SMT Application & Admission ‒ CDM ‐ EPFL

Entry requirement

Candidates must hold a bachelor’s degree in engineering or in management/economics (or a in a related area with a strong quantitative component).

The admission is based on the quality of the application: excellent academic record, relevance of the bachelor’s degree and motivation of the candidate (i.e., proven interest in topics related to sustainability, management, or technology).

Candidates should have a demonstrated familiarity with quantitative methods (e.g., statistics, machine learning, etc.), and/or systems thinking (system modeling, etc.).

Irrespective of their bachelor degree, all candidates are expected to have programming experience (eg in their coursework).

Holders of a degree from a Swiss university of applied sciences (i.e., HES/FHS) are not eligible.

Prerequisites

The goal of these prerequisites is to achieve a class composition where interactions between students with different profiles will be as fruitful as possible.

Since graduates of the program should be able to master data analysis methods, candidates with a management/economics profile should have a demonstrated appetite for and a solid preparation in quantitative disciplines.

Here are examples of courses looked at to satisfy the quantitative requirements. NB: these courses are not pre-requisites.

Probability and statistics
Data science
Programming
Econometrics
Operations research
Operations management
Decision sciences
Macro- and microeconomics

In addition, as the program is demanding in quantitative disciplines, successful candidates usually have average grades of at least 5/6 in the quantitative disciplines above.

Application process

Application deadlines

Applications can be filled online:

from the beginning of November to the 15th of December, or
from the 16th of December to the 31st of March.

Applicants who, if accepted, would need a visa to study in Switzerland are strongly advised to apply for the December deadline in order to allow for the completion of the visa procedure, which can take up to 3 months.

Admission Decisions

Admission decisions are made jointly by the SMT Admission Commission and EPFL’s admissions committee on the basis of quantitative standards, including grade-point average, letters of recommendation, and the candidate’s background and motivation letter.

Decisions are sent end of March for applications registered by the 15th of December and before end of June for the applications registered by the 31st of March.

Regardless of which deadline you choose to meet, SMT studies begin on the first week of September following acceptance. Only one application per student and per year will be processed. An intensive language course is offered to all accepted candidates. It starts 4 weeks before the beginning of the semester.