Kalaidos Fachhochschule Schweiz

About Kalaidos Fachhochschule Schweiz

Kalaidos traces its origins to 1997, when predecessor institutions in business education were established and combined. It developed into an independent private Swiss university of applied sciences, received federal authorization in 2005 and reports renewed institutional accreditation by the Swiss Accreditation Council in September 2022. Kalaidos is also listed by swissuniversities among accredited universities of applied sciences. Its current public identity is Kalaidos Fachhochschule Schweiz. The institution’s model differs from that of a residential university. Programs are deliberately structured around working and family commitments, with combinations of guided self-study, in-person teaching, livestream participation and online delivery. The main institutional address and several schools are at Jungholzstrasse 43 in Zurich-Oerlikon. The health school operates at a separate Zurich address, while music provision has historically extended across Switzerland. A 2025 reorganization placed the main academic areas into schools for business, applied psychology, law and health and strengthened the central applied research function. Kalaidos simultaneously decided to discontinue the activities of its music school, allowing existing programs to run out in an orderly way through the end of 2027. Prospective music students therefore need direct confirmation that a particular intake remains available. For other applicants, the key decision is whether a flexible, employment-compatible applied-sciences education suits them better than a traditional campus-centered experience.

Admission is program- and school-specific. Kalaidos publishes a central admissions framework derived from Swiss higher-education law and then directs candidates to separate requirements for business, law, health and applied psychology. Applicants should use the conditions on the exact program page and seek an individual assessment when their prior qualification does not follow a standard Swiss route. For the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, the published routes include a Swiss vocational baccalaureate, specialized baccalaureate, academic baccalaureate or higher technical-school diploma. Holders of certain advanced federal vocational qualifications may enter through an admissions examination. Candidates with an academic baccalaureate, and those whose prior education is not commercially oriented, generally need at least one year of relevant work experience. These conditions illustrate the applied-sciences model but must not be generalized to law, psychology, health or music. Consecutive master’s admission normally requires a suitable bachelor’s background, with the precise academic prerequisites set by the program. Continuing-education master’s programs use different rules and may weigh professional experience heavily; they should not be confused with MSc or MA admission. International applicants should request a formal evaluation of their credential and confirm language expectations directly. No institution-wide English-test threshold or single universal application deadline was verified, and start dates vary across programs.

Kalaidos offers study across business, law, health, applied psychology and music, although music provision is now in a managed phase-out. Its first-cycle and consecutive second-cycle education leads to Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Arts, Master of Science or Master of Arts awards. The institution states that bachelor’s degrees normally comprise 180 ECTS credits; a conventional full-time route lasts six semesters, while a typical part-time route lasts eight semesters. Consecutive master’s degrees comprise 90 to 120 ECTS and build on an appropriate bachelor’s qualification. The portfolio is strongly applied. Business offerings include fields such as business administration, banking and finance, business information technology, marketing and business psychology. Law includes a Bachelor of Arts in Law, while applied psychology and health operate through their respective schools. Kalaidos also offers substantial continuing education, including CAS, DAS, MAS, MBA and EMBA programs; applicants should distinguish these from consecutive bachelor’s and master’s degrees when comparing credentials. Delivery varies by school and program. In the central teaching model for business bachelor’s and master’s study, students can attend in Zurich-Oerlikon or participate by livestream. From May 2026, recordings are made available afterward, and the published schedule includes weekday evenings and Saturdays. Research support includes an electronic library environment, instruction on preparing final theses, a survey server and suggested research topics. This structure is particularly relevant to students who want to apply academic material directly in an existing workplace.

Key Highlights

• Accredited Swiss university of applied sciences with renewed institutional accreditation reported in 2022
• Private institution with roots dating to 1997
• Teaching model is primarily designed around employment and family responsibilities
• Music-school programs are being phased out through the end of 2027

Student Life & Environment

Student life at Kalaidos is organized around flexible study rather than a residential campus routine. Many students are already employed or balancing education with family obligations, so interaction is likely to center on classes, online learning spaces, applied projects and professional networks. For selected business programs, published teaching windows include Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings and Saturdays. Students may choose on-site or livestream participation, and the institution says attendance is not compulsory in that model. Students have formal opportunities to contribute through class representatives and oral or written feedback rounds. The research unit provides cross-institutional support for academic work, including a lecture series on the research process, electronic literature-search guidance and possible topics for student projects. Active students as well as graduates may join the Kalaidos alumni association, which offers a bridge between current study and the graduate community. Applicants should not expect a conventional residential-university package without checking carefully. The reviewed official pages do not advertise institution-managed housing, meal plans, varsity sport or a broad campus-club system. The practical attraction is instead schedule flexibility and contact with other working professionals. Students seeking intensive daily campus life should compare this model with larger public universities before deciding.

Location & Surroundings

Kalaidos’s principal address is Jungholzstrasse 43, 8050 Zurich, in the Oerlikon area. The business, law and applied-psychology schools list this address, as does the institution’s central study-advice service. Students using on-site teaching should verify the location shown for their individual program, because not every academic area operates from the same building. The Careum School of Health is located separately at Gloriastrasse 18a, 8006 Zurich. Music provision has used a distributed model across Switzerland, but the institution has announced that those programs will finish their orderly phase-out at the end of 2027. Online and livestream formats may reduce the need for regular travel to Zurich in eligible programs, while some offerings still include in-person components. The reviewed official sources do not describe a self-contained residential campus or university accommodation. Prospective students planning to relocate should therefore treat housing and commuting as independent arrangements and confirm how often their chosen course requires attendance before signing a lease.

Costs & Career Outcomes

Kalaidos does not publish one tuition figure that applies across the institution, so students should budget from the current page and fee rules for their exact program. As a concrete 2026 example, the Bachelor of Science in Business Administration is advertised at CHF 990 per month, including the first attempt at examinations, plus a one-time CHF 100 matriculation charge and literature costs. This is an example, not a general bachelor’s fee: health, law, psychology, music and continuing-education programs may use different prices and billing structures. The continuing-education fee schedule effective 1 April 2026 also lists administrative charges for matters such as installment payments, cancellations, changes and late payment. Applicants should read the applicable terms before enrolling and ask whether an employer will contribute, particularly because the university’s model is designed for employed students. The reviewed material did not establish a standard housing or meal-plan charge, and institution-managed accommodation was not identified. Career development is closely tied to the work-compatible structure. Kalaidos advertises an individual career service and a career-and-leadership development program for bachelor’s students, while applied teaching allows students to connect coursework with current employment. Alumni membership is open to active students and graduates. No verified institution-wide salary, placement-rate or employer-outcome statistics were found, so prospective students should request program-specific evidence rather than infer outcomes from the applied format.