EHL Hospitality Business School

About EHL Hospitality Business School

EHL began in Lausanne in 1893, when Jacques Tschumi established a hotel school whose first 27 students studied subjects such as accounting, geography and languages alongside practical hospitality work. The institution moved to its present area at Chalet-à-Gobet, north of central Lausanne, in 1975. It entered HES-SO in 1998 and now operates as a convention-affiliated higher-education school rather than a cantonal campus directly owned by HES-SO. The current name, EHL Hospitality Business School, dates from 2022. This change broadened the public-facing identity beyond the historic École hôtelière de Lausanne name while preserving institutional continuity. EHL remains active in 2026, publishes current admissions information and lists September 2026 and February 2027 bachelor intakes. EHL is privately organized within a group owned by the nonprofit EHL Foundation, which states that financial results are reinvested in the group. Academically, its defining characteristic is a close integration of business education with hospitality operations and customer-facing service. The Lausanne-based EHL Haute Ecole carries academic responsibility for EHL's degree-level courses. swissuniversities lists EHL among the convention-affiliated schools associated with HES-SO, and the bachelor award is a Bachelor of Science HES-SO in Hospitality Management. This makes EHL a specialized degree-granting higher-education institution, not merely a vocational hotel school or corporate training provider.

Bachelor applicants must have completed a secondary-school credential that qualifies them for university entry in the country where they studied. EHL expects mathematics during the final three years of secondary education, looks for grades above the minimum passing level and considers the rigor of the applicant's courses. Entrants must be at least 18 before the program begins. Credential-specific requirements apply: for September 2026 through February 2029, for example, the full International Baccalaureate requires at least 28 points out of 42, with priority given at 30. The application includes academic records and a 500-to-650-word essay addressing one of EHL's published prompts. Applicants whose documents are not in English, French, German or Italian need certified English translations. Students still completing school may be considered conditionally using current transcripts and, where applicable, predicted IB or A-level results. Language requirements depend on the chosen section and prior schooling. For the English section, applicants generally need evidence of advanced English through qualifying prior education or an accepted certificate. The page lists IELTS Academic 7.0 as the full threshold, while applicants at IELTS 6.0 may enter subject to mandatory English classes and an examination during the preparatory year. French-section applicants must demonstrate French and also meet a separate English requirement. EHL publishes distinct rules and deadlines for direct-entry candidates; these should not be applied to standard preparatory-year applicants. The cited February and June deadlines concern specific direct-entry routes. Standard applicants should confirm their own intake deadline and selection procedure directly in the application portal.

EHL's principal undergraduate offering is the four-year Bachelor of Science HES-SO in Hospitality Management, including its preparatory year. The opening stage develops operational service skills and professional habits, followed by a six-month operational internship. Year 1 establishes a business foundation spanning areas such as economics, people management, data analysis, communication and leadership. In Year 2, students apply and extend their management knowledge. The program includes a second six-month experience, taken as an administrative internship or as work on the student's own start-up project. A semester at the Singapore campus may also be available. The final year adds advanced management study and a choice among Leadership and Management, Advanced Marketing and Luxury Management, Finance and Real Estate, Entrepreneurial Ventures and Corporate Innovation, or an interdisciplinary route. Students conclude with either a team-based business project for an industry partner or an individually supervised applied-research thesis. At graduate level, EHL advertises two academic master's programs. The Master in Hospitality Management is an 18-month, full-time program in Lausanne combining advanced study, practical projects and an internship. The 16-month Master in Global Hospitality Business moves through Lausanne, Hong Kong and Houston over three semesters and emphasizes strategic management across international hospitality markets. The academic model is therefore unusually structured around applied work, internships and industry projects. It is best suited to students seeking business education through the lens of hospitality and service industries rather than a broad, multi-faculty university curriculum.

Key Highlights

• Founded in Lausanne in 1893 and renamed EHL Hospitality Business School in 2022.
• Listed by swissuniversities as a convention-affiliated higher-education school within HES-SO.
• Owned by a nonprofit foundation that states financial results are reinvested in the EHL Group.
• Active 2026 and 2027 bachelor intakes confirm continued operation.

Student Life & Environment

Campus life in Lausanne is international and strongly organized around student participation. EHL's current student-life page reports more than 4,000 students from 125 countries and around 30 student committees. Committees and activities cover professional, cultural and recreational interests, with examples on the academic pages including art, music, mixology, rugby, ice hockey and water sports. Organizing events or leading a committee can also provide a practical setting for exercising teamwork and management skills. The campus provides wellbeing services addressing physical, mental and spiritual needs, as well as academic-development support. Its facilities include study areas, multiple dining options, a fitness and sports center, and an innovation hub. Hospitality training is visible in everyday campus operations, including teaching restaurants and food-and-beverage facilities. Housing is available but should not be assumed to cover every student. EHL describes single and double rooms as well as shared student apartments at or close to the Lausanne campus. Applicants should verify availability, allocation rules and the contract attached to their intake before relying on campus accommodation. The 2026 bachelor fee schedule lists housing separately from compulsory academic charges, making room choice an important part of budgeting. The combination of residences, organized committees and recurring events creates a cohesive environment, though students seeking a conventional city-center university setting should note that the campus lies above and north of central Lausanne.

Location & Surroundings

EHL's Lausanne campus is at Route de Berne 301 in Chalet-à-Gobet, on the heights north of the city rather than in central Lausanne. This setting provides access to the Lake Geneva region and nearby outdoor recreation while maintaining a distinct residential campus environment. Students should expect to use public transport when traveling between the school, Lausanne railway station and the city center. EHL's official directions recommend taking the M2 metro from Lausanne station to Croisettes and then continuing by bus to an EHL stop. The school estimates the full trip from the railway station at about 30 minutes. Lausanne itself has an integrated network of metro, bus, regional rail, bicycle and boat services. Geneva Airport is the closest international airport. EHL estimates the journey from the airport to Lausanne at approximately 40 minutes by train or 50 minutes by car, over roughly 60 kilometers. This provides practical access for an international student body, but regular air travel still requires a transfer through Lausanne or another regional transport connection. Prospective students should distinguish this Lausanne location from EHL's separate sites in Passugg and Singapore and check where each program semester is delivered.

Costs & Career Outcomes

For September 2026 and February 2027 bachelor intakes, EHL's January 2026 schedule distinguishes students eligible for HES-SO-supported fees from international students who pay the full rate. Across the preparatory year and three bachelor years, published compulsory fees total CHF 86,150 for Swiss citizens and other eligible students and CHF 177,050 for international students. These totals include academic charges and prepaid food-and-beverage credit but exclude several material costs. The same schedule estimates minimum housing across the program at CHF 27,035 and health insurance at CHF 8,400 unless an exemption applies. It also lists a refundable CHF 5,000 guarantee deposit and a possible CHF 7,500 mobility-semester cost. Living expenses depend on individual circumstances. The figures are explicitly indicative and subject to change, so applicants should obtain a personalized invoice and verify HES-SO eligibility before committing. Admission requires a nonrefundable CHF 6,000 down payment within 15 days; applicants from outside the EU or EFTA also face an additional CHF 18,000 initial payment before a visa application, credited against the total due. EHL lists institutional, foundation and external scholarship or aid options but does not promise eligibility. Career preparation is built into the curriculum through two six-month practical experiences, applied projects and employer contact. At Lausanne, career services review CVs and cover letters, support internship planning, organize job fairs and company visits, and provide individual coaching. This infrastructure may benefit students targeting hospitality, luxury, service operations, real estate, entrepreneurship or related customer-focused businesses. No independent salary or employment-rate figure was found in the selected current sources, so applicants should not infer a guaranteed outcome from the school's employer network or internship model.