EMLYON Business School
  
Grenoble EM
  
ESADE Business School
  
Rouen BS
  
ESSCA
Other names:
Swiss Federal Institute of Technology
Contact: +41 21 6931111

Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)

Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
3.97 / 5 based on 108 reviews.
Description:
The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL)was founded 145 years ago and has provided since, thousands of engineers, architects and researchers who have contributed their skills towards the technological development in Switzerland.


Reviews
International Partners
Programmes
Accreditations
90% of students recommend
108 reviews
Housing
4.1/5
 All experiences (108)
Student life
4.3/5
 5 stars (36)
Academic
4.2/5
 4 stars (36)
Languages
4.2/5
 3 stars (36)
Expenses
3.1/5
 2 stars (0)
Overall
4.5/5
 1 star (0)
“Visit switzerland while you are there, get the Demi-tariff and Voie7 as soon as you arrive as they give you cheaper rail travel and you WILL use them! Don't stay in your room all day, go and swim in the lake, apply for acocmodation early, go to the erasmus events, make an effort to talk french and do the language course in August (HIGHLY recommended!)” Read Review
s0nica, United Kingdom

6 4-star reviews of Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

PAGE: 1 2 3 4 5 … 6    NEXT »
1 to 1 of 6 
Review by Chris, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, London, United Kingdom
Physics, Erasmus
HOUSING    
Personal assessment
Cost
KEY:
Couldn't have asked for more.
Pretty good.
Could've been better, but didn't lessen the overall experience.
Disappointing.
Facilities
Location
Cleanliness
Space
Type of housing: On campus
Arranged by: Host university
If returning, I would choose: On campus
Why?
Personal comments:
Apply early for a place in the university student accomodation (with the FMEL agency) as it's the best but you have to apply very early! In order of preference: Cèdres, then Bourdonette and then Rhodanie, the others aren't so good for location or sociability. Cèdres is by far the best if you like being near the lake, and partying all night with other students! The price is also cheap compared to the UK, and everything is well organised.
This review is the opinion of an iAgora member, and not of iAgora itself
Was this review useful?   Yes · No

STUDENT LIFE    
Personal social experience
Activities
KEY:
Amazing! Hardly had time to study.
Plenty to do when I had the time.
So-so.
Did not get involved.
Nightlife
Travel
Overall
Describe host city: Student life dominates the city
Activities: Takes place mostly within the university/student environment
Nightlife, Travel: Takes place both within and outside of the university/student environment
Personal comments:
Lausanne is a city with lots of clubs and a great nightlife considering it's size. Good small clubs are Jagger's!(commercial rock/pop), Buzz(electro), and then the big ones like Cult, D!, MAD, then there are bars like Captain Cook's, Les Brasseurs, XIIème siècle, the list goes on!
This review is the opinion of an iAgora member, and not of iAgora itself
Was this review useful?   Yes · No

ACADEMIC    
My academic experiences
Quality of courses
KEY:
Fantastic.
Pretty good.
Could've been a bit better.
Disappointing.
Variety of courses
Availability/access to resources
Interaction with teachers
Interaction with other international students
Interaction with local students
Course recommendations:
Courses were OK, there is a very big choice in physics courses, but the few I chose were not the best. The lab I worked in however was very well equipped.



My opinion of the university assessment
Exams at end of course
KEY:
Liked it.
It was alright.
A bit annoying.
Didn't like it.
Exams throughout the course
Essays and/or projects at the end of course.
Essays and/or projects throughout the course
Overall
Personal comments:
Oral exams are a bad way to assessknowledge, and it is not allowed to retake exams.

This review is the opinion of an iAgora member, and not of iAgora itself
Was this review useful?   Yes · No

Language difficulties
Social
KEY:
No problems.
I coped pretty well.
Sometimes it was difficult.
It was a constant struggle.
Educational
Administrative / Institutional
Overall
Language of instruction: French
Was learning French a key decision factor?
Yes, I wanted to improve my French
How much did you improve your French?
My level before: Everyday knowledge (shopping, directions, etc.)
My level after: At ease in most situations
Personal comments:
Courses were in french but project was in english due to having a non-francophone supervisor. It is possible to learn french well in a year but sometimes other students communicate in english, which makes learning french harder. All professors and administration staff in EPFL also speak at least english.
This review is the opinion of an iAgora member, and not of iAgora itself
Was this review useful?   Yes · No

EXPENSES    
The accessibility of student needs
Second-hand text books
KEY:
Very easy.
Minimal effort.
Accessible but required effort.
Almost impossible.
Second-hand household items
Computers / Internet
Administrative
Money from home
Main source of funding:
Not specified
Other sources of funding:
None
Work opportunities:
I didn't explore any work options
Personal spending habits:
Food is more expensive, housing is cheaper.
Food: was more expensive than at home.
Nightlife, Overall, Telephone: was the same price as at home.
Travel, Housing: was less expensive than at home.
Personal comments:
Buy alcohol from denner not coop.
This review is the opinion of an iAgora member, and not of iAgora itself
Was this review useful?   Yes · No

OVERALL    
Important to choosing this university...
Academic reasons
KEY:
Very Important.
Important.
Not really important.
Unimportant.
Culture
Costs
Activities
Campus life
Party / people
Weather / Location
I wish I had known...
No
In my opinion:
Everybody loved it, you will too!



During my experience abroad, I ...
Became familiar with another culture
KEY:
Happened all the time.
Happened quite a lot.
Happened a bit.
Didn't happen.
Traveled
Improved language skills
Met people from other countries
Became more independent
Partied a lot
Experienced a change in life
Advanced my studies/career
Personal recommendation:
It's great! The university has a good reputation but the best reason for choosing lausanne is for the social side, you will meet loads of people from different countries, make good friends, there are lots of exchange students in the same position, lots of trips and nightlife and a very effective erasmus student organisation.



FINAL COMMENTS

Visit switzerland while you are there, get the Demi-tariff and Voie7 as soon as you arrive as they give you cheaper rail travel and you WILL use them! Don't stay in your room all day, go and swim in the lake, apply for acocmodation early, go to the erasmus events, make an effort to talk french and do the language course in August (HIGHLY recommended!)
This review is the opinion of an iAgora member, and not of iAgora itself
Was this review useful?   Yes · No