Participation at ETH

Participation report

The Download report on anchoring participation at ETH Zurich (German only) (PDF, 671 KB) was prepared in 2016 and fundamentally revised in 2023. The report is published by the University Assembly. The document provides an insight into the following topics:

  • Basics of participation
  • The university groups
  • Committees at university level
  • Committees at departmental level

Participation is a central component of the culture at ETH. The involvement of all university groups at institutional level ensures that the Executive Board's decisions are widely accepted and supported - and can be influenced or corrected if necessary. Broad-based participation is a key feature of ETH Zurich's presidential system, in which the President bears overall responsibility. In particular, he is responsible for strategy, the appointment of professors and finances. The President also proposes the Vice-Presidents (members of the Executive Board) and professors to the ETH Board for appointment.

The interaction of the presidential system with institutionally anchored participation brings many advantages. Thanks to the careful design of opinion-forming processes, it facilitates the solution of organisational problems, ensures consensus, promotes institutional identity and increases the quality of decisions. The basis for this interaction is the mutual trust of the university groups and decision-makers as well as the feeling of being part of the ETH community.

The Executive Board, the departments and the University Assembly - a body in which the teaching staff, scientific staff, students and administrative and technical staff are equally represented - are involved in the decision-making processes. Participation varies depending on the problem. As a rule, representatives of the groups directly affected are included in a working group that draws up the proposal. The drafts are then sent to the departments, university groups and staff areas for broad consultation and revised again before they come into force. The consultations have thus become a very important instrument and an integral part of ETH Zurich's management system.

The system of participation is challenging for all those involved: the intensity and quality of participation depend on the commitment and expertise of those involved. In addition, the degree of participation of the university groups is anchored differently in the departments, as it is up to the Department Conference of each department to decide how much space it wants to give to the participation of the university groups. The attitude of the incumbent Head of Department and the other departmental management also have a considerable influence on the breadth and depth of participation in the departments.

A legal basis for establishing participation in Swiss Confederation institutions has existed since 1960. At ETH Zurich, however, the demand for participation only took concrete form during the student unrest of the 1968 movement. The students launched a referendum against the ETH Act passed by parliament in 1968 and won the vote at the ballot box the following year. This referendum was of decisive importance for the establishment of today's system of broad participation of all university groups.

In the context of ETH Zurich, however, participation is not to be equated with co-determination: Participation includes the right to information and co-determination (in the sense of consultation), but not the right to co-determination (in the sense of decision-making authority). Co-determination rights, insofar as these are enshrined in law, are primarily granted to the social partners (i.e. the trade unions) within the framework of the social partnership. This important distinction is not always clear to everyone involved in a co-determination process and can give rise to unrealistic expectations.

This report is intended to provide a quick overview of the various forms and opportunities for participation at all levels of ETH Zurich. The report focuses on participation by the university groups. Specific functional or specialised groups, which are represented in certain committees due to their position or expertise, are also taken into account if they have a participatory function.

Legal anchoring of participation in the ETH Domain

Representation on the ETH Board
According to the external page ETH Act, the University Assemblies of ETH Zurich and EPF Lausanne (EPFL) can nominate a person with full voting rights for the ETH Board. The current representative of the two university assemblies on the ETH Board is external page Dr Kristin Becker.

Legal basis
external page ETH Act (SR 414.110) & external page ETHZ-ETHL Ordinance (SR 414.110.37, German only)

Participation at ETH Zurich: Art. 32 ETH Act in conjunction with Art. 19 ETHZ-ETHL Ordinance

Participation of the University Assembly: Art. 31 ETH Act in conjunction with Art. 17 and Art. 19 ETHZ-ETHL Ordinance

The Executive Board shall provide comprehensive information to ensure that the groups of university members can exercise their participation rights. If a group is not represented by one or more organisations, the Executive Board shall regulate their participation in cooperation with the University Assembly.

The Download Memorandum of Understanding (PDF, 1017 KB) (2020 version) describes the role of the University Assembly and in particular the communication and exchange of information between the Executive Board and the University Assembly.

The ETH Board consults the groups of university members and the university assemblies via the Executive Boards. The latter submit their opinions to the ETH Board.

At a glance: Participation of the University Assembly

The University Assembly has the right to submit motions

  • on all legislative enactments of the ETH Board and its subordinate bodies relating to ETH;
  • on the budget and planning of ETH Zurich and on the creation and cancellation of teaching and research units;
  • on structural and participation issues.

It submits an opinion to the ETH Board on the annual report of the President of the ETH Board, monitors participation and adopts rules of procedure. The ETH Board may grant it further powers by ordinance (Art. 31 (2) and (3) ETH Act).

The ETH Zurich University Assembly maintains close contact with the EPFL University Assembly and coordinates joint activities and proposals where necessary. It invites guests from the entire ETH Domain as well as parliamentarians to its meetings on special topics or occasions.

No duty of confidentiality

The members of the University Assembly are not subject to a duty of confidentiality. The discussions and decisions of the University Assembly are not secret. However, the individual voters are not named in the minutes.

In 1968, students led by the VSETH mounted a referendum against a new ETH law, which was then rejected by 65.5% of votes in the popular vote on 1 June 1969. The criticism was levelled at the insufficient co-determination.

As a result, a transitional ordinance served as ETH’s most important legal basis until the end of 1991.

During the drafting of the ETH Law in force today, a reform commission was already in place which carried out participation activities. It was replaced in 1992 by the University Assembly, whose main function is to monitor participation.

Contact: Secretariat of the University Assembly

Daniela Stark

Institut für Geotechnik
Stefano-Franscini-Platz 5
8093 Zürich
Switzerland

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