Campus and city
EPFL sits on Lake Geneva (Lac Léman) shore in Ecublens, just west of Lausanne. The campus is shared with University of Lausanne (UNIL), creating a combined academic zone of 15,000+ daily. The Rolex Learning Center (SANAA 2010) is iconic — undulating library and social hub. SwissTech Convention Center and ArtLab (Kengo Kuma) add architectural distinction. Alps visible from everywhere, Mont Blanc on clear days. Metro M1 has an EPFL station directly on campus — 5 stops to Renens train station, connects to M2 for Lausanne center. Geneva airport 40-50 min by train. Paris 3.5-4h (TGV Lyria). Housing market tight but not brutal: FMEL student residences CHF 550-850/month (apply early — long waitlists), Estudiantines on-campus CHF 600-900/month, private WG CHF 700-1000/month. Lavaux vineyards (UNESCO Heritage) 20 min east. La Côte wine region immediately west. Montreux Jazz Festival 30 min by train. Skiing 1-2 hours (Verbier, Villars). IOC headquartered in Lausanne (Olympic capital). AGEPoly has 600+ volunteers across 19 committees. Satellite bar is the student music venue since 1985 — concerts, events. Balélec festival is one of Switzerland's largest student festivals. Thursday evening is traditional student going-out night but Lausanne nightlife is modest vs Geneva or Zurich. Switzerland closes on Sundays. Making Swiss friends is difficult — Swiss reserve is real; the international community (especially French) is where social life happens. English is widely spoken at Master's/PhD level; French essential for daily life (supermarkets, admin, landlords).