Tuition fees for international students : France, Switzerland, Denmark, Austria and Slovenia. Tuition fees for international students in these five countries are either minimal or very low in Slovenia, Austria, France and Switzerland. Denmark charges the highest fees for international students outside of the European Union / European Economic Area.

1. free@thefreeschool.education
Original content analysis research
The Free School
Free or very low tuition fees for
international university students in
France, Switzerland, Slovenia, Denmark
and Austria - December 2016.

2. Aim
This presentation aims to summarize whether
fees are payable by international students
who study at public universities in France,
Switzerland, Slovenia, Denmark and Austria.

3. Background
Secondary sources such as blog websites and online news articles
frequently make claims that public universities in Denmark, Slovenia,
France, Switzerland and Austria offer free education or very low
tuition fees for international students. Some of these stories are
accurate and some are not.
Example:
Flückiger, S. (2016), 14 Countries where you can study for free (or on a budget),
<www.student.com/articles/14-countries-where-you-can-study-for-free-or-very-cheap/>.
Accessed 9 December 2016.

4. Method
This research project uses qualitative content analysis data
collection and data analysis methods and triangulates two
quality primary data sources for each country to draw
inferences.
No inconsistencies were found in this small sample data set.

5. Conclusion
Country Conclusion
France Tuition fees are the same for international students and domestic students.
This fee is less than 1, 000 euros per annum.
Switzerland Tuition fees are the same for international students and domestic students.
This fee is typically less than 1, 200 Swiss Francs per annum.
Slovenia Tuition fees for international students are not free. However, they are less than
3,000 euros per annum, which is very competitive by international standards.
Austria Those who are not citizens of the European Union or the European Economic
Area must pay a tuition fee of €726.72 per semester.
Denmark Those who are not citizens of the European Union, European Economic Area or
Switzerland must pay tuition fees of 6,000 to 16, 000 euros per annum.
Course instruction occurs in the local language (official national language) for most programs.

6. Tuition fees are the same for local and international students. For
example, Bachelor Degrees taught in France charge domestic and
international students a fee of 530 euros per year. Other small
administration charges may be payable such as 90 euros per year for
“Computer room and digital access fees”.
University of Paris, Dauphine (2016), Tuition fees 2015 & 2016,
<www.dauphine.fr/en/programs-degrees/tuition-fees.html>. Accessed 9 December 2016.
University of Paris, Dauphine

7. Tuition fees are the same for local and international students.
“The French public education system is committed to making higher education
available to all. Tuition fees rarely exceed €600 per academic year and are the same for
French and international students. Please note that some schools or institutes have
their own tuition system.
“Tuition fees 2016-2017 Undergraduate degree programmes Licence (bachelor's
degree), Vocational Bachelor's degrees, DUT, DEUST, €184/academic year”.
University of Strasbourg (2016), Tuition fees 2016-2017,
<http://www.en.unistra.fr/index.php?id=22277>. Accessed 9 December 2016.
University of Strasbourg

8. Tuition fees are the same for local and international students at Swiss
public universities.
“The University of Geneva is – like all Swiss Universities – a public institution.
The fees for one semester principally amount to 500 CHF.
Students registering through an exchange programme between their home
university and the University of Geneva do not pay any tuition fees but only 65
CHF of administrative fees.”
University of Geneva (2016), Fees & cost of living,
<www.unige.ch/droit/transnational/cout.html>. Accessed 9 December 2016.
University of Geneva

9. “Tuition fees. Main content
The following tuition and semester fees are charged, in accordance with the Fee Ordinance of
the ETH Domain (Swiss and non-Swiss students alike):
Tuition fee: CHF 580 per semester
The tuition fee covers the enrolment in all courses. It is payable for each regular semester and
for the semester in which the Master’s thesis is written.
Students who are enrolled both in a Bachelor's and a directly following Master's programme
are charged with only one tuition fee. Students who are enrolled in more than one study
programme (additional enrolment in a different programme) have to pay the tuition fees for
each enrolment.”
ETH Zurich (2016), Tuition fees,
<www.ethz.ch/en/studies/financial/tuition-fees.html>. Accessed 9 December 2016.
University of Zurich

10. University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
“Full-time study: Tuition Fees for foreign students
Tuition for full-time study (for citizens of EU countries) is funded by the Ministry of
Higher Education. Students pay an admission fee of 32.00 EUR for the first year of study
and 24.00 EUR for each subsequent year of study.
Foreign citizens from non-EU countries undergraduate courses. The amount of the
tuition fee is set by the higher education institution and is the same as the tuition fee for
part-time courses for citizens of the Republic of Slovenia must pay tuition fees for
full-time 2,475 EUR.”
University of Ljublijana (2016), Tuition for the academic year 2016/17,
<www.ef.uni-lj.si/content/static_english/izobrazevanje/dodiplomsko/solnina.asp>. Accessed 9 Dec 2016.

11. University of Ljubljana (continued)
“The following students do not have to pay any tuition fees for full-time undergraduate courses:
● Citizens of EU Member States;
● Foreign citizens residing in the Republic of Slovenia who (or their parents/guardians) are
taxable persons in the Republic of Slovenia;
● Slovenians without Slovenian citizenship;
● Citizens of countries with which the Republic of Slovenia has concluded bilateral or
multilateral agreements on cooperation in the field of education or reciprocity (Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro and Kosovo);
● Students of exchange programmes at higher education institutions who are enroled in the
Lifelong Learning programme;
● Scholarship holders of the ministry competent for higher education or of an authorised
provider of such scholarships (CMEPIUS);”
University of Ljublijana (2016), Tuition for the academic year 2016/17,
<www.ef.uni-lj.si/content/static_english/izobrazevanje/dodiplomsko/solnina.asp>. Accessed 9 Dec 2016.

12. University of Nova Gorica, Slovenia
“Tuition fees: First-level (Bachelor’s) study programmes
Citizens of the Republic of Slovenia, citizens of the European Union and the citizens
of countries with which Slovenia has signed relevant agreements are exempt from
paying tuition fees for full-time studies at first-level (Bachelor’s) study programmes
with concessions.
Tuition fees for the first year of studies for international students who are not
entitled to free studies in Slovenia, tuition fees for part-time studies and for full-time
studies at first-level (Bachelor’s) study programmes without concessions
Engineering and Management (1st level)
Slovene Studies (1st level)
Cultural History (1st level) …. 2, 800 EUR”.
University of Nova Gorica (2016), Fees for the 2016/2017 academic year,
<http://www.ung.si/en/study/fees/>. Accessed 9 December 2016.

13. Government of Austria
“Tuition fee …
Regular students with EU/EEA citizenship and persons enjoying equal rights as
Austrians before the law (permanent residents, residence in Austria of at least five
years before start of studies, etc.) have to pay a tuition fee of €363.36 per
semester if they exceed the minimum period of study of a BA, MA or PhD
programme by more than two semesters. Students from third countries have to
pay a tuition fee of €726.72 per semester.”
Government of Austria (2016), Studying in Austria,
<www.migration.gv.at/en/living-and-working-in-austria/children-and-education/studying-in-au
stria/#c2330>. Accessed 9 December 2016.

14. University of Vienna (2016)
Those who are not “nationals” (citizens) of the European Union are required
to pay annual tuition fees to Austrian universities. This fee is set at double the
rate payable by citizens of the European Union.
“In general, the tuition fee is € 363.36 per semester, respectively € 726.72 for certain
non-EU nationals. Apart from this amount, you will also need to pay the students‘
union fee incl. insurance (€ 19.20 per semester for the academic year 2016/17). This
leads to a total amount of either € 382.56 or € 745.92 per semester.”
University of Vienna (2016), The amount of the tuition fee,
<http://studentpoint.univie.ac.at/en/financial-matters/tuition-fee/amount-of-the-tuition-fee/>.
Accessed 9 December 2016.

15. Danish Ministry of Higher Education
“Tuition Fees & Scholarships
Higher education in Denmark is free for students from the EU/EEA and
Switzerland and for students participating in an exchange programme. For
other students annual tuition range from 6,000 to 16,000 Euro. A number of
scholarships and grants are available from the institutions and from public
funded schemes.”
Danish Ministry of Higher Education & Science (2015), Tuition fees and scholarships,
<http://studyindenmark.dk/study-options/tuition-fees-scholarships>. Accessed 9 December 2016.

16. Danish Ministry of Higher Education (continued)
“Tuition Fees & Scholarships
Higher education in Denmark is free for students from the EU/EEA and Switzerland and
for students participating in an exchange programme. For other students annual tuition
range from 6,000 to 16,000 Euro. A number of scholarships and grants are available from
the institutions and from public funded schemes
Tuition fees
Higher education in Denmark is free for students from the EU/EEA and Switzerland.
Similarly, if you are participating in an exchange programme your studies in Denmark are
free. You also do not pay for tuition if you at the time of application have a:
Permanent residence permit (‘permanent opholdstilladelse’)
Temporary residence permit that can be upgraded to a permanent one (‘midlertidig
opholdstilladelse mmf varigt ophold’)
Residence permit as the accompanying child of a non-EU/EEA parent holding a residence
permit based on employment (§9a and §9m of the Danish Aliens Act - text in Danish)
All other students must pay tuition fees.”

17. University of Copenhagen
“Applicants with citizenship from outside EU/EEA and Non-Nordic Countries need to
pay tuition fees for their studies in Denmark and at the University of Copenhagen.
However applicants who have a permanent residence permit in Denmark or a permit
with the possibility of permanent residence are exempted from paying tuition fees.
The fee can vary for different study programmes. Please contact the 6 faculties for
more information. Payment is handled by the faculties.”
University of Copenhagen (2016), Admission requirements: Tuition fees.
<http://studies.ku.dk/bachelor/admission-requirements/>. Accessed 9 December 2016.

18. This presentation that discusses France,
Switzerland and other countries was
inspired by mathematics whiz, Daniel A.

19. Call for further research
This project compares two quality primary data sources dated 2016 that were
gathered from independent, recognized institutions. The researcher calls for
scholars to explore the same objectives of this project. A limitation of this mini
research project is that it does not consult multiple official higher education policy
documents published by Government authorities in their respective national
languages. Future research that inspects additional policy documents may
strengthen the reliability and validity of the inferences drawn in this document.
Jay Jericho B.Com Adel, Grad Cert Ed B.Ed (Prof Hons) Tas, M.Ec (Hons) D.Soc.Sc Syd
jay@thefreeschool.education

20. Meet the School’s star student
http://www.thefreeschool.education/scholars-page.html