About IARU > IARU Member Universities > ETH Zurich
ETH Zurich
ETH Zurich is a top global university in science and technology, renowned for excellent education and pioneering research. Founded in 1855, it hosts over 18,000 students and 500 professors from around the world. The university’s prestige is highlighted by 21 Nobel Laureates associated with it.
Where innovation meets tradition
ETH Zurich is one of the leading international universities for technology and the natural sciences. It is well-known for its excellent education, ground-breaking fundamental research and for implementing its results directly into practice. Founded in 1855, to researchers, it today offers an inspiring working environment, to students, a comprehensive education.
ETH Zurich has more than 18,000 students from over 110 countries, including 3,900 doctoral students. About 500 professors currently teach and conduct research in engineering, architecture, mathematics, natural sciences, system-oriented sciences, and management and social sciences. ETH Zurich regularly appears at the top of international rankings as one of the best universities in the world. Twenty-one Nobel Laureates have studied, taught or conducted research at ETH Zurich, underlining the excellent reputation of the university.
Prof Joël Mesot
Joël Mesot has been President of ETH Zurich since 2019 and, in this role, bears legal and political responsibility for the university.
Under his leadership, ETH Zurich has intensified its policy-relevant research and deepened the dialogue with political actors both in Switzerland and internationally.
Furthermore, Mesot launched various initiatives related to space, AI, cyber security and energy and initiated the establishment of an ETH Zurich Campus in Heilbronn, Germany.
Raised in Geneva, Joël Mesot studied physics at ETH Zurich and received his doctorate on high-temperate superconductors in 1992.
He spent several years researching quantum materials in France (Institut Laue-Langevin), the US (Argonne National Laboratory), and at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), where he became head of the neutron scattering laboratory in 2004.
In 2008, he was elected Director of the PSI and was promoted to Full Professor at ETH Zurich. During his leadership at the PSI the X-ray free-electron laser facility SwissFel was built, among other projects.
Joël Mesot is a member of national and international advisory boards, including the Foundation Board of the Swiss Innovation Park and the Governing Board CREATE (Singapore). For his scientific contributions, he received the IBM Prize of the Swiss Physical Society (SPG) in 1995 and the Latsis Prize of ETH Zurich in 2002.
Prof Lisa Alvarez-Cohen
Vice Provost for Academic Planning
Lisa Alvarez-Cohen is the Fred and Claire Sauer Professor at UC Berkeley and former Chair of both her department and the Faculty Senate. She studies environmental microbiology, bioremediation, and water contaminants, and teaches at both undergraduate and graduate levels. She co-authored Environmental Engineering Science and is a member of the National Academy of Engineering. Her honors include the China 1,000 Talents Award and the NSF Young Investigator Award.
Ashley Spinelli
Global Engagement Specialist,
Global Engagement Office
Ashley Spinelli is Director of UC Berkeley’s Global Engagement Office since 2022. She advises leadership on international partnerships and leads global collaboration efforts. Previously, she worked in study abroad programs, Fulbright exchanges, and education nonprofits. She holds an M.A. from Columbia and a B.A. from the University of Minnesota. Ashley has taught English abroad and supports climate-focused Nordic partnerships at Berkeley.
ETH Zurich’s engagement in IARU spans diverse collaborative initiatives, including the:
IARU promotes collaboration through various working groups and joint initiatives
Key IARU roles
President
Prof Joël Mesot
IARU Senior Officer
Dr Jürg Brunnschweiler
juerg.brunnschweiler@sl.ethz.ch
IARU Key Contact
Nina Sophie Uehlinger
nina.uehlinger@sl.ethz.ch
