Engineering and Information Technology, Architecture Wood and Civil Engineering
The Bern University of Applied Sciences is one of Switzerland’s leading universities of applied sciences. It offers practice-oriented, research-based education across various departments, including Technology and Information Technology, and Architecture, Wood and Civil Engineering.
Domains taught:
Agriculture, AI and Machine Learning, Automation, Bioengineering, Chemistry, Civil Engineering, Computer Vision, Data Analytics, Ecology and Sustainability, Electrical and Electronics, Engineering, Ergonomics, Fluid Dynamics, Food Science, Geotechnics, Industrial Design, Manufacturing, Materials, Mathematics, Mechanical Engineering, Metrology, Nanotechnologies, Optics, Physics, Process Control, Project Management, Quality, Robotics, Signal Processing, Software Engineering, Statistics, Structural Engineering, Telecommunications, Thermodynamics
Diplomas*:
Bachelor, Diploma, Master
Status:
Public
Partnerships:
Strong network of regional, national, and international partners from industry, business, and research. Emphasis on applied research and development projects with practical relevance.
Research:
Applied research in areas like industrial automation, data science, sustainable construction, wood technology, renewable energy, medical technology, and automotive engineering.
Famous Alumnis:
N/A
International recognition**:
Number of staff***:
1500
Current students***:
7800
Foreign students***:
10%
Cumulative former students***:
40000
Pros
Practice-oriented education with strong industry links, good employability for graduates, wide range of specialized technical programs.
Cons
More focused on applied sciences than fundamental research compared to traditional universities.
Best For
Students seeking practice-oriented technical education with strong industry connections and applied research opportunities.
Also strong in metrology, agriculture and food science, OST – Ostschweizer Fachhochschule makes a sensible second look at home; it teaches at the same levels, namely bachelor's, master's and diploma, and is slightly smaller, at about 6,000 students against roughly 7,800 here.
Anyone who wants a second school in the same country with a similar spread of ergonomics, metrology and agriculture can consider Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften, and it covers bioinformatics and life sciences as well, and is larger, enrolling about 14,000 students against roughly 7,800 here.
Among national alternatives, Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz stands out for its focus on metrology, quality and geotechnics, and it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's and diploma programmes.
For students who like the ergonomics, metrology and quality focus of this school but want another option nearby, Hochschule Luzern fits well: it is also a public institution, and runs the same bachelor's, master's and diploma programmes.
Haute École Spécialisée de Suisse occidentale sits close to this institution on ergonomics, metrology and agriculture; it is larger, enrolling about 21,000 students against roughly 7,800 here, and is also a public institution.
Most Similar Schools Abroad
If this institution is on your list for metrology, agriculture and food science, Fachhochschule Kiel in Germany deserves a comparison, because it does not run the diploma programmes found here and covers sound engineering and ergonomics and UX as well.
Fachhochschule Südwestfalen (Germany) works on the same fields as this school, chiefly agriculture, food science and quality; it covers logistics and aerospace as well, and is larger, enrolling about 12,000 students against roughly 7,800 here.
A foreign alternative with a similar emphasis on metrology, quality and geotechnics is Cracow University of Technology in Poland, and it covers aerospace and transportations as well, and is larger, enrolling about 14,000 students against roughly 7,800 here.
Lublin University of Technology in Poland shares the quality, geotechnics and optics orientation of this institution, and it has almost the same size, at about 8,000 students, and is also a public institution.
For a study option in the Netherlands with a comparable spread of nanotechnologies, optics and fluid dynamics, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven is the reference point: it is also a public institution and also offers doctoral programmes.
*our own picks (our criteria: a mix between domains, diploma delivered, reputation and size), but obviously too many criteria for an apple-to-apple ranking.
*: without any judgment of the quality, readers are strongly encouraged to check the official status of the exact diploma envisioned as many universities have a mix of recognized diplomas, not recognized, “co-delivered,” “equivalent to”, “some pathways” (…), can change over time, and can be named differently from one country to another.
**: international reputation: is based on some criteria that do not mean much in some domains or specialties (number of researchers, of scientific publications, on budget ….). Our approximate 1-4 scale:
known locally
known locally and internationally
is listed in some of the world university’s classifications
is listed among the 20 firsts in some of world university’s classifications
***: estimated numbers, based on online sources and/or feedbacks. The numbers can vary greatly depending on school organisation (ex.: school is part of a group, it employs internal staff or external consultants or has public staff without employing them …). Refer to all the links provided to have accurate and updated numbers.
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