Exchange studies

EPFL students have the opportunity to spend their 3rd year of the Bachelor program abroad, and may also go abroad for their Master’s Project. More information is available on the website. Administrative procedures for a third-year exchange take place during the second year. An information session is also organized by the SMX mobility coordinator.

Conditions and Procedures for an Exchange

  • Grade average: A minimum average of 4.5 is required at the end of the propedeutic year (1st year) if not repeated. Students repeating the year will be considered last.
  • Location and host university: Choose your destination and contact the mobility coordinator.
  • Dates: Check the application deadlines here.
  • Reports from former students: Review the experiences of students who went on exchange for your first and second choice universities.
  • Study plan: Prepare your list of courses while considering the mandatory courses in the SMX curriculum. Contact Dr. Cyril Cayron if needed.
  • Submitting your study plan:
    • Send it as an Excel table to Cyril Cayron and schedule a meeting to discuss it.
    • If the host university does not offer official semester projects, you can request a non-paid research project from a professor at the host university corresponding to the required credit hours (1 credit = 14 lab hours). Upon completion, the supervising professor must send a letter (in French or English) to Cyril Cayron specifying the student’s name, project title, and confirming whether the project was satisfactorily completed. A final electronic report must also be submitted; it will not be graded.
  • Limited spots: If places are limited, candidates will be selected based on their application.
  • Follow-up during the exchange: Stay in contact by email with the mobility coordinator and inform them of any changes to your study plan.

Missing credits: Conditional admission to the Master’s program is possible if no more than 10 credits are missing at the end of the exchange year.

Master’s Project Abroad

Conditions

  • You can start your Master’s Project abroad if you have completed the mandatory engineering internship.
  • If you are missing no more than 8 credits to complete your Master’s cycle. These credits can be obtained alongside the project (with the approval of the project supervisors) or in the semester following the Master’s Project.

Procedure

  • The Master’s Project abroad must be supervised by an academic member (Professor or MER) of SMX.
  • Identify the research area you are interested in and contact an IMX Laboratories working in that field.
  • Discuss possible academic project opportunities outside EPFL.