ETH Zurich ESOP FAQ: Questions ETH Has Already Answered
First window, pre-proposal, referees, February interviews and the difference from Swiss Government ESKAS — drawn from official ETH pages and the ESOP FAQ PDF.
ScholarshipUnion Editorial
2 min read
Updated Oct 6, 2026
These answers come from the official ESOP page, the official ESOP FAQ PDF, the Master’s dates page and the pre-proposal PDF. If ethz.ch updates a paragraph, ETH wins. Planning aid, not an official decision.
Answers ETH already published
No. ESOP is ETH Zurich’s own Master’s scholarship, filed in eApply. ESKAS / FCS is a federal research award for people who already hold a Master’s, filed in GO ESKAS. Separate handbook: /swiss-excellence/.
Not for ESOP. ETH requires the first application window (1–30 November 2026 for HS27). April 2027 is the Swiss Bachelor admission window only.
No. Holding a Master’s, or already being enrolled in an ETH Master’s, makes you ineligible.
ETH says this is based on self-assessment. Your transcript still has to be consistent with that claim. The ESOP page does not ask for a separate percentile certificate.
Official FAQ: explain in more detail why you deserve an Excellence scholarship and say more about your extra-curricular achievements. German or English.
Only if you work in industry: then one professor and one non-professor (for example an employer). Otherwise two professors. Letters are uploaded by the professors after a system email if the programme itself did not already require references.
Official FAQ: if you receive no nomination for ESOP, admission to the Master’s is unaffected.
The regular Master’s duration: three or four semesters. CHF 12,000 per semester; from HS27 onwards CHF 13,500 per semester, plus a tuition fee waiver for the same duration. About 60 awards for 2027/28.
Possibly. The ESOP page mentions a phone/VC interview in February — stay reachable on the CV number. The pre-proposal PDF says you are interviewed by a professor or scientist and the proposal is discussed.
Dr. Barbara E. Hellermann, Financial Aid Office, ETH Zürich, Rämistrasse 101, HG F22.1, 8092 Zurich. +41 44 632 20 23 / +41 44 632 20 88. Confirm on the official page before you call.
Sources: ESOP page, FAQ PDF, dates.