Funds for training and research increase

The Swiss government plans to subsidise training and research to the tune of SFr26 billion ($28.55 billion) between 2013 and 2016, increasing its contribution by 3.7 per cent.

Around SFr23.88 billion will be allocated to domestic programmes, with the rest going to European framework projects.

The government says that it wants to maintain the excellent level of the country’s educational system and research.

The federal institutes of technology will receive a large chunk of the funding, with around SFr9.5 billion over four years. The National Science Foundation will get SFr3.7 billion, while there will be SFr3.6 billion available for vocational training.

The country’s technical universities will also see the federal government steadily increase its contribution towards their costs, reaching 30 per cent by 2015.

The cantonal universities will receive SFr3 billion, slightly less than they were hoping for, while the technology and innovation commission sees its funding increase 5.7 per cent to SFr547 million.

Switzerland’s funding for space projects will only be SFr528 million rather than the SFr575 originally requested.

There could be a downside for some foreign students. The government has proposed that the federal institutes of technology in Lausanne and Zurich could limit their numbers for some courses if the quality of classes was under threat.