Studying/Doing research
DEGREES
Since 2007, courses at all Swiss universities and sepcialist colleges in mid-September and end in late June. The fall semester lasts from September to December and the spring semester from February to May. Exams are held in January/February, May/June and August/September.
BASIC STUDIES
The baccalauréat universitaire or Bachelor, the initial basic degree, as a rule requires 180 ECTS
credits1 over three years of full-time study. Bachelor’s programmes provide basic skills in a
discipline, as well as academic methodology.
The maîtrise universitaire or Master, the second basic degree, requires 90 to 120 credits over
three or four semesters of study. Master’s programmes provide advanced general study of a
discipline or field, as well as an initial encounter with research. They may be limited to one
discipline or interdisciplinary, focused on research or professional practice, and offer a range
of specializations.
PROGRAMMES
Instruction offered by the University of Geneva is structured according to the principles of
the Bologna reform, with three main study cycles: the Bachelor, the Master and the Doctorate.
Most programmes include compulsory and optional courses. The latter may be taken in
other faculties, or at other universities, depending on the circumstances. Instruction is mainly
offered in the form of courses given ex cathedra, seminars and practical work.
ADVANCED STUDIES
The doctorate (Ph.D.) is a research-based course lasting between six and ten semesters, at
the end of which candidates must submit and defend a dissertation. It follows on from a
Master’s degree.
The Master of Advanced Studies (MAS ) is a postgraduate course lasting between two semesters
minimum that allows candidates to gain 60-120 credits minimum. It follows on from a
Master’s degree.
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RESEARCH
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Research areas are many and each year, the University of Geneva hosts many PhD students and foreign researchers in its faculties and laboratories.
Due to its high level standards in research and its many disciplines,
the UNIGE is ranked among the best three generalist French-speaker
universities and among the 150 best universities in 20’000 worldwide
universities. Its research projects cover one hundred subjects, from
exact sciences, natural and medical sciences to social sciences and
humanities. Every year this leads to fruitful results such as 3'300
publications.
At a national level, the UNIGE is one of the Swiss leaders for hosting National Centres of Competence in Research (NCCR). The UNIGE is the leading house of four NCCRs:
NCCR Frontiers in Genetics, NCCR MaNEP, NCCR Affective Sciences, and NCCR Chemical Biology. More over the UNIGE is the co-leading house of two NCCRs in collaboration with EPFL and the University of Lausanne : NCCR LIVES – Overcoming vulnerability, NCCR The synaptic bases of mental disease.