2027 intake dates at eight Swiss hotel schools

When can a student start? For many families it's the first practical question about a Swiss hotel school, and each school answers differently. Here are the 2027 start dates and intake months for the bachelor's degree at the eight schools this guide profiles, from each school's own website. We read every page on 10 October 2026. Where a school gives only months, so does the table; nothing is carried over from an earlier year. One of the eight, BHMS, is affiliated with this guide; the methodology page explains the relationship.

2027 intakes as published

The table covers the undergraduate hospitality degree at seven schools and the culinary degree at Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland. In the deadline column, not published means we found no fixed application deadline on the pages cited on the day we read them.

How to read the table

Four schools give months only for 2027: EHL, SHMS, César Ritz Colleges and Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland.^{[1] [10] [14] [17]} Glion, Les Roches and HTMi publish dated calendars.^{[20] [21] [7] [8] [16]} BHMS does both: an intake list by month, and a separate student calendar with term-start dates.^{[11] [12]}

One caution: the dated entries don't all mark the same event. Glion's dates are check-in days, which it defines as the required arrival date on campus.^{[20] [21]} Les Roches gives registration and check-in days, with different days for its Experiential Year and for the BSc semesters, and it reserves the right to change them.^{[7] [8]} HTMi dates the first day of each academic semester, and all its courses start on a Monday.^[16] The BHMS student calendar marks eight term starts in 2027. Three of them (22 February, 16 August and 15 November) carry the label “BA/MSc Ind.”, which the calendar doesn't explain. The Friday before each start is an orientation day, described as mandatory for everyone beginning a new programme.^[12]

Your year of entry matters at some schools. HTMi gives January and August as the intakes for its final degree year.^[15] The BHMS intake list has a footnote: transfers from another university into the third year of the BA are possible only at certain intakes. When we read the page, no intake was marked, so a transfer applicant should ask the school which ones apply.^[11] EHL sets separate deadlines for direct entry into its six-semester bachelor programme: applications for February 2027 are closed, and the September 2027 deadline is 26 February 2027.^[2]

What this means for a family planning now

EHL is the only one of the eight with fixed application deadlines for its 2027 intakes, at least on the pages we read. Each intake has two: an earlier date labelled as the visa deadline, and a final deadline. For February 2027 the visa deadline is 31 October 2026, three weeks after the date of this page, and the final deadline is 15 December 2026.^[1]

The other seven show no fixed deadline on those pages. Most publish instead how long a student visa can take. SHMS, César Ritz Colleges and Culinary Arts Academy Switzerland each ask applicants who need a student visa to allow 8 to 12 weeks between application and programme start.^{[10] [14] [17]} Glion puts it at 4 to 12 weeks.^[4] Les Roches says at least two to three months for its Swiss campus.^[9] EHL says the process may take up to three months in certain cases.^[1] BHMS says up to 12 weeks; its FAQ narrows that to 8 to 12 weeks for citizens of non-EU states and 4 to 6 weeks for EU citizens.^{[11] [13]} HTMi gives no processing time on its dates page, only that the letter of acceptance is the document you apply for the visa with.^[16]

Switzerland's State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) describes the same step from the authorities' side. A stay of more than 90 days for education needs a category D visa, also called a national visa. The cantons process these applications, the time varies by canton and by purpose of stay, and SEM's own guidance is that "one to several months must be expected". Whether a student needs a visa at all depends on nationality, and SEM links to the provisions for each one.^[18]

Do the arithmetic on those figures. Twelve weeks before a mid-January start is late October. Twelve weeks before a late-February start is around the beginning of December. Twelve weeks before an early-September start is the first half of June. These are planning figures, not a promise: as Glion's page points out, visa decisions are made by the Swiss authorities, not by the school.^[4]

So if your family needs a visa and you're aiming at a January or February 2027 start, time is short. The application should be under way very soon. The August to October 2027 intakes leave you several months to compare schools first.

Next step

Published dates can change, so ask each school on your shortlist to confirm in writing the start date for the student's intake and year of entry. If the list is still long, put schools side by side on the comparison page, or use the five-step school finder.