University of Geneva

University of Geneva (UniGe) was founded in 1559 by Jean Calvin, the father of Calvinism. It became a secular institution in 1873 and now enrols more than 16,000 students in nine faculties that offer close to 300 degree courses. It is a truly international university with more than 40 per cent of its students from outside Switzerland.

Academic Highlights

University of Geneva is one of the highest ranked institutions in Europe. Its key areas of research excellence include molecular biology, elementary physics, biophysics, astro physics, economics, psychology and biochemistry. Ten Nobel laureates, including former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, have taught at or attended the University.

Location

Located over several districts in the east of Geneva, the University of Geneva is in the midst of the action of one of the smallest major cities in Europe. Geneva hosts some thirty international organisations including the United Nations, the World Trade Organisation, World Health Organisation, and more than 300 NGOs.

Did you know?

Geneva is home to CERN (from the name Conseil européen pour la recherche nucléaire, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research) and the Large Hadron Collider, the world’s largest and most powerful particle accelerator.

You can watch UniGe's video here on why you should come to Geneva!

Handbook/Catalogue

Programme de cours (Course program, students can also use this link to search for English units)

Students are able to take units from a maximum of two faculties with a majority in their home faculty.

Students studying in French will be required to provide evidence of French proficiency skills to the level of B2 or higher either through official test results (visit the Alliance Française de Melbourne website for further information about French language testing in Melbourne) or with an official academic attestation.  You can choose to take some units taught in French and some in English.  When a unit name is in French, that course is taught in French. Similarly if it is in English, it will be taught in English.

Full-time Credit Load Equivalents

ECTS - European Credit Transfer System

*If your study load cannot exactly equate to 22.5 ECTS, then you will need to complete a study load as close to 22.5 ECTS without going under in order to receive 18 Monash credit points.

Academic Calendar

Geneva Autumn Semester (Monash Semester 2): mid-September – early February
Geneva Spring Semester (Monash Semester 1): mid-February – late June

Geneva's Academic calendar (in French)

Note

• The listed disciplines are not necessarily exhaustive and other fields of study might also be available at the institution.
• Approval to study particular subjects at any institution is always at the discretion of the departmental/discipline and faculty advisers in your managing faculty(ies) and subject to available places at the host.

Accommodation

You will be advised how to register for accommodation as soon as you have been accepted to the University.  Accommodation is usually organised through the La Cité Universitaire de Genève with rooms allocated on a first-come first-served basis.

Visas

As a general rule, if you’re planning to stay in Switzerland for more than 90 days you’ll need a Long Term visa (visa D) from the Swiss Consulate in your home country. To apply for a long term visa, you will need to provide a confirmation letter from your host university, which it will send to you upon acceptance.  For more information on visas, to the website of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA) information about Switzerland and Australia.

Geneva also provides information on obtaining a visa.

Health and insurance

Anyone living in Switzerland is required to be insured against sickness and accident with a company recognised by the Confederation. If you have private health insurance with an Australian provider, you may be able to request recognition of its equivalence and a waiver may be applied. Most exchange students going to the University of Geneva, however, purchase their own personal health insurance for the duration of their exchange. In the past, Monash University's travel insurance has not been judged suitable meet the requirements for local insurance.

Read the University's web page about health and accident insurance for more information.

When travelling on a Monash Abroad approved program, you are automatically covered under the Monash University Student Travel Insurance policy.  This will provide cover to and from your exchange.

Orientation and extra-curricular 

A mandatory welcome day for exchange students is organised on the Friday prior to the official beginning of each semester. The University provides practical information for incoming exchange students, including about the student associations on campus.

Exchange students have access to free French language support during each semester. There are also discounts offered to exchange students for fee-paying French courses during the summer and winter holidays.

Cost of living

The University of Geneva suggest that you should budget for approximately CHF 2,000 (Swiss Francs) per month of your exchange (approximately A$2,700).  More information is provided by the University in an estimated budget for an exchange.

Funding

For information about funding available to support study on exchange overseas, see the Financial Information page on the Monash Abroad website.

Students taking French or German language units may be eligible for the Walter Mangold Study Abroad Scholarship.

To begin your application and study plan, click the button below.

Apply here

Have you been to the University of Geneva and want to share your experience? If you'd be willing to write a testimonial, email us at monashabroad.enquiries@monash.edu.

Robert Lang
Biomedial Science
Semester 1, 2026

Study Experience

The classes were often more traditional and pen-and-paper focused, which I actually found refreshing. With language learning nowadays, it is easy to rely on autocorrect for almost everything. Not having that option forced me to think more carefully about spelling, grammar and sentence structure, and helped improve my writing in both French and Spanish

Culture

Geneva was a great place to live, especially because public transport is free for people under 25 (in the canton of Geneve). Living at Cité Universitaire was also one of the best parts of my exchange. You live with around 16 people on one floor, which can sound like a lot, but if you are open to meeting people, it makes it much easier to form friendships.

There are lots of opportunities to do sport, with a gym nearby as well as basketball and tennis. I joined different social activities including the hitchhiking (la pousse) club which was a fun way to meet people and explore more of Switzerland. Also often the clubs run trips that are heavily discounted/subsided by the Uni like the Andalucia trip I did with the hispanohablantes club.

Benefits of going on exchange

The exchange made me much more independent and confident. Living with people from many different countries pushed me to be more open-minded. I became better at starting conversations and simply putting myself in situations where I did not already know anyone.

It also improved my French because I had to use it in daily situations, not only in class. I became more confident organising travel, managing money and dealing with university administration by myself. Overall, the exchange helped me realise that you get much more out of the experience when you make an effort and simply saying yes to opportunities.

Top tips

• Cité Universitaire is very social, but you need to make an effort to talk to people and join activities. Living with around 16 people on one floor can be intense, but it also makes it much easier to make friends.
• The more French you know before arriving, the easier everyday life will be. It is by no means necessary to be fluent, but it helps with reading documents, dealing with administration and spending less time translating everything. It can also reduce some of the anxiety that naturally comes with living in another country.
• The Friends Day Pass is great for travelling around Switzerland. It costs around 80 francs and can be shared between a group.