General Information

The Partnership Programme includes cooperation with universities outside Europe. Within the framework of this programme, the University of Lucerne has fewer scholarships available than in the SEMP programme,  (see section on Scholarships).

Requirements for participation in the Partnership Programme 

• There must be an agreement in place between the universities for the corresponding major or minor subject.
• You must be enrolled at the University of Lucerne.
•   It is possible to spend up to a maximum of 2 semesters on exchange at each level of study (BA, MA, PhD).
• At the beginning of your stay abroad, the 3rd semester of the Bachelor's programme should have been completed.
• Good basic knowledge of the language of the host country or the language of instruction is required in order to be able to cope with the deamnds of academic studies in a foreign language. 

Duration of the exchange programme

The duration of exchange within the Partnership Program is usually 1 semester, maximum 2 semesters. 

Enrolment and tuition fees

Exchange students remain enrolled at the University of Lucerne during their exchange semester and pay their tuition fees here. No tuition fees are payable at the host university.

Credit transfer

Before the start of the exchange semester, a learning agreement must be arranged with the responsible exchange programme coordinator of the corresponding faculty. After the exchange, the successfully completed achievements are converted into ECTS on the basis of the Transcript of Records and are generally recognized. The recognition of externally completed study achievements is at the discretion of each individual faculty.

Partner universities  

Within the framework of the Partnership Programme, Lucerne students can choose from numerous universities - depending on the faculty. 

Study reports  

Students who have completed an exchange semester within the Partnership programme should fill out a study report. This report serves as valuable support for the next outgoing exchange students.

Overview of study reports - outgoing

Preliminary information

You should use this website as a starting point to find out more about the SEMP programme, the most important requirements, questions about credits, and the ideal time in your studies in which to go on exchange. The study abroad reports written by your fellow students describing their own experiences abroad also provide useful input.

Talk with your faculty's mobility advisor/learning agreement

You should get into contact with your faculty's mobility advisor to discuss study programme related questions and the learning agreement.

Talk with the Outgoing Mobility Coordinator

The outgoing mobility coordinator at the International Relations Office (IRO) is available for any organisational and administrative questions you might have.

Applying for an exchange semester

You can apply to go on exchange via the online portal. As part of the application you will need a CV, a letter of motivation and the signature of your study advisor.

Nomination

The faculties decide on the allocation of study places at each partner university. You will be informed about your successful nomination by the IRO.

Registration at the partner university

If you are nominated for a study place, the International Relations Office will register your name directly with the partner university.

Information from the partner university

The partner university will subsequently send you all the necessary information and will inform you of the next steps.

Scholarship/Declaration of Commitment (only for scholarship holders)

Before starting your exchange semester, you will need to sign a 'Declaration of Commitment' in order to receive a scholarship for your period of exchange.

Learning Agreement

After receiving the course catalogue from your host university, you will select your courses in consultation with your study advisor. You will record these course choices in your Learning Agreement before you begin your exchange semester, and ensure that it has been signed by your study advisor. The Learning Agreement is then also signed by the partner university. You will be required to upload the document to the online portal.

Credit transfer

After completing your exchange semester, it is your responsibility to ensure that you receive a Transcript of Records from your host university and submit it driectly to the IRO or to your study advisor for credit transfer.

In the Partnership Programme, a number of scholarships are now also be available. The amount of the scholarship is CHF 2,500 and can be applied for together with the application for the exchange semester.

Furthermore, swissuniversities (Rectors' Conference of the Swiss Universities) provides information on Scholarships for study abroad.