Shaping the Future

Shaping the Future Strategy and Development Plan 2008–2011 Short Version March 2008 Planning and Logistics ETH Zurich 8092 Zurich Authors Prof. Dr. Gerhard Schmitt Dr. Margrit Leuthold Katharina Hagenauer lic. phil. Fabian Jeker lic. rer. soc. Dr. Rudolf Kühne Editing Dr. Felix Würsten www.felix-wuersten.ch Design Chau Hua Photography Jonas Kambli Visualization Summit in Science City (July 2007) Heidi Hostettler www.heidi-hostettler.ch ETH Hönggerberg, lunchtime fitness FIRST laboratory, Molecular Beam Epitaxy Institute of Neuroinformatics, experiment with LED display to determine the flight path of fruit flies Institute of Neuroinformatics, Neuromorphic Engineering First practical for Physics students Hönggerberg campus, HIT building Institute of Neuroinformatics, experiment with LED display to determine the flight path of fruit flies ETH Hönggerberg, Physics lecture SBB Central Station Zurich, NOVA, ETH Digital Art Week Physics lecture Library on the Hönggerberg campus SBB Central Station Zurich, NOVA, 3D screen with light balls Test driving the PAC-CAR on the Hönggerberg ETH Main Building, library under the dome www.jonaskambli.ch Interactive exhibition “StaunenForschen-Handeln”, 20 years of Environmental Sciences ETH Main Building, student with WLAN connection Institute for Quantum Electronics, ultra-fast laser FIRST laboratory, Molecular Beam Epitaxy Institute of Neuroinformatics, “Car driven by Spikes” project ETH Main Building, library under the dome ETH Main Building, entrance hall Dr. Rudolf Kühne University of Zurich and ETH Zurich Science workshop, D-UWIS, flour beetles under the microscope Institute of Neuroinformatics, Master programme ETH Zurich, Corporate Communications Institute of Biochemistry ETH Zurich, Polymer Technology Interactive exhibition “Staunen- Forschen-Handeln”, 20 years of Environmental Sciences Institute of Neuroinformatics, Robotics, sectional view of vehicle with retina (simulated eye) ETH Hönggerberg, Physics Tower Institute of Neuroinformatics, components in the Cochlea experiment Self-assembling fibrillar entities of organic matter in polymeric glasses Science City meeting point Institute of Neuroinformatics, “Wind tunnel” experiment to study the flight path of fruit flies View over Zurich from the newly built Poly terrace Eye-catching diffusion of semiconducting polymers Unidrectional frozen polymer instabilities ETH Zentrum, Main Building Bulletin, Issue 298, 2005, ETH Zurich Chrystal structure of simian virus 40, 1996 Content Foreword the Future For eth Zurich clear targetS and objectiveS conSolidating what haS been achieved SucceSS through change Setting prioritieS Zurich – knowledge city Strength through partnerShipS optimiSing the working environment StatiSticS / organiSational chart 9 10 13 16 19 22 26 29 32 34 FOREWORD Foreword First-class research and top-quality education for its students – these are the ways ETH Zurich has been providing for Switzerland ever since it was founded more than 150 years ago. A number of factors are responsible for its success: on the one hand, ETH Zurich is firmly rooted in Switzerland; on the other, it has always measured itself against the best in the world. It is proud of its strengths, yet constantly self-critical in reviewing its performance and structures. This summary of “Shaping the Future – Strategy and Development Plan 2008–2011” shows how ETH Zurich intends to assert itself over the next four years in the contest among the top universities. The focus is on four areas of action: • Teaching: the years of intensive reform will be followed by a period of consolidation. It is a question of carefully analysing the newly introduced Bachelor and Master programmes, identifying the best ways to resolve any problems and deriving measures to improve the teaching and the courses. In view of the rising student numbers, the student-tutor ratio should be maintained at least at the present level by creating additional professorships. Research: ETH Zurich has identified the areas that are promising and strategically important for Switzerland. These include developing strengths in pure research and contributing to work on future problems facing society such as energy supply, climate change and an ageing population. These areas will be significantly expanded. ETH Zurich will develop its national and international networks. It will expand and strengthen its cooperation with partners from science and industry. Together with other institutions, ETH Zurich is committed to strengthening the position of Zurich as a knowledge centre. • • • ETH Zurich strives to be one of the leading universities of the world. Only in this way will it be able to keep attracting top people at all levels and be an interesting partner for businesses in the global economy. The measures and aims described in this publication confirm our determination to meet this challenge. Prof. Ralph Eichler President ETH Zurich 09 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE THE FUTURE FOR ETH ZURICH the Future For eth ZuriCh Innovative, flexible and competitive – consistent, reliable and high quality: ETH Zurich is all these things. It is committed to widely recognised Swiss values while at the same time being able to assert itself successfully in international competition. It owes its success to continuous change: ETH Zurich is constantly and critically questioning the scientific standards and the structures of the university. In recent years, it has shown with a number of reforms that it is able to be farsighted and perceptive in adapting to changed conditions. ETH Zurich intends to continue along this successful path in the years to come. It has set itself the following 10 strategic aims: ETH Zurich sees giving talented young people an outstanding education as its most important task. It will enable its graduates to find their way in a complex, rapidly changing world. This is why there is a deliberate emphasis on promoting mental agility, networked thinking, an awareness of socially relevant issues and management skills. ETH Zurich endeavours to attract the best students, nationally and internationally. Thanks to generous support from the government, strict selection criteria for appointments and competitive internal incentives, ETH Zurich is today one of the best research universities in the world. In order to keep up with the best, it must constantly increase its attractiveness to leading researchers, match its infrastructure to the state of the art and optimise conditions for carrying out research. From its earliest days, ETH Zurich has been a university with an international outlook. Today, 60 percent of the professors are from abroad; among the students, the percentage of foreigners is between 14 and 54 percent, depending on the level. With targeted recruitment, this proportion should become even higher. To ensure that ETH Zurich can hold its own in the contest for the best talent, it will develop an active academic marketing plan and forge alliances with first-rate partner universities. According to estimates, by the year 2015 ETH Zurich will have 20 percent more students than today. To ensure that both the quality of teaching and the student-tutor ratio are maintained, 80 new professorships will be created by 2015. At the same time, the infrastructure to support teaching, research and student needs will be expanded. The Swiss economy profits enormously from the achievements of ETH Zurich. It intends to continue with this approach: it sees one of its key tasks as being to act as an engine of innovation, supporting Switzerland as a location for research, knowledge and business. SMEs in particular should be able to benefit more from the achievements of the university. 6. eth Zurich promotes partnerships with companies and acts as an engine of innovation in strengthening Switzerland as a business location. 1. eth Zurich is a first-class educational institution. ETH Zurich will concentrate in the next few years on two campuses: Science City on the Hönggerberg and the campus in downtown Zurich. Both locations are an integral part of Zurich’s science and research region. This means that all of the main players in teaching and research are able to benefit from the potential of this unique location and so help to make Zurich the “knowledge capital” of Switzerland. 7. the Science city and the campus in downtown Zurich are lively meeting places for students, researchers and the public. 2. eth Zurich is a leading research university. The individual teaching and research units must keep on adapting to changing conditions. This calls for great flexibility in many areas, and means that management structures, the range of services provided and the decision-making processes at ETH Zurich must be continuously optimised. 8. modern structures and flexible framework conditions successfully support teaching, research and the provision of services. 3. a global approach to teaching and research. ETH Zurich sees itself as a modern employer. It challenges and promotes its staff and is committed to a consistent policy of equal opportunities. It takes accompanying measures to enable its staff to achieve a balance between career, family and leisure. 9. eth Zurich encourages its staff through motivation and respect and creates excellent opportunities for personal development. Architecture Design and construction form an inseparable whole and are at the core of teaching and research at the D-ARCH. The aim is to consider all the relevant criteria for a project at the design stage. Architectural design is a complex process involving systematic analysis, conceptual synthesis and the ability to actually implement the concept. The institutes of the department are grouped around this core of design and construction according to their main focuses. Their aim is to deal specifically with the main factors affecting sustainability – the theory of space, technology, architectural theory and history, and conservation. A high priority is attached to swiftly incorporating the latest research findings into teaching. The newly created course “Architectural Design with Integrated Disciplines” (E + i) is intended to achieve this. Various key aspects of architecture are also dealt with in greater depth in the competence centres. 11 4. 80 additional professorships to guarantee the student-tutor ratio. The success of ETH Zurich is due not least to the generous support of the Swiss public. The university will continue to be dependent on this backing in future. However, scientific breakthroughs and new technologies can trigger anxiety and mistrust. Any such insecurities should be discussed in a dialogue characterised by a spirit of partnership. 10. a more intensive dialogue with society strengthens mutual understanding and trust. ETH Zurich has been committed to environmental and sustainability research for more than 20 years. With the “nachhaltigkeit ETH” project, existing or planned initiatives and their players will be more closely integrated. ETH Zurich has a unique potential and is in a position to play a pioneering role in the development of sustainable technologies. Research and training alliances will make it possible to transfer knowledge and technologies to the areas where environmental problems are becoming ever more acute. 10 5. eth Zurich sets new standards in the fields of energy, environmental and sustainability research. SHAPInG THE FuTuRE CLEAR TARgETS AND OBJECTIVES CleAr tArGets And objeCtives ETH Zurich’s strategic planning takes place within clearly defined guidelines: firstly, within the framework of the Federal Council’s Dispatch on the Promotion of Education, Research and Innovation for the period 2008–2011, the government lays down the performance targets of the ETH domain over the next four years. In return, the government makes the necessary funding available. For its part, the ETH Board, in its paper “Pushing the Limits”, establishes what the overall strategy of the ETH domain will be over that period. It is on these two sets of guidelines that ETH Zurich’s planning is based: it agrees with the ETH Board specific objectives which it intends to achieve over the next few years. The Federal Council’s Dispatch on the Promotion of Education, Research and Innovation for the period 2008–2011 comprises two overarching directives: the quality of teaching should be continuously improved, and competitiveness in the fields of research and innovation encouraged. For one thing, research should be increasingly financed by sponsorship, with the focus on being competitive. The Federal Council has identified several challenges which the ETH domain must face: these include rising student numbers, international positioning and cooperation with other Swiss universities. The “Federal Council Performance Mandate for the ETH Domain 2008–2011” includes certain new issues: in appointing professors, more weight will be given to teaching work; enabling graduates to think in a system-oriented and entrepreneurial way is an important educational objective; applied and topic-oriented research is to be strengthened and bilateral cooperation with certain priority countries will be expanded. The federal mandate Civil, environmental and Geomatic engineering Increasing urbanisation and the massive expansion of settlement areas represent a huge challenge for the development, management and maintenance of the infrastructure. Planning and building are becoming ever more complex, the risk of natural disasters is increasing and pressure on ecosystems makes sustainable management of natural resources more difficult. The Department of Civil, Environmental and geomatic Engineering studies these complex problems in depth. It deals with a very wide range of issues: planning, implementation and management of infrastructure systems, geotechnical planning and modelling, the development of new building materials and protection from natural hazards are just some of these, as are water usage, drinking water supply and wastewater treatment, sustainable development of transport and settlements, how to manage extensively used transport systems and improve products and technologies from the point of view of ecology. One important area of work deals with recording, processing and analysing geodata, new methods of remote sensing and the visualisation of geodata. 13 The strategy of the ETH domain is built on three pillars: it will continue to pursue its long-term tasks and aims; it will create added value for society; and it will become stronger both financially and as an institution. Consequently, the ETH domain has two main tasks: on the one hand, it works on new scientific findings, drives forward technological developments and helps convert its discoveries into products and services. On the other, it is educating tomorrow’s leaders. To do that, it is no longer enough simply to pass on knowledge. There should be an even greater emphasis than before on teaching students to think in an interdisciplinary, system-oriented and entrepreneurial way. The strategy of the ETH Board The position of ETH Zurich Switzerland’s leading university Among Swiss universities, ETH Zurich is the undisputed leader. It intends to maintain this position in the long term. At the same time, it would like to work with the university of Zurich, the universities of applied sciences in Zurich and the decisionmakers in business and politics to develop the city of Zurich into a leading city of education and science. 12 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE CLEAR TARgETS AND OBJECTIVES At a national level, ETH Zurich works closely with numerous partners: with the institutions in the ETH domain, especially with EPF Lausanne, with the cantonal universities and select universities of applied sciences. These partnerships should be intensified in the context of networks, competence centres, national research programmes and cooperation at professorship level. In addition to the university of Zurich, the university of Basel should also become an important partner. The foundations for this have been laid with the establishment of the new ETH Department for Systems Biology in Basel. In international university rankings, ETH Zurich is regularly placed among the best 20 to 30 universities. This outstanding reputation enables the university to keep on attracting excellent people to Zurich. Ever since its foundation over 150 years ago, ETH Zurich has always had a substantial proportion of foreign students. Today, at least 10 percent of Bachelor students, about 20 percent of Master students and over 50 percent of doctoral students come from abroad. Among the professors too, the proportion of foreigners has increased markedly over the last 20 years: over 60 percent of ETH professors today come from abroad, mainly from the uSA, Germany and France. The internationalisation that this brings represents a great challenge: top people often decide at which university they will teach and carry out their research on the basis of the working conditions. ETH Zurich therefore makes every effort to integrate foreign lecturers quickly, so that they feel at home here. An attractive location for leading scholars and scientists from abroad For a leading university, partnerships with other institutions are essential. Contacts which have evolved over time, built up by individual professorships with foreign research groups, form the backbone of ETH Zurich’s international relationships. At the same time, new platforms are also being established to facilitate cooperation with strategically important countries such as China, India or Singapore. In Europe too, there are interesting prospects with regard to international cooperation: the planned “European Institute of Technology” and partnerships under the auspices of Eu research programmes will lead to new and fruitful relationships. Mechanical and Process engineering Process engineering, energy systems, biomedical technology, micro- and nanosystems and robotics – in all these areas, ETH Zurich plays a leading role internationally. The work of the Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering makes a major contribution to the success of Swiss industry: the department not only trains qualified engineers but also joins forces with industry on many projects and is involved in setting up numerous spin-off companies. Over the coming years, the department will pursue the following research strategy: in addition to traditional areas of research – such as control engineering, fluid dynamics, mechanics, materials and thermodynamics – four disciplines will be particularly promoted as strategic clusters. These clusters comprise the areas of energy and sustainability, micro- and nanotechnology, biomechanics and bioprocess engineering, materials and manufacturing. 14 15 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE CONSOLIDATINg WHAT HAS BEEN ACHIEVED ConsolidAtinG whAt hAs been AChieved In recent years, university education has undergone a fundamental change. ETH Zurich is one of the first Swiss universities to have fully implemented the Bologna Reform. ETH Zurich saw the reform as an opportunity to review the complete range of courses. now it is a matter of consolidating and building on the new structures at all levels. In this, an international outlook will become more and more important. Increased efficiency at Bachelor level Since the autumn of 2004, virtually all new students have started a Bachelor programme. All courses have been revised in subject matter and style and are focused on a particular qualification. On a Bachelor programme, efficiency is a key objective: attractively designed courses with limited options for choice enable the programmes to be completed in a short time. The students at Bachelor level will continue in future to come mainly from Switzerland and other German-speaking countries. Germany will therefore remain the main teaching language at this level. The proportion of foreign Bachelor students – currently about 15 percent – should not be significantly increased. To attract more students, primarily those from German-speaking countries should be targeted. At the same time, marketing in Switzerland will be intensified. New ways of promoting the Master level The first Master programmes were introduced at ETH Zurich in the autumn of 2005. now all disciplines offer Master programmes. The departments are making use of the scope afforded to them and are extending their range of courses with interdisciplinary programmes. Today, a total of 35 Master programmes are available at ETH Zurich. Depending on the department, a proportion of foreign students of from 30 to 50 percent is sought at Master level. nearly all Master programmes will be taught in English in future years. ETH Zurich regards a multilingual environment as enriching and a necessary prerequisite for recruiting foreign Master students. It is therefore determined to break down language barriers. In order to increase the attractiveness of the Master programmes, for the year 2007/2008, ETH Zurich has for the first time introduced the so-called “Excellence Scholarship and Opportunity Programme”. Initially, about 20 students per year will receive these grants. Attracting the best brains for doctorates The doctoral level consists of a doctoral thesis and the doctoral programme. The latter comprises a number of performance elements of which at least a third must not be directly related to the dissertation. In some areas – Architecture, Computer Science, Mathematics and Life Sciences – clearly focused doctoral programmes are available. 16 In the future, outstanding Master students will be able to proceed more quickly to a doctorate. ETH Zurich endeavours to attract the best students from around the world for its doctoral programmes. It recruits not only by having an attractive Internet presence, but also by direct contacts and active marketing. It mainly target students in Europe, the uSA, China, Singapore and India. Continuous improvement in teaching With the continuing trend towards a knowledge-based society, the expectations of university education are also changing. In recent years, ETH Zurich has launched a number of projects aimed at continuous improvement of its teaching and courses: • In the “Roadmap” project, ETH Zurich is working on devising a comprehensive strategy by the end of 2008 for modernising teaching. A number of measures are being tried out in pilot projects. The existing “E-learning platform” will be supplemented by further information and communications technologies. Students will be encouraged to produce material independently and participate in cooperative learning processes. With the “Academic and Career Advisory Program”, ETH Zurich is introducing a comprehensive counselling and guidance service. It will cover all phases of academic education, from choosing the right course to the transition into professional life. Support for doctoral students will be improved, with clearly defined research plans and annual appraisal interviews. The range of teaching courses will also be extended. The “Student Research Opportunities Program” (SiROP) enables Bachelor students to take part in research projects at an early stage of their course. information technology and electrical engineering Over the decades to come, information and communications technologies will have a significant influence on the development of society. There is a trend towards so-called tera-scale systems. This refers to decentralised systems where thousands of sensors performing different tasks communicate efficiently with one another via intelligent nodes. The Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering enjoys an outstanding international position and is among those taking the lead in Europe in the field of tera-scale systems. The aim is to gain a better understanding of complex technical systems and to develop new solutions for information and communications technology from which other fields such as biomedicine can also benefit. There are a number of major projects working on fundamental issues such as how tera-scale systems need be to structured, how they can be supplied with energy, how the boundaries between technical and biological systems can be bridged and how the effect of electromagnetic fields can be used in technical and biological systems. • Computer science Computer science, the science of information processing, has fundamentally changed our everyday life in recent decades. Its applications have evolved gradually and often in unexpected directions: whereas originally IT was only used for automated calculating, today it encompasses areas such as databases, document processing, multimedia, fully automated trading and a wide range of “embedded systems” as used, for example, in refrigerators, machine control systems, unmanned helicopters, robots on Mars, assisted braking, gPS satellite navigation, etc. Like mathematics, computer science has also become an indispensable complement to classical sciences such as physics and biology. Yet computer science can still achieve far more than we can imagine today. It is becoming a part of everything, and therefore a key factor in the economic development and competitiveness of our country. In recent years, the Department of Computer Science has been made up of the fields of systems, theory and computational science. The aim now is to expand the expertise in specific areas such as information security and cryptography, software engineering, distributed systems, computer graphics and bioinformatics. 17 • • • Promoting natural science education In order for Switzerland to hold its own in global competition, it not only needs the population to have a sound, basic natural science and technical education, but it also requires enough people who are enthusiastic about studying natural science or technical subjects. However, it is often observed that natural science and technical subjects are not being taught satisfactorily in schools. now ETH Zurich, together with the Zurich university of Teacher Education and the university of Zurich, has set up the “Science Learning Center”. This is to support the training and continuing education of teachers at secondary schools and grammar schools. At the same time, ETH Zurich is actively endeavouring to inspire more talented pupils to study technical and natural science subjects. It is therefore seeking out direct contact with grammar school pupils and making them aware of the requirements and career prospects associated with such courses. SHAPInG THE FuTuRE SUCCESS THROUgH CHANgE suCCess throuGh ChAnGe The name of ETH Zurich has always been synonymous with outstanding research. In international rankings, ETH Zurich regularly occupies a leading position and therefore counts as one of the best research universities in the world. The formula for success depends on the unstinting efforts of its scientists. ETH Zurich also owes its impressive dynamism to its ability to react very flexibly to the ideas and achievements of its members. Thanks to the financial support from the government which is enshrined in the constitution, a rigorous policy of excellence in appointments, and competitive, flexible internal incentives, ETH Zurich today is in a superb position to assert itself with great success in international competition. Another factor in its success is that ETH Zurich continuously and critically questions its own activities and sets specific priorities. Over the coming years again, ETH Zurich intends to promote certain areas of research with greater intensity: • • The excellent position of natural sciences, mathematics and engineering sciences in general will be reinforced. Interdisciplinary areas of research will be expanded; these include, for example, Systems Biology, Bioengineering, Materials Science, Information and Communications Technology and Scientific Computing. Greater emphasis will be placed on the important field of Life Sciences, with its mainstays of Biology and Chemistry. In the fields of the environment, energy and sustainability, ETH Zurich wants to position itself as one of the world’s leading universities. It aims for close collaboration with the other institutions in the ETH domain. It also wants to play a leading role in the two competence centres for environmental and energy research in the ETH domain. The new field of Design Sciences will be developed: these range from Industrial Design and Information Design to pure sciences. The newly established Department of Management, Technology and Economics will be further developed and made into a centre of excellence for technology management. The Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering, recently set up in partnership with the university of Basel, should establish itself as a leading research centre over the coming years. Finally, social sciences and the humanities should be more strongly integrated in all courses. At the same time, research capability in these socially important fields will be increased. Materials science Many technological developments would be simply unthinkable without high-performance materials. Materials science plays a fundamental role in finding sustainable solutions to many of the technological problems facing society. It involves taking a holistic approach to solving complex problems on very different scales, both experimentally and theoretically. Scientists at ETH Zurich not only engage in research on molecules and nano particles, but also develop end products for a broad range of applications. Over the coming years, the Department of Materials Science, which forms the core of the “Materials Research Center”(MRC) at ETH Zurich, aims to reinforce its strong international position in the field of highperformance materials. The main focus areas for research include hierarchically structured hybrid systems of metals, ceramics and polymers, material systems which react reliably to external stimuli, and biomaterials for clinical applications. The close partnership with other institutions in the ETH domain (EMPA, PSI and EPF Lausanne) will be further strengthened. 19 • • • • • • The further development of the content of ETH Zurich’s courses essentially depends on the strategies of individual departments. They are opening up new scientific areas, defining their priorities and enabling ETH Zurich to strike the right balance when 18 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE SUCCESS THROUgH CHANgE adopting new approaches. The priorities that are set are reflected initially in the strategies of the departments themselves, in the job descriptions for the professorships that are to be filled, and in the allocation of financial resources. It is important to ensure both that there is a sufficient degree of planning for the concepts for the future to be developed, adapted and implemented but also that there is sufficient room for manoeuvre to react flexibly to unforeseeable scientific developments. Above all, it is essential, that this scope is also retained for interdepartmental developments at institutional level. In order to facilitate interdisciplinary research, a number of competence centres have been set up at ETH Zurich in recent years. These are networks in which ETH professorships or institutes from different fields coordinate their research work. The successfully established competence centres include, for example, the “Zurich Center for Imaging Science and Technology”, the “Functional Genomics Center Zurich”, the “network for natural Hazards at ETH Zurich”, the “Energy Science Center” and the “north-South Centre”. In some fields, ETH Zurich operates the competence centres in conjunction with other universities, for example the “Center of Excellence in Analytical Chemistry”, the “Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center”, the “neuroscience Center”, the “Competence Center Finance in Zurich” and the “Risklab – Risk Management for Finance and Insurance”. In addition to these content-based competence centres, there are a number of technology platforms at ETH Zurich such as the “Electron Microscopy Centre ETH Zurich” and the “FIRST Center for Micro- and nanoscience”. These platforms combine technically sophisticated equipment and facilities which can be used by researchers from different departments. Further platforms are currently being planned, such as the “Life Science Platform”. The existence of both the competence centres and the platforms is based strictly on need. new ones can be set up at any time, but equally they can be dismantled. In this way they enable ETH to react flexibly to new scientific challenges. Smoothing the way for research biosystems science and engineering The recently established Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering has the aim of setting up an interdisciplinary research focus on systems biology at ETH Zurich. Systems biology involves studying in detail the processes going on in cells and cell structures, and describing them in quantitative terms. As part of the national initiative SystemsX.ch, the department will help to position Swiss research in this competitive field at a very high international standard. There are three specific priorities: firstly, the processes and their molecular components within and between cells are examined quantitatively. Secondly, the processes in the cells are modelled mathematically; this leads to a better understanding of their structure and function and means that the behaviour of cells can be predicted more accurately. Thirdly and finally, new tools on the micro and nano scale are being developed in order to analyse complex biological systems more closely. The ultimate aim is to use the methods of bioengineering to construct artificial structures which can simulate complex processes, even extending as far as complete organ function. 20 21 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE SETTINg PRIORITIES settinG Priorities Technology development, systems biology, imaging techniques, neurosciences, environment and sustainability, risks and security, financial markets research, energy, design and supercomputing are all subjects that ETH Zurich intends to study in greater depth in the next few years. To this end, it is developing the structures to simplify interdisciplinary collaboration. In their strategic initiatives, ETH Zurich and the ETH domain have one clear objective: areas with high scientific and economic potential will be deliberately promoted and the necessary interdisciplinary networking facilitated. The strategic initiatives are generally based on existing competences. Some initiatives have since been developed into national networking programmes. Technology development The main aim of the technology initiative “nano-Tera.CH” is to promote promising areas of engineering sciences and give a new stimulus to the economy. In the very near future it will be possible to make technical use of the effects of quantum mechanics. This will have an enormous influence on science and technology, allowing entirely new materials, products and manufacturing processes to be developed. At ETH Zurich today, over 70 groups are carrying out research in these fields. Together with other institutions they are ensuring that Switzerland plays a leading role in fields such as communications, healthcare, process engineering and energy conversion. To build on this excellent starting position, ETH Zurich proposed the major project “Quantum Tera-Scale Systems”. This has since been expanded into the national network programme “nano-Tera.CH”. Systems biology The purpose of systems biology is to give a comprehensive understanding of biological processes. Researchers study how the individual components interact within an organism. Systems biology tries to obtain information which is not available from the components of the system in isolation. The findings could one day lead to entirely new approaches to prevention, diagnosis and treatment in medicine. In order for research in systems biology to take place at all, a great many new technologies first have to be developed. To make this demanding research possible, ETH Zurich and the universities of Basel and Zurich have launched the SystemsX initiative. After merging with the “lemanic genomics initiative”, SystemsX is being continued as a national initiative under the title SystemsX.ch. Imaging techniques Biological and biomedical research, as well as physics and materials and engineering sciences, are today dependent on new imaging techniques. A whole range of processes are used in combination with one another. ETH Zurich has a long tradition of developing imaging techniques. Together with the university of Zurich and the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), it therefore set up the “IMAGEnE Initiative”. This has now been extended to become the networking programme “national Competence Center for Biomedical Imaging”. 22 Neurosciences The human brain remains one of the biggest mysteries in science. For most neurological and psychic problems, people have no clear idea about exactly what is going on in the brain. nowadays, neuroscience is an extremely dynamic area of research with huge potential for industrial developments. In the “neuroscience Center Zurich”, the university of Zurich and ETH Zurich have one of the largest research communities in this field in Europe. Environment and sustainability Environmental and climate changes and their consequences for humanity are among the largest challenges facing the world. A possible increase in natural hazards, the continuing destruction of the Earth’s resources, growing urbanisation and the loss of drinking water, not to mention combating hunger and poverty, are the issues which ETH Zurich scientists must confront. Gaining a better understanding of the interaction between the different factors and finding possible solutions requires an interdisciplinary approach. This is why the three departments of Earth Sciences, Environmental Sciences and Agricultural and Food Sciences have come together to form the “School Domain of Earth, Environment and natural Resources (S-EnETH)”. In terms of content and organisation, the latter is closely linked with the Competence Center Environment and Sustainability of the ETH domain. Mathematics The interaction between the different fields of mathematics and between mathematics and other natural sciences has led to many groundbreaking developments in the past. Mathematics will continue to play an important role in future, for example in understanding natural phenomena, solving technical problems or taking a quantitative approach to economic questions. Over the coming years, alongside pure research, issues at the interface with Physics, Engineering Sciences and Life Sciences, and Financial Science, will be at the centre of the activities of the Department of Mathematics. One important project is to develop the “Zurich graduate School in Mathematics” (ZgSM), which was set up in partnership with the University of Zurich in 2003, to become an internationally outstanding educational institution. Together with the renowned “Institute for Mathematical Research”, the ZgSM will further consolidate ETH’s international position in this fundamental area of science. In the field of sustainability, ETH Zurich is also involved with a number of other initiatives and programmes: • • • The “north-South Centre” combines all activities in the field of international development and cooperation. The “nachhaltigkeit ETH” project organises training and services to support activities in the field of sustainability. The Alliance for Global Sustainability (AGS), in which MIT, the university of Tokyo and Chalmers university are also involved, supports joint research activities. Physics Physics at ETH Zurich has three primary aims: to make new findings about the laws by which nature operates; to develop new technological concepts for a wide range of applications; and to help introduce new methods in other scientific disciplines. Accordingly, the Department of Physics works closely with many other partners in its research and teaching. In recent years, the Department of Physics has gained a leading position in a number of fields. Over the coming years, these fields should be further pursued at the highest scientific level. In solid state physics, quantum electronics or neuroinformatics, it is a question of establishing the basic principles which are essential for developing new technologies; in particle physics, astrophysics and astronomy there is great potential for discovering new interrelationships or laws of nature; and theoretical physics deals with intellectually challenging issues. 23 Risks and security How should our society face up to new global risks? And how can these risks be exploited as opportunities? Researchers at ETH Zurich are tackling these issues. In addition to natural hazards, they also study technical, economic, political and health risks. Their work is about setting up warning systems for the different risks and developing preventive measures. This is the only way to ensure that we will continue to live in a reliable and safe environment in future. Financial markets research As a financial centre of global importance, Switzerland relies on excellent research and education in the field of finance. Several Swiss universities, including ETH Zurich, have long been involved in the field of banking and finance. With the newly established foundation, the “Swiss Finance Institute” (SFI), these activities should now be expanded. ETH Zurich has decided actively to support the SFI. This opens up the opportunity of establishing a leading centre for financial markets research in Zurich. SHAPInG THE FuTuRE SETTINg PRIORITIES Energy research Our current energy supplies are problematic in many respects: negative environmental effects and a foreseeable shortage of conventional fossil fuels could destabilise the global energy system. The ability to obtain energy in a cost-effective manner, in an environmentally friendly way and if possible independently of geostrategic factors, will become a deciding factor for success in the future. At ETH Zurich today, more than 70 research groups are tackling the subject. With the aim of better coordinating their activities, they have formed themselves into the “Energy Science Center”. Many groups are also involved in the Competence Center Energy and Mobility which works on ways of achieving a sustainable energy supply in the three main research areas of mobility and transport, electricity and energy efficiency, and building systems. The centre is part of the ETH domain under the leadership of the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI). Drafting and design Architecture, art and industrial design are of great importance for business and society. The aim of the “Swiss Design Science Initiative” is to combine the findings of pure research with design. Partly it is a matter of promoting a theoretical understanding of design, but partly also of developing applications by means of interactive simulation and visual data analysis and using science to support design processes. This initiative also encourages cooperation between the universities and universities of applied sciences. Supercomputing Advanced research, plus industry too, are nowadays dependent in many areas on high-performance computing centres. The Swiss national Supercomputing Centre (CSCS) in Manno plays a leading role in Switzerland. As well as providing services for third parties – for example for MeteoSchweiz, the Swiss meteorological service – the CSCS also carries out research in the field of supercomputing. With the “High Performance Computing and networking” initiative, ETH Zurich intends to further reinforce its position in this important area. It is expected that the CSCS will also be involved in the planned European supercomputer network. Chemistry and Applied biosciences Chemistry and Applied Biosciences are among the most crucial areas of research at ETH Zurich, which has always been a major partner for the chemical-pharmaceutical industry. The research encompasses many areas, from the exploration of molecular structures and dynamics, through to the development of new drugs and biosciences. A high priority is attached to pure research. In addition to its traditional core areas, the Department of Chemistry and Applied Biosciences also works on a range of other interesting growth areas which are developing very fast at present. These include, for example, developing chemical tools to control molecular mechanisms in biological systems, studying molecular quantum dynamics using spectroscopy, controlling chemical reactions on a nano scale, computer-aided chemistry, identifying and characterising biological targets, synthesising new materials and creating innovative technologies to manufacture new diagnostic and therapeutic agents. 24 25 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE ZURICH – kNOWLEDgE CITY ZuriCh – knowledGe City ETH Zurich wants to continue to be one of the world’s best universities in future. In order to maintain this position it must constantly enhance its attractiveness. One deciding factor is the infrastructure: only if ETH Zurich can offer its students and researchers ideal conditions will it succeed in recruiting the best people. Consequently, ETH Zurich has an ambitious strategy for this area too. The requirements that the infrastructure has to meet are based on the objectives which the university is setting itself in its research and teaching. ETH Zurich intends to create 80 additional professorships by the year 2015; in the same period the number of students will increase by about 20 percent. In view of this, ETH Zurich has the following strategic aims: • ETH Zurich will concentrate its infrastructure on the two main sites of the city centre and Science City (Hönggerberg campus). ETH Zurich is also represented at a third location in Basel, and maintains a number of off-site locations. The ETH Zurich locations provide a modern working and learning environment such that students and researchers are offered ideal conditions. The different areas of research are organised geographically: natural Sciences, Architecture and Civil Engineering are on the Hönggerberg, while Engineering Sciences, System-oriented natural Sciences and Mathematics are in the centre. Science City will become a place where science, society, culture, politics and business all converge. Over the coming years, the vision of Science City will become concrete reality: in 2008 the modern “Information Science Lab” will be opened, and in 2009 the large sports centre. In 2011 the Life Science Platform will be ready for use. When the learning and meeting centre opens and students and academic visitors move into the first apartments, the main objectives of Science City will have been achieved. For Zurich, Science City represents an important step in becoming a “City of Science”. now, after initial scepticism, not only the political authorities but also the local population are fully behind the project. • • biology Biology – described by many as the science of the 21st century – now counts as “big science”. Many of the scientific breakthroughs of recent years were only possible thanks to innovative and highperformance technologies. Consequently, biology today needs not only expensive analytical equipment but also tools for processing vast quantities of data. At the same time, sophisticated imaging techniques are used more and more frequently to gain a better understanding of the processes in cells. This challenging research calls for close cooperation with other disciplines. This is why the Department of Biology plans to establish and expand new research priorities and interdisciplinary networks. In addition to the existing “Functional genomics Center Zurich”, which develops high-performance analytical applications, in future there are to be three more platforms facilitating technical and biological development. These will deal with breeding genetically modified mice for the targeted study of biological processes, and the areas of imaging, data processing and analysis. These basic targets give rise to a number of specific measures which will be implemented over the next few years: at both the main sites, in the centre and at Science City, plans for future development will be pushed forward. In this context, ETH’s objective is for the new properties to be of a high quality in terms urban development and architecture. Increasing importance will be attached to the criterion of sustainability in the construction and maintenance of buildings. ETH Zurich today operates about 200 buildings with a total area of 420,000 m2. In recent years this area has increased by an average of 5,000 m2 per year; that is the equivalent of growth of 1.4 percent. This rate of growth should continue in the coming planning period. There is already a dense network of important educational and research institutions in the Zurich region: four nationally and internationally renowned institutions – ETH Zurich, the university of Zurich, university Hospital Zurich and the Zurich university of Applied Sciences – make Zurich a prestigious destination for education and research. In addition, there are the four research institutions of the ETH domain, which are all based in the Zurich area: EMPA (materials science and technology development) and EAWAG (aquatic research) in Dübendorf, WSL (environmental research) in Birmensdorf and PSI (natural sciences and technology) in Villigen. Private think-tanks such as the IBM research laboratory, the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute and the “Swiss Re Centre for Global Dialogue” complete the picture. Together with the development centres of large companies such as Google and Microsoft, and numerous head offices of global companies, these institutions all contribute to Zurich’s international competitiveness. Over the coming years, many of these institutions will change their location or their emphasis or will set out in an entirely new direction. ETH, the university of Zurich and university Hospital Zurich together with the city and canton of Zurich developed a master plan for the “university District” in the City Center. This lays the foundation for developing the three institutions in the centre of Zurich. The Zurich university of Applied Sciences will in future concentrate on two new locations, the Toni area and the former Sihlpost site. The university of Zurich also has extensive expansion plans for the Irchel site. The “Strategic Advisory Board Science City” at ETH Zurich therefore initiated the “Zurich – knowledge hub” project. The aim of this is to improve coordination on the development of these various institutions. As a result, collaboration on research and teaching in general will be intensified. This network of outstanding universities and other institutions should also be apparent to the outside world: it will firmly establish Zurich as a knowledge centre locally and at the same time strengthen its position both nationally and internationally. Zurich – knowledge hub earth sciences Our Earth consists of a number of spheres joined together. The hydrosphere with the seas, rivers and lakes, the atmosphere and the biosphere interact with the geosphere, the solid Earth. Changes in one sphere can have long-term effects on other spheres. It is in this interaction that the earth scientists at ETH Zurich are interested. Only by understanding how the Earth behaves can we develop our own habitat sustainably. Over the coming years, the Department of Earth Sciences will further strengthen its four core areas – the Earth and planets, geomaterials, processes on the Earth’s surface and applied earth sciences. New experimental methods and calculation models will be consistently applied in all areas. Important priorities are to promote application-oriented research and to intensify knowledge and technology transfer to newly industrialising countries with a promising scientific future. 27 On the Hönggerberg site, ETH Zurich has embarked on a particularly ambitious project: in Science City it is creating both a university campus and a city district for a “Thinkers’ Culture” at the same time. Science City is a platform where ETH Zurich can stage a great many strategic projects for the future. At present, the Hönggerberg site is a high-tech research site with mono-functional use. Over the next few years this will change: as Science City develops, the Hönggerberg site will become a lively district. Science City will not only become an ideal place for students and researchers from Switzerland and abroad to live and work, but will also be an attractive meeting place for the local population. 26 Science City – a lively city district SHAPInG THE FuTuRE STRENgTH THROUgH PARTNERSHIPS strenGth throuGh PArtnershiPs ETH Zurich works closely with numerous other Swiss institutions. Its main partners include the university of Zurich, EPF Lausanne and the four research institutions of the ETH domain. There are also partnership arrangements with other universities and a number of universities of applied sciences. The main focus is still on relationships with the research institutions in the Greater Zurich Area. Zurich has unique potential in Switzerland which must be further developed. In particular, ETH Zurich wants to strengthen its long-standing successful partnership with the university of Zurich: • • • Greater use should be made of synergies in the pure sciences of Biology, Chemistry and Physics. Shared service centres and institutes open up interesting new prospects for research and teaching. The activities of the agricultural research stations of ETH Zurich and the Vetsuisse faculty of the university of Zurich are to be combined. Unique potential environmental sciences Climate change, the loss of biodiversity, conflicts about land use and securing limited water resources – these are the globally important topics with which the Department of Environmental Sciences is concerned. It follows a system-oriented approach: the biological, non-biological and human influences on different environmental systems are studied in depth and the complex interaction between man and the environment is analysed. The aim is to devise practical solutions for the various problems. In future, more and more problems will be worked on which can only be tackled by a partnership between all kinds of different research groups. Such interdisciplinary research initiatives deal, for example, with the role of bodies of water and soil in the production of greenhouse gases, environmental factors in the spread of infectious diseases and the question of how material and energy flows can be controlled. One important objective is to intensify the transfer of knowledge into society and involve developing countries more closely. 29 university Hospital Zurich is another important partner for ETH Zurich. The concept “from bench to bedside”, which, for example, has already been put into effect in the case of neuroscience, should be extended to other areas of treatment. Activities concentrate on illnesses such as obesity, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease, as well as infectious diseases and biomedical technology. The establishment of the ETH Department of Biosystems Science and Engineering has laid the foundations for close cooperation with the research centre of Basel. Basel – the third site Global alliances IDEA League The IDEA League brings together five leading technical universities in Europe. The partners strive for the highest standards in teaching and research: they define guidelines for education, offer joint Master programmes and also seek to play a leading role in research. International Alliance of Research Universities The International Alliance of Research universities consists of 10 well-known research universities. This global alliance aims to facilitate cooperation in teaching and research. 28 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE STRENgTH THROUgH PARTNERSHIPS Alliance for Global Sustainability The members of the Alliance for Global Sustainability (AGS) include not only ETH Zurich but also MIT in the uSA, the university of Tokyo and Chalmers university. The AGS supports activities in the field of sustainability. UNITECH International unITECH International is an association of European technical universities and multinational companies. It enables students to supplement their engineering training with international academic and professional experience. Bilateral science and technology initiative with China The State Secretariat for Education and Research has identified four priority countries, to each of which one Swiss university has been assigned as the leading house. ETH Zurich is the leading house for China. The aim is to set up long-term relationships for the exchange of expertise. Scientific excellence is promoted by joint research activities and the awarding of grants. Singapore-ETH Centre for Global Environmental Sustainability under the leadership of ETH Zurich, the ETH domain aims to develop a partnership with Singapore, initially for just eight years. The aim is to establish a Singapore-ETH Centre for Global Environmental Sustainability. Targeted networking ETH ambassadors abroad Personal contacts can often be vital in establishing new relationships. ETH Zurich therefore plans to position suitable individuals in strategic locations. The job of these ambassadors will be to raise the profile of ETH Zurich, support ETH staff in their international activities and facilitate the exchange of expertise. ETH alumni The alumni, numbering an estimated 60,000, form the largest group associated with ETH Zurich. 12,000 former students are now members of the ETH Alumni Association. The alumni are of great importance to ETH Zurich, for they help to consolidate the university’s networking activities. ETH Zurich Foundation The ETH Zurich Foundation gives visionary sponsors the opportunity to help secure the future existence of ETH Zurich by making a financial commitment. The resources acquired in this way are invested in strategic projects. These include research work in promising areas, establishing new chairs and providing support for talented students. Agricultural and Food sciences How to use agroecosystems sustainably and produce safe, high-quality food to ensure human well-being – these are the two priorities which the Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences has set itself. This involves studying the entire spectrum from how agroecosystems function and how food is produced, through to the implications for the consumer and society. Over the coming years, the department will concentrate even more on its two key areas of research. One focus is to show how functionally modified food can be produced and how the quantity and quality of the food we eat affects human health. Another is to investigate how environmental factors affect plants and livestock, what opportunities and risks are associated with genetically modified organisms, what sustainable land use on a global scale would be like and how resources in the agricultural economy can be used most efficiently. 31 30 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE OPTIMISINg THE WORkINg ENVIRONMENT oPtiMisinG the workinG environMent Top-class research and teaching is only possible in the right environment. Modern university management at ETH Zurich ensures that teaching and research can develop fully. The task of the central infrastructure domains is to provide the necessary framework conditions. Finances The performance of the university is to a great extent dependent on securing funding in the long term. Financial management at ETH Zurich comprises three key elements: financial policies, control of administrative processes and operational excellence. Thanks to multi-year financial planning that is aligned with the overall needs of the institution, risk-optimal tools for managing liquidity and investments, and conservative balance sheet management, continuity can be achieved in its finances. ETH Zurich aims gradually to reduce its financial dependency on the government by increasingly attracting second- and third-party resources. Marketing and communications ETH Zurich strives to maintain full communications with all relevant internal and external stakeholders. The reputation, image and brand of ETH Zurich should continue to be reinforced, thereby enhancing the status of the university. Communication work concentrates on a few key impact areas. These include national politics, business, the next generation of students, Zurich as a location and the members of ETH Zurich. Awareness of the university abroad should also be improved. Quality assurance ETH Zurich has reached a very high standard of quality assurance. The focus is not on controls or monitoring, but on a culture of self-critical questioning. Regular surveys and appraisal interviews, allocation of internal research funding on a competitive basis and ongoing evaluation of teaching all result in continuous improvement of the services provided. Support for teaching The Rectorate and Center for Higher Education are service organisations creating the conditions in which teaching can proceed smoothly at ETH Zurich. This involves resolving a number of challenges: both the total number of students and the proportion of non-German-speaking students are increasing. With the introduction of the Bologna Reform, the range of courses became far more diverse. Over the coming years, it will be important to maintain the quality of teaching in the long term. In view of growing internationalisation, services will increasingly also be offered in English. Support for research Research promotion at ETH Zurich not only supports ongoing research, but also the implementation of the results in practice and the identification of new areas of research. Internal research funding is allocated on a competitive basis, allowing a quick response to new research requirements. In this way, research which appears promising but risky can also be financed. Technology transfer office ETH Zurich wants to further intensify its partnership with industry and business. For this reason, the technology transfer office has been greatly expanded in recent years. It makes its expertise available when research contracts are being concluded, it advises ETH staff and students on questions of patents and conducts negotiations on licensing and options agreements. It also plays an active role in the founding of spin-off companies. Library With a stock of 6.7 million items, the ETH library is the largest library in Switzerland. Over the next few years, the ETH library will keep extending its traditional services towards “the digital library”. At the same time, it will continue to implement the successful principle of “organised decentralisation”, so that services can be provided as close as possible to the user. Management, technology and economics Management tasks in technology-intensive companies are becoming ever more complex and dynamic. Consequently, the need for sound specialised and organisational skills is growing. This is why, in the year 2004, ETH Zurich reorganised engineering-based management sciences and work psychology. The range of subjects was expanded in those areas of economics and applied physics which are particularly important at a technical university. The task of the Department of Management, Technology and Economics is to understand the interaction of technology, society and organisations from a scientific point of view, and to relate the resulting implications in a practical way. The core questions are about global value creation and the distribution of that value to individual continents and countries. The department also studies the sustainable use of natural and human resources and risk management in society. humanities, social and Political sciences Natural sciences and technology develop in societies which can either control, finance, disseminate, use or reject as dangerous any scientific and technological achievements. For natural scientists and engineers it is therefore important to understand how social, political, cultural and economic structures affect their work. This is why ETH Zurich, like other technical universities, has a strong research and teaching capability in the field of humanities and social sciences. The Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences groups its activities around three main focuses: in the field of “knowledge” it studies how knowledge arises, how it is put to use and how it changes over time. The section on “Behaviour” deals with the factors that affect learning and decision-making processes in society. Finally, the third area, “governance”, deals with questions of democratisation, the emergence of violence and the interaction between the government and the economy. 33 Continuing education Over the coming years, ETH Zurich will steadily pursue the expansion of its continuing education services. A regular process of evaluation will ensure that the programme meets the needs of business and society. ETH Zurich would also like to attract more foreign candidates for continuing education. Personnel development Any organisation is only as good as its employees. Development of the human resources service is therefore of great strategic importance to ETH Zurich. The aim is to establish consistent career advancement, so that the best talent can be attracted at all levels. Equal opportunities The efforts made in recent years to put men and women on an equal footing have borne fruit. nevertheless, the number of women in technical areas and the upper echelons is still unsatisfactory. This means that further efforts are called for to promote women. The focus is on encouraging the next generation of female students and doctoral students and on increasing the number of women among the professors. 32 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE STATISTICS / ORgANISATIONAL CHART stAtistiCs / orGAnisAtionAl ChArt Trends in student numbers New admissions Total no. of students Diploma students Bachelor students Master students Doctoral students MAS/MBA students 2001 3180 2369 605 206 2007 4395 114 1994 1278 745 264 The international element Proportion of foreigners [as %] Students Diploma students Bachelor students Master students Doctoral students Professors Employees Scientific staff Technical/admin. staff 2001 18.9 11.1 48.7 54.3 36.5 44.4 15.0 2007 25.9 18.8 14.2 24.9 56.8 62.8 45.1 57.9 18.7 Students Total no. of students Diploma students Bachelor students Master students Doctoral students MAS/MBA students 2001 11927 9311 2300 316 2007 13999 1522 6821 2284 2907 465 Financing The fact that the budget resources from the public purse are stagnating in real terms and declining in percentage terms means that new sources of finance have to be found. ETH Zurich is well-positioned to obtain third-party resources. Efforts in this direction should be intensified in coming years. Trends in expenditure ETH Zurich [in million CHF] Total expenditure - Budget resources - Third-party resources 2001 1069.7 938.9 130.9 2007 1217.1 1001.7 215.4 Change +13.8 % +6.7 % +64.6 % Graduations Total no. of graduations Diploma Bachelor Master Doctorates MAS, MBA, nDS 2001 1884 1265 488 131 2007 2932 884 838 425 572 213 Origin expenditure of third-party resources [in million CHf] Funding agencies national Internat. organisaitons (Eu research programmes) Federal contracts, other public offices Business-oriented research, other third-party funds Endowments, bequests, special funds Total 2003 50.2 16.9 30.3 48.4 7.4 153.2 2007 70.9 26.9 29.2 48.9 39.4 215.4 Professorships Total no. of professors Assistant professors Women Students/professor 2001 343 57 24 34.7 2007 368 54 34 38 34 35 SHAPInG THE FuTuRE organiSational chart eth Zurich (aS oF january 2008) University Assembly Executive Board President Finance and Controlling Corporate Communications Rector Rectorate Center for Higher Education ETH Library Centro Stefano Franscini Collegium Helveticum Language Center Vice President Research IT Services Centro Svizzero di Calcolo Scientifico FIRST Lab Functional Genomics Center Collection of Prints and Drawings Vice President Planning and Logistics Human Resources Immovables Departments of ETH Zurich Architecture and Civil Engineering Architecture Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering Engineering Sciences Mechanical and Process Engineering Information Technology and Electrical Engineering Computer Science Materials Science Biosystems Science and Engineering Natural Sciences and Mathematics Mathematics Physics Chemistry and Applied Biosciences Biology System-oriented Natural Sciences Earth Sciences Environmental Sciences Agricultural and Food Sciences Management and Social Sciences Management, Technology and Economics Humanities, Social and Political Sciences 36