Big events, festivals, concerts, operas, ballets, plays, and art exhibitions follow each other in rapid succession and cater to a wide variety of tastes. In winter there are skating, curling, cross country skiing in the hills above the town, and Alpine skiing in the nearby winter resorts of the Jura and the Alps. The program length is one academic year, and ISU students pay tuition at ISU and receive tuition benefits at UNIL or EPFL at no additional cost. Program participants are, however, responsible for room and board once in Switzerland. The cost of an academic year is approximately what students would expect to pay if they remained in Ames.
Students can earn full academic credit and remain eligible for financial aid.
In addition, the university is home to the School of Physical Education, School of Modern French, Center for European Research, Swiss Institute of Comparative Law, Institute of Advanced Studies in Public Administration, and the School of Advanced Business Studies. Applicants for the ISU exchange program in Switzerland must normally be full-time students at ISU, have departmental approval for participation, have a 3.00 GPA and junior standing and have completed French through 302 prior to the start of the program. Those with French 202 are eligible if they spend the summer before participation in a program of intensive French. This maybe accomplished in Switzerland, sometimes with partial financial support. Application forms are available in the Study Abroad Center.