Zurcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften (ZHAW)

Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften (ZHAW) is a Swiss university of applied sciences with locations in Winterthur, Zürich, and Wädenswil.

• Research structure: more than 60 institutes, centers, and specialist units,
• Open science: open-access publications, research data, and educational resources.

The university carries out projects with businesses, public sector organizations, Innosuisse, the Swiss National Science Foundation, and international partners, including participants in Horizon Europe.

The ZHAW digital initiative connects staff, ideas, and projects involved in developing digital technologies at the university.

The CAS in Coffee Excellence continuing education program lasts 15 months and requires approximately 5–9 hours of study per week, depending on participants' prior knowledge. Designed for working professionals, it includes three online modules divided into six sessions, each containing 4–6 lessons. Participants have 2–4 weeks to complete each session.

Course materials and meeting recordings are posted on Moodle. Learning resources can be accessed at any time and downloaded, with access continuing until one month after the course ends. The in-person module is no longer mandatory, and practical work includes virtual lab sessions.

Participants receive the CAS in Coffee Excellence diploma after successfully completing all modules and passing the final assessments. Those taking an individual module receive confirmation of completion after passing its assessment. Participants who pause their studies for personal or professional reasons can resume with a new cohort.

For everyday academic activities, the School of Life Sciences and Facility Management uses the ZHAW LSFM student app, which provides information about studying and campus life. Students in the School of Health Sciences can use Planet G. Access is provided through their ZHAW account upon enrollment shortly before the semester begins.

ZHAW has eight departments. These include:

• Architektur, Gestaltung und Bauingenieurwesen covers architecture, design, and civil engineering. Its institutes are Urban Landscape, Konstruktives Entwerfen for design and construction, and Bautechnologie und Prozesse for building technology and processes,
• School of Engineering brings together 14 institutes and centers working in energy, mobility, information technology, and health,
• School of Health Sciences provides training for seven health professions and has more than 2,000 students and 300 staff members,
• School of Life Sciences and Facility Management includes the Institute of Chemistry and Biotechnology, which houses the TEDD center,
• Angewandte Linguistik is the applied linguistics department. ILC focuses on communication in professional and public life, IMK on language mediation between cultures, and IAM on public communication,
• Angewandte Psychologie is the applied psychology department. Its institutes are IAP Institut für Angewandte Psychologie for applied psychology, Institut für Mensch, Gesellschaft und Technologien for people, society, and technology, and Institut für Mental Health for mental health.

• The SUP-NH program sets the long-term sustainability goals for the ZHAW sustainable initiative,
• The Sustainable Impact Program supports environmental and social initiatives by students and staff, with backing from swissuniversities and ZHAW-Stiftung,
• With support from the Instant Impact Fund, a pilot water reuse system incorporating a green wall and graywater treatment was created on the Grüental campus,
• Professor Chahan Yeretzian founded the Coffee Excellence Center for coffee research in 2008,
• The applied linguistics department, Angewandte Linguistik, is the only dedicated linguistics department at a Swiss university of applied sciences and one of the largest in Europe,
• A research team in this department organizes the selection of Switzerland's words of the year in all four national languages.

ZHAW hosts specialist events where professionals can connect and learn about research:

• The Coffee Science and Education Summit brings together coffee industry professionals. Activities include practical workshops, tastings, and a tour of the Coffee Excellence Center laboratories on the Reidbach campus,
• Events at SCA World Of Coffee conferences are available to current CAS in Coffee Excellence participants and alumni.

The Instant Impact Fund supported Sustainable Food Cultures – impacts for the future, an international summer school exploring the globalization of food cultures and sustainable dietary traditions.

• Bachelor's and master's programs combine academic study with practical training,
• Students and continuing education participants take part in research projects,
• Free, confidential advising is available before and during continuing education,
• Advisory services support students with disabilities and elite athletes,
• The applied linguistics department, Angewandte Linguistik, maintains Swiss-AL, Switzerland's largest text database of public discourse.

The School of Life Sciences and Facility Management is based in Wädenswil. Its Coffee Excellence Center has laboratory equipment for roasting coffee and studying bean properties.

• Roasting equipment: two Roest S100 units, a Probat BRZ, a Probat SE, and two Ikawa 50g units,
• A Probat Probatino with a 1 kg capacity and a Stronghold S7 with an 800 g capacity,
• Probat Collorette 3B and 4 instruments, a LAB color meter, and a Sinar moisture and density meter,
• Equipment for measuring moisture by drying and determining water activity,
• PTR-MS mass spectrometry for monitoring volatile organic compounds in dynamic processes with time resolution down to one second.

CAS in Coffee Excellence starts each year in calendar week 40. Online meetings and lab activities take place once per session, every 2–3 weeks, usually on Wednesdays at 15:00 Swiss time. Each meeting lasts 1.5 hours. A nonrefundable registration fee is charged upon admission.

Bachelor's and master's applicants pay separate one-time charges for the admissions process and enrollment. The admissions charge is payable even if an applicant is not allowed to proceed to later stages or is not admitted. During a leave of absence, students pay a fixed semester charge instead of tuition to cover email access, a campus card, library use, and administrative services. This charge also applies to bachelor's students in the School of Health Sciences taking additional module C and to those postponing completion of their program.

Students should budget for additional expenses:

• Housing,
• Study materials, a personal computer, and software,
• Field trips, excursions, and study weeks,
• A subject-specific entrance examination, document copies, and certification,
• Membership in the ASVZ sports association and the Alias student association.

For the CAS in Coffee Excellence, course management reviews complete applications with the required supporting documents received by the application deadline.

Smapse specialists will guide you through every stage of the admissions process.

Tuition at the university is paid. Part of the financial costs on tution fees can be reimbursed by a scholarship from the university for good performance.

• The SDG Thesis Award, presented by ZHAW in collaboration with the Swiss Green Economy Symposium, has a total prize fund of CHF 4,500. Current students and those enrolled at the university in the previous year are eligible. Project papers and bachelor's and master's theses must address at least one sustainable development goal and have been submitted between June of the previous year and the award application deadline,
• The Student Project Fund provides students with up to CHF 10,000 for projects addressing social, environmental, or economic challenges,
• The Instant Impact Fund provides up to CHF 2,000 for small sustainability initiatives. Projects must last less than a year, take place on a ZHAW campus or in the region, and address one or more sustainable development goals. The project leader must remain a ZHAW student or employee until completion,
• Participants who pay for the entire CAS in Coffee Excellence program in a single payment before it begins receive a 5% discount on module costs.

The Instant Impact Fund accepts applications on an ongoing basis while funding remains available. Funding is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. Project leaders are notified of the decision within one month. The fund does not cover air travel. Students who also work at ZHAW cannot use the funding to pay for their working hours. A brief report on the results and use of funds is required after the project ends.

• Guardianship services during the studies
• Student supervision