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Foreign-language applicants for a Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree or teaching diploma program must prove that they have a sufficient command of the main language of instruction of the study program in which they wish to enroll.
Proof of proficiency at the C1 or a higher level in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) must be submitted for the respective main language of instruction.
Foreign-language applicants are those whose first or primary language is different from the main language of instruction of the study program in which they wish to enroll.
The first or primary language refers to the language a person uses with the highest level of competency and without difficulties when writing, speaking, and understanding written and spoken language. This corresponds to the C2 or a higher level in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR).
A federal or Swiss maturity certificate, or federally or Swiss recognized maturity certificate.
A Federal professional maturity certificate in combination with proof of passing supplementary examinations.
A specialized maturity certificate recognized in all of Switzerland in combination with proof of passing supplementary examinations.
Attestato cantonale di maturità commerciale.
A Bachelor’s degree from UZH.
A Bachelor’s or comparable degree in the relevant language of instruction from a university or a university of applied sciences located in a region where the official language is the same as the language of instruction (does not apply to distance learning or studies at campuses in countries where the official language differs from the language of instruction).
Completion of the last three years at an upper secondary school in the language of instruction relevant for the studies and in a region where the official language is the same as the language of instruction.
Study programs with German as the main language of instruction
As a rule, the main language of instruction for the Bachelor's programs, the teaching diploma and the Bachelor's and Master's programs of the Faculty of Medicine and the Vetsuisse Faculty is German.
Details of the main language of instruction and the other languages used in teaching in the study programs can be found in the course catalog under program information.
For the following programs you can hand in a proof for German or English:
Major/Minor Comparative Linguistics
Major/Minor East Asian History
Minor Indian Studies
Minor Japanese Studies
Mono Linguistics
Mono Literary Studies
Major/Minor Modern Asian and Middle Eastern Studiers
Minor Muslimic Cultures and Society
Minor Sinology
Major/Minor Social and Cultural Anthropology
Recognized Language Certificates for German
The University of Zurich recognizes the following language certificates for German that correspond to level C1 or higher in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR):
Study programs with English as the main language of instruction
Details of the main language of instruction and the other languages used in teaching in the study programs can be found in the course catalog under program information.
For the following programs you can hand in a proof for German or English.
Major/Minor Comparative Linguistics
Major/Minor East Asian History
Minor Indian Studies
Minor Japanese Studies
Mono Linguistics
Mono Literary Studies
Major/Minor Modern Asian and Middle Eastern Studies
Minor Muslimic Cultures and Society
Minor Sinology
Major/Minor Social and Cultural Anthropology
Recognized Language Certificates for English
The University of Zurich recognizes the following language certificates for English that correspond to level C1 or higher in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR):
IELTS Academic (not older than 2 years)
Required score: 7 (minimum 6.5 in speaking and writing)
Test results from IELTS Academic Online are not accepted.
TOEFL iBT / MyBestTM Scores to TOEFL iBIT (not older than 2 years)
Required Score: 100 (minimum speaking 25 and writing 26)
We must receive the TOEFL test results directly from ETS (institution code: 0348). Test results from the TOEFL iBT Special Home Edition are not accepted.
C1 Advanced (formerly Cambrige Advanced Englisch, CAE): Grade B
C2 Proficiency (formerly Cambridge Proficiency English, CPE)
You can send Cambridge results via the Candidate Results Portal provided by Cambridge Assessment. Click on ‘Send my result’ and, under ‘Institution/organisation name’, select ‘University of Zurich, Admissions Office’.
For the following Master's Study Programs the main language of instruction is French, Italian or Spanish:
Minor Comparative Romance Linguistics: French or Italian or Spanisch
Major/Minor French Literature / Linguistics: French or Italian or Spanish
Major/Minor Ibero-Romance Literatures / Linguistics: Spanish
Mono/Minor Italian Literature / Linguistics: Italian
Mono Italian Studies: Italian
Mono Linguistics, Concentration Romance Linguistics: French
Recognized Language Certificates for French, Italian and Spanish
The University of Zurich recognizes the following language certificates that correspond to level C1 or higher in accordance with the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR):
French
DALF C1
Italian
PLIDA C1
CELI C1
CILS C1
Spanish
DELE C1
We recommend that you submit the language certificate with your application.
All persons with a visa requirement must submit a language certificate by the application deadline for persons with a visa requirement at the latest.
Persons without a visa requirement who are applying for a double-degree Master's program at the Faculty of Law (outgoing) must submit a language certificate by June 30 at the latest.
All other prospective students can submit the language certificate after admission, but only up to one week before the start of the course at the latest. Matriculation, however, can only take place once the language certificate is available.
Foreign-language applicants who wish to take up a Bachelor's degree program and who, according to the country-specific admission requirements, have to attend the Complementary Examination set by the Swiss Higher Education Institutions (ECUS), usually acquire the required language certificate as part of the ECUS examination. A waiver of the ECUS partial examination German is only possible if a recognized German language certificate is available at the time of registration for the ECUS examination (15 June). Registration for the ECUS examination can only be made via the University of Zurich.
