Costs, application, admission, payment, bursaries and sending crystals

The School fee includes the course materials in printed and electronic forms, accommodation, all breakfasts and evening meals (except dinner on the free day), coffee breaks and the social programme. Most lunches will be at the participant's own expense, but can usually be obtained in the university cafeterias for about CHF 10-14 per day. Swiss participants can get reduced lunch prices if they show their university ID card.

We have done our very best to keep the cost of the School as low as possible and have negotiated very special rates for accommodation and meals at the Ibis Zurich Messe Airport Hotel (3*), a short tram ride from the university. Unfortunately, no low-cost student dormitory-type accommodation is available at the University of Zürich.

School fee:    
Master’s and PhD students - shared room:  CHF 1,300
  - single room: CHF 1,900
Postdocs and young academics (under 35):   add CHF 200
Senior academics; research staff (35+; single room):   CHF 2,400
Industry (single room):   CHF 2,900

Application for admission

To apply for the School, please read the following carefully, then complete the form below. Master’s and PhD students, and Postdocs must arrange for a letter of recommendation from their supervisor to be sent by e-mail to Prof. Linden.

The School is limited to a maximum of 20 participants. Some selection among applicants is usually necessary and will be carried out on a competitive basis. We may conduct Zoom, Skype or FaceTime interviews with applicants. To have the best chance of selection, be sure to fill in the application form thoughtfully. Preference will be given to those who clearly demonstrate on their application form that their academic background is of a high standard, how their current goals and research interests would benefit from an increased knowledge of crystallography and who briefly indicate their current level of experience.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to create an entry for themselves in the World Directory of Crystallographers and, for those from within Europe, to become an individual member of the European Crystallographic Association. Bursaries cannot be awarded to those who do not have an entry in the World Directory and ECA sponsored bursaries can only be awarded to members of the ECA.

APPLICATIONS CLOSE ON JANUARY 15, 2026.
Later applications will go on the waiting list.

You will be advised by about January 31, 2026 if you have been accepted into the School. Once you have accepted our offer of a place, we will send details of the arrangements for making payment, which will be due around the end of February.

IF YOU WILL NEED FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM YOUR INSITUTION OR ANOTHER SOURCE, PLEASE TRY TO OBTAIN CONFIRMATION THAT SUCH SUPPORT IS AVAILABLE BEFORE APPLYING. 

Bursaries
A small number of bursaries are available to help young participants with part of the accommodation costs. Click here for more details. We are most grateful to the International Union of Crystallography, the European Crystallographic Association and the Cambridge Crystallographic Data Centre for their generosity.

Submission of crystals
The unique aspect of the School is that participants get to collect data and determine the structure of one of their own compounds that they are currently interested in. Applicants who are offered a place in the School will be required to send us their crystals before the end of March 2026, so that we have sufficient time to assess crystal quality and didactic suitability of the stucture, and for new crystals to be sent if necessary. Now is a good time to start thinking about the compound you might wish to study and begin growing crystals. Supplying samples or data sets already known to present difficulties is inadvisable, as addressing complex problems adequately during the School is often impractical.

Application form
In the form below, please do not use any accented characters and be sure to fill in every item.

Family Name:
First Name(s):
Gender: Female   Male   Other
Date of birth (dd.mm.yyyy):
E-mail:
We might contact you for a video interview. Please select the preferred means of contact: Zoom   WhatsApp   FaceTime
University or Company where studying/employed:
Department:
Country:
Full postal address of your place of work:
This information is required for invoices and posting visa support letters when necessary, so should be as it normally would appear on an address label. If you cannot receive mail at a departmental address, please give your full private postal address.
Your current position: Master’s student
PhD student
Postdoc
Young academic (under 35)
Senior academic
Research Staff
Industry
If you are in a Master's, PhD or postdoctoral programme, you must arrange for your supervisor to send us by e-mail a letter of recommendation on your institution's letterhead. Name of supervisor
E-mail address of supervisor
not applicable
Amount of knowledge of crystallographic theory: None
Limited exposure to concepts
Read textbook, no formal lectures
Attended introductory theory course
Attended advanced theory course
Amount of experience in practical crystallography:
How many structures have you determined?		 None
Less than 5
5-15
More than 15
I would like to gain experience on the following diffractometer (we might not be able to meet all requests): Rigaku Oxford Diffraction Synergy-S
      (or SuperNova)
Bruker D8-Venture
No preference
I will send my own crystals if accepted to the School:
We expect participants to supply a crystalline sample unless the nature of your research means that you really do not have a suitable sample of your own. After all, determining the structure of your own compound is part of what our school is all about. 		Yes   No
Please provide a short serious statement of your current studies and research activities and how your current goals and research interests would benefit from an increased knowledge of crystallography. Please indicate the amount of experience you already have in crystallography. Selection of participants for the school is competitive and will be based on the information provided here, so please consider carefully what you write. Be succinct, yet give a fair appraisal of your achievements and goals.
You are required to bring a laptop for the practical work. Please indicate your operating system here. We recommend Windows laptops. Mac laptops might not run all of the software we use or demonstrate (e.g. NoSpherA2), or the installation is complex, but not impossible. iOS and Android devices are unsuitable. We regret that we are unable to provide laptops. Windows 10 (64 bit) or higher
Mac OS 15 (Sequoia) or higher
I do not have a suitable laptop
Hotel room type required:
The shared rooms are quite small; the beds are not very far apart and there is limited desk and storage space. For your comfort, we recommend opting for a single room. 		Single   Shared
Dietary requirements:
Normally the evening meal will be a set menu with a salad, a meat or vegetarian main course and a dessert. The meat will vary daily across chicken, turkey, pork, beef or fish. If you do not eat a particular meat, you can have the fish or vegetarian option that night. Please specify any other restrictions in the comments box below. It will not be possible to vary choices once you are here. We are sorry to be so inflexible, but meal costs would be much higher otherwise. At lunch you will be free to choose from the cafeteria offerings, which include a good range of vegetarian options.		 Vegetarian only
Vegetarian or fish
All meats OK
Meat, but not pork
Meat, but not beef or veal
Meat, but not turkey
Visa required to enter Switzerland:
We use this only to know if we need to send you a formal letter of acceptance. If you live in a Schengen Treaty country, you do not usually need a visa to enter Switzerland, even if you are a citizen of a non-EU country.		 Yes   No

If yes, please state your nationality
I intend to apply for a bursary. Bursaries will not cover travel costs and usually can cover only part of the accommodation costs (more details about eligibility): Yes   No
Please enter the IUCr ID number of your entry in the World Directory of Crystallographers. Creating an entry is strongly recommended and free; compulsory if applying for a bursary (create entry now):
I would like to obtain ECTS credit points if I pass the exam. Only answer yes if you desire the points and are enrolled at a European university. All participants receive a certificate of attendance. Yes   No
Additional comments, if desired:
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions. What is the second word in the phrase "utavufu vanaci zok dufa ami"?