ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich)

    ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich) is a combined university teaching engineering, science, technology, mathematics and management in the city of Zürich, Switzerland. Like its sister organisation EPFL, it is an central part of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology Domain (ETH Domain) which is directly subsidiary to Switzerland's Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research. ETH Zurich is constantly ranked among the top universities in the world. It is presently ranked as 5th best university of the world in engineering, science and technology, following Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, Cambridge University and National University of Singapore in the QS World University Rankings.

    Institute has recorded twenty-one Nobel Prizes awards given to students or professors in the past.  Among them, the most famous was Albert Einstein in 1921 with the Nobel Prize in Physics, along with Niels Bohr who was awarded the 1922 Nobel Prize in Physics. They were both awarded for their work dealing with quantum physics. The institute is a founding member of the IDEA League and the International Alliance of Research Universities (IARU) and a member of the CESAER network. The school was established by the Swiss Federal Government in 1854 with the affirmed mission to train engineers and scientists, serve as a state-run center of excellence in science and technology and offer a hub for interface between the scientific community and industry.

History

    ETH was established in 1854 by the Swiss Confederation and started giving its first lectures as a polytechnic institute in 1855. It was originally comprised of six faculties: architecture, chemistry civil engineering, forestry, mechanical engineering, and an incorporated department for the fields of literature, mathematics, natural sciences and social and political sciences. ETH is a national institute (under direct management by the Swiss government). The decision for a new national university was heavily uncertain at that time because the liberals forced for a "national university", while the conservative forces soughed all universities to continue under cantonal management. From 1905 to 1908, under the administration of Jérôme Franel, the course curriculum of ETH was reorganized to that of a real university and ETH was approved the right to honor doctorates. The first doctorates were honored, in 1909. The institute was given its current name, Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) in 1911.

Admission and education

    ETH Zurich, the EPFL, and four associated research institutes combinely formed the "ETH Domain" with the ambition to collaborate on scientific projects.ETH is not selective for Swiss students in its undergraduate admission process. ETH is gratified to grant admission to every Swiss resident who took the Matura like every other public university in Switzerland. Applicants from overseas countries are mandatory to take either the compact entrance exam or the complete entrance exam though some applicants from several European countries are excused from this rule. An applicant may apply for ETH even without any certifiable educational records by passing the comprehensive entrance exam. As in all universities in Switzerland, the academic year is separated into two semesters. Examinations are held during examination sessions after next semester begins immediately. After first year of study, bachelor students must surpass a block examination of all courses taken in the first year, called the Basis examination. If the accumulated average score is not adequate, a student is obligatory to retake the entire Basis examination which generally means having to revise the whole first year. The composition of examinations in higher academic years is parallel to the Basis examination, but with a higher success rate. The standard 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 devoted to writing a thesis.