All students selected for an exchange must take a language test or provide an attestation which demonstrates that their language level is sufficient. The test is taken after the selection.
Please note that partner universities may change the language requirements at any time. Specific information regarding these requirements can be found on the website of the partner universities or in certain cases on the exchange information sheet.
Exchange to the USA, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom
The students selected for an exchange in the USA, Canada, Australia or the United Kingdom must pass a language test according to the requirement of the host university.
The English certificate obtained for the test of the 1st Bachelor year is not accepted.
The test is refunded by EPFL for the first attempt only. In order to receive a refund, please provide the invoice of the course, the attestation of participation to the course as well as your bank details to your student exchange coordinator at the Student Exchange Office.
| Universities in the USA | Tests accepted and level required by the host university | Deadline to pass the test |
| Carnegie Mellon University | see fact sheet (PDF document) on the website of the partner universities | February 15 |
| Johns Hopkins University | see the website of the partner | February 15 |
| University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | see fact sheet (PDF document) on the website of the partner universities | January 31 |
| University of California, San Diego | see the website of the partner | January 31 |
| University of Washington, Seattle | see the website of the partner | February 15 |
| Universities in Australia | Tests accepted and level required by the host university | Deadline to pass the test |
| University of New South Wales | see the website of the partner | February 15 |
| University of Sydney | see the website of the partner | February 15 |
| Universities in Canada | Tests accepted and level required by the host university | Deadline to pass the test |
| McGill University | see the website of the partner | January 31 |
| University of Toronto | see the website of the partner | January 31 |
| University of British Columbia | see the website of the partner | January 31 |
| University of Waterloo | see the website of the partner | January 31 |
| Polytechnique de Montréal | no English test required, courses in French | – |
| Université de Montréal | no English test required, courses in French | – |
| Université Laval, Québec | no English test required, courses in French | – |
Exchange to all other destinations
Update for exchanges in 2023-24
Contrary to what was shared at the Study Abroad Fair on 13th October 2022, if you have not passed the English test during the first year or if you have not obtained the English level required by the host university for which you have be selected, you are exceptionally able to pass an English test at the Language Center at the beginning of March 2023.
The language tests for German, English, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese are organized by the Language Centre. The tests will take place at the beginning of March 2023 at the Language Center.
The tests will take place in person at the Language Center on the following dates:
- Saturday 4th March 2023: 10am-12pm / 12-2pm / 2-4pm / 4-6pm
- Friday 10th March: 4-6pm / 6-8pm
- Saturday 11th March 2023: 10am-12pm / 12-2pm / 2-4pm / 4-6pm
The registration to the test is done in the student portal in IS-Academia (tab Language Center) between 28th February and 3rd March 2023.
English test
If you have passed an English test at the Language Center during the 1st Bachelor year you need to provide the attestation which you can download in IS-Academia, to the host university who requires an English certificate (except for USA/Canada/Australia/UK which require a TOEFL, IELTs, etc.).
- Germany, Austria: German and/or English, if study plan in both languages. For TU Berlin: German + English if courses in English.
- Belgium: English, if flemish host university and at UCL – Ecole Polytechnique de Louvain. No test for other universities
- Brazil, Portugal : Portuguese. Except Instituto Superior Tecnico (IST) : English if courses at master level and/or Portuguese if courses at bachelor level
- Danmark, Finland, Ireland, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Norway, Netherlands, Czech Republic, Sweden, Turkey, UK : English
- China, Korea, India, Singapore, Israel : English
- Chile, Spain, Mexico : Spanish
- France: English if courses in English
- Italy: Italian. Politecnico di Torino : language of the majority of courses (Italian or English)
- Japan : English test at EPFL + certificate of Japanese level (eg. course attestation)
- Switzerland: Mendrisio: Italian. ETHZ: language of the majority of courses (German or English)