Science at EPFL
The École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) is a technical university with a focus on science and technology. It was founded in 1853 as the École spéciale de Lausanne. Today, EPFL is a leading institution for education, research and innovation, and is nothing less than the country's largest university campus. Located in an almost paradisiacal setting to the west of the capital of Vaud, on the shores of Lake Geneva of course, this magnificent campus has everything to seduce serious students and discerning parents alike. For visitors just passing through, a stroll around the campus is well worth the detour. Each time you visit, you're likely to discover a new point of view, so complex is it to take in everything in a single visit!
International attractiveness
Ranked as one of the world's top technology schools (14th worldwide and5th in Europe), it offers thirteen complete courses of study, from Bachelor's to Master's degrees, ranging from engineering to life sciences, including IT. At the end of 2017, its five faculties (Computer Science and Communication, Engineering Sciences and Techniques, Basic Sciences, Life Sciences, Natural and Built Environment) had 10,686 students and 5,996 staff (including 343 professors). Nearly 125 nationalities are represented, and half of EPFL's students are foreigners, including 40% from France. Whereas the latter used to arrive from border regions, today they come from all over France. At just 3h40 from Paris by TGV and with low tuition fees (around €1,000 per year, although there is talk of increasing them), the school is constantly collecting good points.
Finally, EPFL stimulates exchanges and emulation between students, professors, researchers and entrepreneurs, encouraging the emergence of new scientific, technological and architectural projects. The Rolex Learning Center is undoubtedly the best known.
Coffee break at the Rolex Learning Center
Of all the ultramodern buildings on campus, the Rolex Learning Center is the one that should catch your eye the most. Designed by the internationally renowned Japanese architecture firm SANAA and inaugurated in 2010, the center is open to students, of course, but also to the public. Stretching over a surface area of 20,000m2, it houses a 500,000-book library, as well as information centers, study areas, restaurants and cafés, all overlooking magnificent exteriors. The building's architecture is resolutely innovative, with gentle slopes and terraces undulating around interior patios and supported by discreet yet elegant pillars. The Rolex Forum is equipped with all the latest technology and a lodge, and can be booked any day of the year.
The party at EPFL
In addition to the bars on campus where you can enjoy a drink during your visit, we suggest you save the date for the Balélec festival, an open-air musical event organized by student volunteers, which takes place every year in mid-May on the EPFL campus. Originally a ball for EPFL's electricity section (hence the name), it is now open to all. On a crazy Friday night, the school is transformed and divided into stages and clubs. Welcoming over 15,000 festival-goers spread over some twenty concerts during the evening, the Balélec festival is one of the biggest student festivals in Europe. Created in 1981, the fortieth edition of the festival was originally scheduled for Friday May 8, 2020, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, the date has been cancelled and the fortieth edition will now take place in 2021. Save the date, we tell you, because pre-sales are going fast!
Gastronomy with EHL
After science and technology on the shores of the lake, let's change course and talk gastronomy and management: the École hôtelière de Lausanne (EHL) is the oldest hotel management school in the world. Founded in 1893 by Jacques Tschumi, it quickly gained a high reputation among hotel professionals and is now a member of the University of Applied Sciences (HES). Located at Chalet-à-Gobet, in the heights of Lausanne, this institution trains students for careers in the hospitality industry at an international level, and boasts all the facilities required for event organization. That's why it offers both French and English courses.
Since its foundation, EHL has trained over 25,000 executives from 90 different nationalities. Above all, the school has never ceased to reinvent and develop itself, becoming an international benchmark in the world of hospitality. Today, it is recognized as the world's leading hotel school.
A Michelin-starred restaurant... run by its students
Renovated and expanded in 2019-2020, the campus can now accommodate over 2,000 students. Well located on the edge of a beautiful Swiss forest, it's its Michelin-starred restaurant that's most likely to draw you in. At Le Berceau des Sens, students learn the skills of gourmet cooking and service under the guidance of chefs and teachers who are experts in their field. Le Berceau des Sens is the first application restaurant in Switzerland to be awarded a Michelin star, and its value for money is almost unbeatable in the area. Open to the public Monday to Friday, for lunch (menus from CHF 50) and dinner (CHF 95), reservations are highly recommended.
IMD
In the world of international business, IMD, the International Institute for Management Development, is a breeding ground for leaders and executives with an international business culture. Another campus is in Singapore. Here, real world citizens of the highest calibre come to take part in training courses led by professionals from all horizons and cultures.
Created by "business leaders for business leaders", IMD is one of the world's leading organizations, with a worldwide reputation for the excellence of its executive education programs. It offers MBAs, EMBAs, executive programs, MSc in management and sustainable technologies, corporate solutions programs... The programs on offer are extremely rich and, above all, open to the world. Here, knowledge knows no boundaries. The best professionals teach a wide range of subjects: artificial intelligence, the Chinese initiative (for example, how Chinese companies are "reinventing" management - some programs are led by Harvard professors), leadership, competitiveness, strategy, communication, sustainable development, cybersecurity, digital strategy, finance, marketing and programs tailored to each company.
Thousands of executives graduate from this prestigious institution every year, and the number of student nationalities is almost one hundred. The world of business and knowledge knows no borders, and so much the better. Virtually every CEO or top executive from the four corners of the globe makes a training visit here in the course of his or her career.
