No, all candidates must submit an application regardless of their previous training.

You must have one of the following diplomas or be able to obtain it before 1 September 2024:

Baccalaureate with preparatory classes or bridge / foundation course

• High school diploma (Matura)
• Matura with preparatory classes or bridge/foundation course
• Specialised Matura
• Vocational Matura (Maturité professionnelle)
• Equivalent foreign qualification (Nota bene: some diplomas such as the French baccalauréat professionnel are not considered equivalent. Please contact the Office of Studies to find out about the validity of your diploma)
• Other qualifications deemed equivalent

You must have one of the following diplomas or be able to obtain it before 1 September 2024:

• Vocational Matura (Maturité professionnelle) in Art with an advanced federal certificate (CFC) specific to the field in question, or
• Specialised Matura in Art and Design sepcific to the field concerned, or
• Matura and preparatory classes or bridge / foundation course in the field concerned, or
• Matura and one year’s professional experience in Design in the field concerned (9-10 months full-time), or
• Equivalent foreign qualification (Nota bene: some diplomas such as the French baccalauréat professionnel are not considered equivalent. Please contact the Office of Studies to find out about the validity of your diploma), or
• Other qualifications deemed equivalent

Please consult the brochure published on the HES-SO website at the following pathway: Admissions to our Bachelor's programmes.

• In Geneva: you can take your preparatory classes at the Centre de formation professionnelle Arts - CFP Arts. This course is free of charge for taxpayers in the Canton of Geneva and costs about CHF 20,000 for non-taxpayers in the Canton. In Switzerland, inter-cantonal agreements exist if the course is not taught in the Canton of residence. You can get information from CFP Arts or from the student guidance services of your Canton of residence.
• In neighbouring France: at the École des Beaux-Arts du Genevois. This preparatory class, which has a deliberately all-round approach, provides an opening onto different artistic and design practices by combining theory and practical teaching. It is open to applicants with a baccalaureate or equivalent qualification.
• You can also do your preparatory year at another school in the country of your choice. Other schools located close to Geneva that offer this training are the École Cantonale d'Art de Lausanne, and the École d'Arts Visuels Berne et Bienne.
• HEAD – Genève does not make any recommendations on the choice of preparatory class/propaedeutic year.

Yes, you also have to submit an application directly to CFP Arts or EBAG. 

Yes, it is possible to do a preparatory class outside Switzerland.You can do your preparatory year in the country of your choice.

Yes, provided certain conditions are met:

• be able to demonstrate outstanding artistic talent (exceptional admission) and, for the design programs only, have one year of professional experience in the field concerned – details in the Special Conditions and Procedures for Admission to Bachelor’s Studies under Admissions;

OR

• be over 25 years old, meet residence criteria in Switzerland or the French departments bordering Switzerland, and have one year’s full-time professional experience in the field concerned (admission on file) – details in the Special Conditions and Procedures for Admission to Bachelor's Studies under Admissions.

You must use the online application form.

You can apply from Wednesday, 15 November 2023 until Monday, 25 March 2024 at 17:00 CEST (Swiss time). No application forms can be submitted and accepted after this deadline.

The admission process takes place in two rounds. The first round consists of the examination and evaluation by a committee of professors of the personal file of each applicant. The second round involves an interview to which the applicants selected after the first round are invited by email.

For the Bachelor’s in Film Studies, the second round includes an exercise to be completed at the time of the interview.

Details on the expected contents of the personal file can be found under Admissions in the Conditions and Procedures for Admission to Bachelor's Studies.

This portrait – based on a few questions – is intended to highlight different aspects of your background, your personality, and your motivations and interests.

The creative test is designed to allow applicants to demonstrate their expressive and imaginative potential. The instructions for this test, which will be carried out remotely, are specific to each department. They will be communicated in the Admissions section on: Friday, 23 February 2024 at 10:00 for the Bachelor applications in Interior Architecture, Fashion Design, and Product, Jewellery and Accessory Design, Visual Communication and Illustration.

There is no creative exercise requested from the applicants to the Bachelor in Fine Arts and to the Bachelor in Cinema.

Please refer to the Conditions and Procedures for Admission to Bachelor’s Studies under Admissions.

These interviews must take place at HEAD – Genève for all candidates whose address is in Switzerland or in the Rhône-Alpes region, except in cases of force majeure. Other candidates may choose between an interview at HEAD – Genève and an interview by videoconference.

CHF 150. This amount is non-refundable even if your application is deemed ineligible at the administrative review stage.

Yes, candidates who have completed one (or two) year(s) of equivalent study in an institution of a similar level to HEAD – Genève can apply for admission to the second or third year by following the procedure indicated in the Special Conditions and Procedures for Admission to Bachelor’s Studies in the Admissions section.

You will receive an email and an official letter approximately three weeks after the interviews. Successful applicants have until 31 May to accept their admission offer.

Each applicant is entitled to a total of three attempts. If a candidate applies for two courses in a given year, this double application in the same year counts as one attempt.

No, all candidates must submit an application regardless of their previous training.

Applicants must hold a Bachelor’s degree at university or UAS level or a foreign qualification deemed equivalent, unless they request an application under special conditions (application on file)

Please consult the brochure published on the HES-SO website at the following pathway: Admissions to our Master's programmes and regulations.

You must use the online application form.

You can apply from Wednesday, 15 November 2023 until Monday, 25 March 2024 at 17:00 CEST (Swiss time). No application forms can be submitted and accepted after this deadline.

The admission process takes place in two rounds. The first round consists of the examination and evaluation by a committee of professors of the personal file of each applicant. The second round involves an interview to which the applicants selected after the first round are invited by email.

Details on the expected contents of the personal file can be found under Admissions in the Conditions and Procedures for Admission to Master’s Studies.

These interviews must take place at HEAD – Genève for all candidates whose address is in Switzerland or in the Rhône-Alpes region, except in cases of force majeure. Other candidates may choose between an interview at HEAD – Genève and an interview by videoconference.

CHF 150.- This amount is non-refundable even if your application is deemed ineligible at the administrative review stage.

You will receive an email and a formal letter around mid-May. Successful applicants have until 31 May to accept their admission offer.

Each applicant is entitled to a total of three attempts. If a candidate applies for two courses in a given year, this double application in the same year counts as one attempt.

Bachelor's studies at HEAD – Genève are in French.

Candidates whose upper-secondary level qualification has not been issued by a French-speaking institution must, once they have been admitted, submit a B2-level French certificate by 31 August.

Candidates do not have to submit this B2-level French certificate if they hold:

• an upper-secondary level qualification from a German-speaking Swiss canton or from Ticino that includes French as a subject
• a tertiary level A qualification (Bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification of at least 180 ECTS credits) in which French is the official language of instruction

Master's studies at HEAD – Genève are in English, in French or in English and French, depending on the course of studies (please refer to the admission conditions and procedures for the specifics of each course).

Candidates whose secondary II or Bachelor's degree was not awarded by an institution whose teaching was in the same language as that of the Master's programme must, after being admitted, submit by 30 June a B2-level French or English certificate, depending on the course of studies.

No, you only need to provide proof of your language skills in French or in English.

• DELF with at least B2 level
• DALF with at least C1 or C2 level
• TCF with at least B2 level in the compulsory and optional (complementary) tests
• TCF DAP with at least B2 level in the compulsory tests and in the written expression test (this test is compulsory)
• TEF with at least B2 level in the compulsory and optional (complementary) tests, issued by the CCIP/Alliance française
• B2-level French certificate issued by a language school or other recognized institution

• TOEFL test taken no earlier than 1 July 2022, with a minimum score of 92
• IELTS test taken no earlier than 1 July 2022, with a minimum score of 7.0
• B2-level English certificate issued by a language school or other recognized institution

No translation is required for diplomas in English, German, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.

For all other languages, the documents must be a certified translation, i.e. a translation that bears the seal and signature of an accredited translator and must be sent directly by the translation office to admission.head@hesge.ch.

Tuition amounts to CHF 575 per semester. International students pay the same amount regardless of their country of origin.

No, it is not possible to be exempt from paying tuition. However, ad hoc assistance may be requested through the University of Geneva’s financial aid system.

Approximately CHF 1,000 to 2,000 per year is needed for materials, travel, museum visits, etc.

You should contact the scholarship service of your Canton of residence. In Geneva, this is the Service des bourses et prêts d’études.

Please consult the webpages dedicated to scholarships and financial aid.

Yes, in certain courses. A compulsory internship is included in the study plans of the Bachelor’s in Fashion Design and the Bachelor’s in Product/Jewellery and Accessory Design at the end of the second year. An optional internship is also included in the study plan of the Bachelor’s in Film Studies for students in the Editing and Sound options. This internship takes place during the third year.

You can earn ECTS credits for an internship as part of the Master’s in Fashion and Accessory Design, the Master’s in Space and Communication, and the Master’s in Media Design. This non-compulsory internship takes place during the summer between the first and second year. An internship during the academic year can also be credited towards the Master in Interior Design.

No, Bachelor’s studies at HEAD – Genève are full-time. The workload leaves some time for a student job but not, e.g., for a part-time job.

No, Master’s studies at HEAD – Genève are full-time. The workload leaves some time for a student job but not, e.g., for a part-time job.

Yes, but only during the open day on Saturday, 20 January 2024.