Registration and admissions process

MA Cultural Critique, Curatorial Studies

Thank you for your interest in the Master's programme in Cultural Critique, Curatorial Studies Zurich University of the Arts.

If interested in a Master’s degree applicants apply for admission to their chosen Major. Afterwards they separately choose their Minor. Both programmes Major and Minor will start in the first semester.

→ Detailed information on the Major-Minor programme structure at ZHdK
→ Detailed information on Minor Selection

→ The information days will take place mid-November. Detailed information please find on zhdk.ch/en/information-days

Admissions requirements

The requirements for admission to the degree programme and for enrolment are governed by the Regulatory Framework for Bachelor’s and Master’s Programmes at Zurich University of the Arts (RO §§ 19-24).

Additional admission requirements for the selected major programme, including the required language skills, are set out in the Programme Regulations of the Master of Cultural Critique at Zurich University of the Arts (StO MA Art Education § 4 ff.).

  • Application documents

    1. Portfolio / work samples
      Portfolio should include a documentation of previous work undertaken in a field relevant to coursework (project work, writing/publishing, creative-artistic work). The portfolio must be submitted in English. Work samples in other languages do not need to be translated.
       
    2. Motivation letter 
      Please explain your motivation for seeking admission to the Master's programme and describe your career objective (max. two A4 pages). The motivation letter must be submitted in English.
       
    3. Admission Questions
      Applicants answer one required question and choose one further prompt, each in roughly 200 to 400 words.  
      1. Our programme approaches curating as a way of rethinking institutions and formats and as an experimental ground where alternative vocabularies can emerge and reframe debates. Where has your practice already worked in this direction, even without this particular language for it? Where has it hit a limit, or where would you like to take it further, in what ways might this programme help you move ahead?
      2. Choose one:  
        1. What is an art work, critical theory text, thinker, or cultural producer that has changed how you work, not just how you talk or think about your work. What different approaches did it enable and/or alter?
        2. Where has theory, that you have relied on, failed you, given you a wrong or inadequate reading of a work or situation? What did you do when it failed?
        3. Choose a discourse in cultural production that feels urgent to you right now and where you have a position. What is a view that differs from yours, where do you think it falls short, and, if relevant, what might it still have to offer?
        4. Describe a moment when working collaboratively/collectively asked you to let go of, or rethink, a position you were attached to. How did you navigate that shift, and how did it change the way you approached the work at hand?
        5. Choose an institution, collection or memory culture you know well. Who made its founding story, when, and at what cost? What would it take to renew it?
           
    4. Swiss Matriculation number
      The field “matriculation number” only concerns applicants who have already studied at a university or applied university in Switzerland. Applicants who have studied abroad (not in Switzerland) are not required to fill in the field “matriculation number”. 
      All students receive a matriculation number when they register for the first time at a university or an applied university in Switzerland or at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology ETH in the shape of a yellow sticker, which is affixed to the reverse of their qualifying diploma (e.g. baccalaureate certificate, Swiss Federal Certificate of Competence). Please provide this number when registering and submit your university entrance qualification certificate as a PDF file.
       
    5. Exmatriculation certificate / Proof of withdrawal
      Confirmation of exmatriculation / proof of withdrawal is issued at Swiss universities upon graduation or upon termination of studies. If issue is pending, confirmation must be submitted later.
       
    6. Swiss Social security number
      If you live or work in Switzerland, you will find your Swiss social security number (756...) on your AHV card or on your Swiss health insurance card. Applicants who wish to come to Switzerland to study do not yet have a Swiss social security number and therefore do not need to provide one.
       
    7. Personal photo as JPG
      Please upload a recent passport quality photo - no copies/screenshots of the passport page or identity card. The photo must be a frontal shot of the face that is 2/3 of the frame and at least 320 x 400 pixels.
       
    8. Identity card or passport
      A PDF of the identity card (both sides) or passport must be uploaded. If a residence permit for Switzerland is available, please also submit a PDF of it.
       
    9. Resume / Curriculum Vitae
      Please submit in tabular form, no prose texts.
       

    10. Language skills

      The language skills required are listed for each degree programme in the programme regulations. Language skills can be demonstrated as follows:
      –   Native speaker (does not have to be proven)
      –   Required language as a subject in the educational certificate, passed or at least grade 4 (submit the upper secondary education transcript as a PDF)
      –   Recognized certificate (according to the list “Recognized Certificates for Language Requirements”)
      –   University degree (Bachelor’s/Master’s) in a degree programme where the language of instruction corresponds to the language skills required by the study regulations (submit diploma supplement or official confirmation from the university as a PDF)

      Note: The language certificates should usually be no more than five years old. The decision on whether the admission requirements regarding language skills have been met is made during the formal review of the documents.

    11. Further documents
      Please submit the corresponding transcripts, diplomas and certificates to provide evidence of your:
      • Educational qualifications
      • Professional activities (relevant to your degree programme/chosen specialization)
      • Internships (relevant to your degree programme/chosen specialization)
         
    12. Consent form from legal guardians for applicants under the age of 18
      Applicants who have not yet reached the age of 18 at the time of application must submit a declaration of consent from their legal guardians. For this purpose, the PDF U18 is available. This form must be completed, signed by the legal guardians and submitted with the application.
      This form must be completed and submitted with the signature of the parents or legal guardians in the ‘Self-declarations/Legal Notices section of the online registration.

    Documents must be uploaded in PDF format. If you wish to upload several individual PDF files, you may do so one after the other.

    The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is generally permitted, except where it is explicitly not accepted for certain documents to be submitted. The use of AI must be declared when the application is submitted.

  • Admission process

    Selection of candidates for interview

    Whether the applicants meet the formal and professional requirements for admission to the programme is determined on the basis of the dossier.  Applicants who do not meet these requirements will receive a written rejection. The department is not obliged to explain and justify its admissions decisions.
    Applications that meet the formal and professional requirements are assessed according to qualitative criteria. As a rule, a maximum of twice as many applicants as the number of available study places are invited for an interview. Applicants who are not invited to an interview will receive a written rejection.

    Admission interview

    Interviews last 20–30 minutes. Candidates are interviewed by teaching staff and the head of the programme. On the one hand, the applicants are assessed for their competence in fields that are central to the course, and on the other hand, interviews also serve to answer any remaining questions about the application (based on the submitted documents). Candidates will be invited to discuss their expectations and their career prospects in relation to the programme.

    Admissions decisions

    Admission to the programme will be decided on the basis of the interview and the application documents. Applicants will receive an unconditional offer if they are admitted to the programme and if study places are available.
    A waiting list will be kept for applicants who are suitable but cannot be admitted due to the limited number of places.
    Candidates still waiting for the results of their Bachelor's examinations will only be granted conditional admission. Applicants will be informed of their admissions decision in writing.
    No additional information will be provided on the admissions process. Zurich University of the Arts is not obliged to explain non-admission in writing. Candidates may, however, request information by telephone (in this case, please email info.mcc @ zhdk.ch).

  • Dates

    Information days – major

    16–20 November 2026

    Info event Curatorial Studies

    18 November 2026, 16:30 h, room 4.T39

    Online application process opens – major admissions process 

    16 November 2026

    Application deadline (including portfolio) – major admissions process 

    24 February 2027

    Application confirmation – major

    until 4 March 2027

    Rejection or request to pay examination fees – major admissions process

    18 March 2027

    Invitations to admissions interview – major

    30 March 2027

    Admission interview – major

    8/9/12 April 2027

    Admissions decisions – major (acceptance / rejection / waiting list)

    15 April 2027

    Minor selection

    7–18 May 2027

    Minor aptitude test (only if specific entry-level competencies required) **

    25–29 May 2027

    Minor allocations

    3 June 2027

    Module registrations – major and minor

    17–22 June 2027

    Course commencement

    20 September 2027
     

    ** The PDFs ‘More about this minor’ linked on the minor pages indicate whether an initial aptitude assessment is required.

  • Registration and examination fee

    The registration fee for the admissions process is CHF 100 Registrations are valid once the registration fee has been paid. Payment is made online by credit card, TWINT or PostFinance Card. Applicants who are invited to the second part of the aptitude test (interview or examination) pay an additional examination fee of CHF 200 for participation in the second part of the aptitude test. The payment request is sent by e-mail. Once the payment has been transferred, the invitation with the examination dates will be made available in the online registration.
    Fees are based on the Directive on Tuition Fees of Zurich University of Applied Sciences and the corresponding fact sheet on Tuition Fees at ZHdK.

  • Entry into Switzerland

    Different rules apply for entry to Switzerland. In principle, a distinction is made between nationals of EU/EFTA countries and third-country nationals. 

    You can find all the key information on passport and visa requirements by nationality, as well as on living and working in Switzerland, at: Everyday Life and Living in Zurich

  • Information regarding online registration

    • Login to the online registration with SWITCH edu-ID
      • To register online, you will need a SWITCH edu-ID, which must be created once. If you do not yet have a SWITCH edu-ID, you can create one during the registration process. Please ensure you use your personal email address to register.
        → How to create and use a SWITCH edu-ID

      • Each person should only have one SWITCH edu-ID. 
        If you forget your password, you can create a new password via “Reset Password”

    • You may interrupt your application at any time and continue at a later stage. Any information entered will be stored.
    • Compulsory fields are marked with an asterisk (*).
    • Once all the details have been entered and the documents submitted, you must finalise your application by clicking “Complete entry” and pay the registration fee. The registration cannot be changed afterwards. The registration is only considered to be submitted and checked once the registration fee has been paid.
    • If the registration has not been completed, including payment of the registration fee, the data will be deleted after the registration deadline.
    • For technical enquiries and in emergencies, you can contact us on +41 43 446 44 00. 

Registration

→ From 16 November 2026 you can register online here.

Contact