Departement für Geistes-, Sozialund Staatswissenschaften
The GESS Compulsory Elective – information for ETH Zurich students 1
All ETH students must attend 6 ECTS credits’ worth of courses at the Department of Humanities, Social and
Political Sciences (D-GESS) to achieve a Bachelor’s degree and 2 ECTS credits’ worth of courses to
achieve a Master’s degree.
The GESS coursework enables ETH students to perceive and analyze the societal context of their future
activity as scientists and/or engineers.
The following is a summary of the most important information on the GESS compulsory elective for ETH
students:
1. GESS courses are listed and described in the ETH course catalog under the heading «GESS Compulsory Elective». Courses that are not listed in the course catalog under the heading «GESS Compulsory
Elective» can in principle not be accredited. The course offerings are structured according to focal
areas. It is recommended that students acquire all their compulsory credits in one focal area.
2. A maximum of 4 ECTS credits’ worth of language courses can be accredited for the GESS Compulsory
Elective. The following restrictions apply: Courses in English, French, Italian, and Spanish are only
accredited from Level B2 (Advanced) onwards. German language courses are only accredited from
Level C2 onwards.
3. If a student transfers from one degree course to another within ETH Zurich, previously acquired ECTS
credits for the GESS Compulsory Elective can be accredited for the new degree course upon application unless the ECTS credits in question have already been accredited for a completed degree (Bachelor / Master or diploma).
4. If a student transfers from another university to a new degree course at ETH Zurich, coursework in the
previous degree course cannot be accredited for the GESS Compulsory Elective, irrespective of the
subject chosen in the previous degree course.
5. If a student transfers from another university to continue the same degree course at ETH Zurich, the
ECTS credits that the students requires for the GESS Compulsory Elective can be accredited
proportionally to the overall number of ECTS credits required to complete the degree course.
6. Coursework achievements completed at ETH Zurich as part of a supplementary pedagogical-didactic
course can be accredited for the GESS Compulsory Elective if they consist of coursework from the
Educational Science Program and if the student is completing the Bachelor/Master studies in parallel
with the supplementary pedagogical-didactic course.
7. For exchange semesters, courses from departments of Humanities or Social or Political Sciences at
other universities may be accredited on an individual basis. The following rules apply:
a. In order for such courses to be accredited for the GESS Compulsory Elective, approval must be
sought from the Director of Studies responsible for the course in question and from the Study
Commission for the GESS subject before taking the respective courses.
b. For courses to be accredited as GESS subjects, they must first of all be situated within the
Humanities or Social or Political Sciences, and must secondly have a demonstrable
methodological and/or topical relevance for the natural and technical sciences.
c.
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Courses designed to close knowledge gaps at the level of school leaving examinations cannot
be accredited for the GESS Compulsory Elective.
This compilation is based on the documents «Directive of the Rector of September 24, 2007, as at August 24, 2012»
and «Regeln für die Aufnahme von Veranstaltungen ins Pflichtwahlfach GESS vom 10. Februar 2010».
d. Courses designed to provide basic academic or professional skills cannot be accredited for the
GESS Compulsory Elective. This means that courses on subjects such as Business English,
Presentation Skills, Authoring Academic Papers, Software Programming, Organizing One’s
Work, etc., cannot be accredited for the GESS Compulsory Elective.
e. The Study Commission determines the number of ECTS that can be accredited for the GESS
Compulsory Elective.
17.3.2014
The GESS Compulsory Elective – Information for students of ETH Zurich
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