March (decision by mid-June); applicants needing a student visa are advised to meet the December deadline.

Documents

Certified translations of the secondary diploma and final-year transcript (bachelor) or of the bachelor's degree and full transcript (master); a passport copy; a CV; for bachelor applicants, a French language certificate where French was not the language of prior schooling; for master applicants, referee contact details and, for a change of academic field, a written explanation of the change; and, for International Baccalaureate holders, a screen capture of final results from the IBO portal or the final diploma, uploaded by 10 July with authorisation for the IB to release results to EPFL.

How to apply

1. Confirm your eligibility route: for bachelor's study, check whether your certificate qualifies for the Cours de mathematiques speciales route or whether you need to register for the entrance examination; for master's study, confirm your bachelor's degree is in a related field.
2. Gather transcripts, certificates, language proof and, for master applicants, referee details.
3. Apply online within the relevant window: by 30 April for bachelor's first-year entry, or mid-November to 15 December or 16 December to 31 March for master's entry.
4. Pay any applicable fee: the CHF 150 (or CHF 50) entrance-examination registration tax for bachelor applicants who need it.
5. Wait for the decision: EPFL states master's decisions arrive by late March or mid-June depending on the application window used.
6. Once admitted, use the offer to apply for the Swiss national student visa and, for bachelor entrants without French, complete any required language preparation before enrolling.

English test waiver

EPFL's master's admission page states that a strong command of English is expected, since almost all master's teaching is in English, and that certificates such as TOEFL or IELTS are welcome as part of the file, but it does not publish a required pass mark; the Admission Committee instead reviews the whole file (academic record, prior institution, statement of purpose, references) holistically. Bachelor applicants without French in their prior schooling must separately show CEFR B2 in French (C1 strongly recommended), since bachelor's teaching is in French.