CCollegeMatcher

Switzerland · Universities and federal institutes of technology

University of Lausanne

Université de Lausanne · University (UNIL) · canton of Vaud · Lausanne

unil.ch →

Students, 2025/26

17,646

Educated abroad

18.6%

3,286 students

Largest field

Social sciences

21.5% of students

Institutional accreditation

to 24 Jun 2028

decided 25 Jun 2021, as listed on 3 September 2026

“Educated abroad” (Bildungsausländer) means the student gained their university entrance qualification outside Switzerland. It is not nationality: a foreign national who went to school in Switzerland counts as educated in Switzerland. For universities of applied sciences the Office publishes it for diploma, bachelor's and master's students only, so continuing-education students are left out of that share. Students are everyone matriculated at a Swiss higher education institution in the autumn (winter) semester, as the Federal Statistical Office defines them.

Educated abroad, by level, 2025/26

Bachelor's

7.5%

637 of 8,539 students

Master's

18.7%

1,048 of 5,602 students

Doctorate

45.9%

1,166 of 2,538 students

Students, 2006/07–2025/26

2006/07: 10,6472025/26: 17,646
2025/2617,646
2024/2517,182
2023/2416,937
2022/2316,901
2021/2217,134
2020/2116,908
2019/2015,860
2018/1915,325
2017/1814,975
2016/1714,452
2015/1614,103
2014/1514,089
2013/1413,624
2012/1312,947
2011/1212,249
2010/1112,066
2009/1011,581
2008/0911,468
2007/0811,032
2006/0710,647

Fields of study, 2025/26

Field names translated by CollegeMatcher.

  • Social sciences3,797 · 21.5%
  • Economics and business3,616 · 20.5%
  • Human medicine2,700 · 15.3%
  • Natural sciences2,064 · 11.7%
  • Law1,664 · 9.4%
  • Humanities and social sciences, interdisciplinary and other1,106 · 6.3%
  • Exact and natural sciences, interdisciplinary and other716 · 4.1%
  • Interdisciplinary and other659 · 3.7%
  • Languages and literature597 · 3.4%
  • History and cultural studies379 · 2.1%
  • Medicine and pharmacy, interdisciplinary and other171 · 1.0%
  • Pharmacy101 · 0.6%
  • Theology76 · 0.4%

Level of study, 2025/26

  • Bachelor's8,539 · 48.4%
  • Master's5,602 · 31.7%
  • Doctorate2,538 · 14.4%
  • Continuing education, advanced studies and other815 · 4.6%
  • Licence or diploma152 · 0.9%

Accreditation and fees

Institutional accreditation under the Higher Education Act is decided by the Swiss Accreditation Council; an institution needs it to call itself a university, university of applied sciences or university of teacher education. The dates are the decision and the end of the term as the Council's list showed them on 3 September 2026. A term that has ended since may have been renewed — check the Council's list. The Council's list

Each institution sets its own tuition — for ETH Zurich and EPFL the ETH Board does, by ordinance — and many charge students from abroad more. Fees are not published as open data, and swissuniversities' fee tables may not be reused, so no fees are shown here: check each institution's website.

Other universities and federal institutes of technology: University of Zurich, ETH Zurich, University of Bern, University of Geneva, EPFL, University of Basel, University of St. Gallen, University of Fribourg, Università della Svizzera italiana, University of Neuchâtel, University of Lucerne, UniDistance Suisse, Geneva Graduate Institute, Theological University Chur

Source: Federal Statistical Office (FSO/BFS), Students and Degrees in Higher Education (SHIS-studex) — tables “Studierende an den universitären Hochschulen nach Jahr, Fachbereich, Studienstufe, Bildungsherkunft und Hochschule” (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/asset/de/px-x-1502040100_108); “Studierende an den Fachhochschulen und pädagogischen Hochschulen nach Jahr, Fachbereich, Studienstufe, Geschlecht und Hochschule” (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/asset/de/px-x-1502040400_136); “Studierende an den Fachhochschulen und pädagogischen Hochschulen nach Jahr, Fachbereich, Bildungsherkunft und Hochschule, nur Studierende auf Stufen Diplom, Bachelor und Master (ohne Weiterbildung)” (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/asset/de/px-x-1502040400_138); “Studierende an den Fachhochschulen (ohne PH) nach Jahr, Fachbereich, Studienstufe, Geschlecht und Hochschule” (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/asset/de/px-x-1502040200_170); “Studierende an den pädagogischen Hochschulen (ohne FH) nach Jahr, Fachrichtung, Geschlecht und Hochschule” (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/asset/de/px-x-1502040300_191); “Studierende an den pädagogischen Hochschulen (ohne FH) nach Jahr, Fachrichtung, Staatsangehörigkeit (Kategorie) und Hochschule” (https://www.bfs.admin.ch/asset/de/px-x-1502040300_192). Terms of use: opendata.swiss “Open use. Must provide the source” (https://opendata.swiss/en/terms-of-use). Sums and shares, English names, the English names of university and teacher-education fields, cantons, cities and websites are CollegeMatcher's additions, not the FSO's. Accreditation dates: Swiss Accreditation Council, list of accreditation decisions (https://akkreditierungsrat.ch/en/decisions/), as last updated on 3 September 2026.

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