Alumni Statements

"The MAS MTEC programme enhanced my analytical, strategic and leadership skills, as well as my understanding of innovation and entrepreneurship. 

"Thanks to the confidence and expertise I gained in the programme, I found a new and stimulating position shortly after graduating."

Fabio Aulico
COO, cloud37 AG

"As I took on more and more non-technical responsibilities in my job, I realised that my purely technical education had not equipped me to manage employees and navigate complex business environments.

"The MAS programme provided me with the tools and frameworks necessary for analysing and structuring complex business-related issues, and allowed me to meet many smart, inspiring and talented people."

Luba Rogoleva
Mobile Architect, Credit Suisse

"Linking my personal experience and my passions, the MAS MTEC programme has helped me succeed in a competitive and fast-changing job market. For me, the MAS programme has been like a constant strong wind that helps a sailboat cross a rough ocean by propelling it towards its destination.

"In Italian, the best wish you can offer to someone who wants to sail the seas is 'Buon Vento!'. Thus, to anyone of you who is willing and ready to make a step forward in his/her professional career and life, I would wish: Buon MAS!"

Matteo Frigerio
Senior Solution Consultant, Hilti North America

"The MAS ETH MTEC programme allowed me to successfully achieve a radical career change. After many years in financial services, I was ready for a new challenge. The programme opened doors to new areas that I had not imagined beforehand. As a data scientist, the programme helped me gain a fundamental understanding of how modern companies in Industry 4.0 can be steered using data science. Following graduation, I obtained a key managerial position in a leading telecommunications company.

"It is within everyone’s reach to bring innovative ideas successfully to market. However, there are certain recipes to follow, and pitfalls to avoid, and this is where the MAS MTEC programme comes into play. It offers a deeper understanding of the world and of the economic trends around us, and equips its students to reflect on how the future might be shaped. ETH Zurich provides the perfect environment for experiencing the convergence of the latest scientific innovations with modern entrepreneurial thinking."

Edward Gaere
Head of Group Data Analytics, VP Bank AG

"I started the MAS MTEC programme while working as a Software Engineer at a large corporation. Initially, I planned on changing my position upon completing the MAS MTEC programme, however once I started my studies, I couldn’t wait to take on a new challenge! After one year, just in time to write my Master’s thesis in a new environment, I started working as Product Manager at Doodle.com.

"During my studies, I greatly appreciated the quality of the professors, especially in the courses exclusive to MAS students, along with the engaging case studies. The flexible nature of the programme allowed me to fine-tune my studies and design my schedule according to my interests and availability.  Furthermore, the one-week trip to China was an eye-opening experience and, of course, lots of fun! On a personal level, I appreciated the opportunity to meet and work together with so many talented and diverse classmates, who are now also my friends.

"This programme is recommendable because it allows students to select courses coinciding with their interests and thereby achieve the best personal fit, while still providing a solid base in economics, finance, management, human resources and marketing."

Patricia Magro
Product Manager, You Tube

"The MAS ETH MTEC enabled me to develop myself in the field of strategy and business development. It also showed me the way to shift my career toward one of strategic leadership. The programme provided me with fundamental knowledge in areas which were not known to me and opened my eyes about the importance of these areas for the success of an organization.

"Before joining the programme, I was mainly involved in developing supportive evidence for market access and reimbursement plans for our innovative products. The MAS MTEC helped me to develop my strategic thinking skills and as a consequence I moved into a role which is responsible for deriving strategy and insuring its correct implementation. In this current role, I facilitate global market access for our innovative genomic profiling in line with our corporate commitment to personalized healthcare.

"I particularly appreciated the courses and expert knowledge of the professors who provided us with real world case studies, professional support and last but not least, the network of very intelligent people that I now have for life."

Mohsen Khorshid
Global Business Development - Mergers & Acquisitions, Roche Diagnostics

"The knowledge and experience I acquired in the MAS ETH MTEC programme helped me to explore my career orientation and discover and confirm my strengths and weaknesses. Now, in my daily work, I have a greater understanding of commercial topics, can express my ideas in the language of business and therefore maintain more professional relationships with stakeholders. Moreover, the MAS ETH MTEC degree opened many doors for me in my job search.

"My biggest achievement in this regard is that I have changed my career path from engineering to global marketing - a position where I can leverage both my unique communication skills and utilise the knowledge I gained through the programme. I greatly appreciated the diversity of class participants, the high quality and multitude of interactive lecture topics with veteran guest speakers from industry, and the timely support of professors, lecturers, and teaching assistants.  

"This course is highly recommended for those with a scientific and engineering background, who feel the need for self-development in business management-related topics in order to further their career in management positions and expand their professional network."

Zahra Ariyafar
HR Business Partner, Glencore

"Writing the master thesis within the company for which I have worked for several years as engineer opened many doors and justified myself to discuss at eye level even with the top management about concrete problems within the company. Without attending a management course at ETH this would never have happened.

"Beneath all the interesting and demanding courses the most important advantage of this program for me was the exchange with fellow students. Independent of each individual background the mind-set of all students was interestingly well aligned. This created a self-sustaining learning spirit. What is more, the one-week course in Barcelona was a highlight not only regarding the learning content.

"Attending this programme while having already professional experience lets you perfectly apply the theory in the daily work. Through the vast variety of the offered courses you can compose a suitable study program in order to benefit the most for your current position or your future plans."

Andreas Koller
RUAG Aviation, Leader Testing TH06 (Helicopter Upgrade Program)

"The MAS MTEC allowed me to literally switch from a pure engineering background to a more business minded standpoint with much broader perspectives!

"I truly appreciated the international aspect of the program. With students of various cultures coming from all continents, I was immersed in a true international environment. Additionally, it was also for me an opportunity to integrate and experience the education system of one of the best university in Europe.

"One aspect to emphasise is the amount of group studies. With each student enrolled having his own background, abilities and experience we could really share and learn a lot from each other. Working in a group also put us in a situation close to real international business environments with the need to surpass culture differences and conflicts to solve a specific problem and deliver a solution together."

Lu Han
Executive Vice President | Building and Home Automation Solutions, ABB
Executive Board Member, KNX Association

"The MAS MTEC study has ideally complemented my background in science and profoundly improved my comprehension of micro- and macroeconomics. In the complex tasks of my daily work I could directly start using the presented tools in general management, strategic planning and human resources.

"I was especially fond of the fact that the professors based their lectures on real life experience gathered in business leadership functions. As the MAS MTEC is flexibly composed in modules, I could ideally fit the courses to match my needs.

"Whoever is prepared to invest into the MAS MTEC will be rewarded with an excellent education. It is also a privilege to meet interesting and inspiring people, while preparing for the next career step."

Martin Gruber-Gschwind
Leiter Einwohneramt, Justizdepartement Basel-Stadt

"This MAS MTEC has given to me a multisided understanding of economic processes and their relationships with industrial processes. The influence in my professional life can be summarised in two aspects: firstly, the acquired knowledge allows me thinking in a holistic way and being appreciated as a valuable staff member for important undertakings. Secondly, this understanding makes me self-confident of being able to accomplish any project in my position or in any other.

"What I have most appreciated from this program has been the quality of lectures and professors as well as the variety of domains one can choose.

"This Master of Advanced Studies is an essential complement to the technical education for professionals in the modern high-demanding industry. Acquiring understanding of the economic issues linked to innovation and production is for me the starting point to undertake any important enterprise."

Carlos Velásquez
Silicon Lead Magnetic Position Sensors, MELEXIS

"The MAS MTEC has proven to be an important enabler for my professional career. Through MAS MTEC, I was able to take on a superior management position. The programme combines theoretical and practical aspects prolifically.

"It offers a fertile basis for the MAS student and enables him to take over new challenging tasks. The provided expert knowledge in combination with the systems engineering approach from MTEC proves as precious tools for facing complex interdisciplinary challenges. The classical studies part is complemented by different intensive courses being held by management trainers as well as being conducted at UPC in Barcelona, Spain.

"Hence, the programme offers top class education on every level boosting the career of the participant."

Andri J. Casura
Leiter Hochspannungsanlagen, Elektrizitätswerk der Stadt Zürich (ewz)

"When I started working in the insurance industry I recognised that, with my background in natural sciences, I was lacking knowledge on economic, financial and management principles. The MAS MTEC helped me to fill this gap completely. More than that, I could also enlarge my “general knowledge”, broaden my horizon and develop new ways of thinking, which helps me a lot in my daily work.

"I consider it as a privilege, to combine studies and work at the same time. Each day was inspiring, not only because of the content of the courses but also to a great extent because of the exchange with the fellow students – all of them with a different academic background and professional experience. I wouldn’t like to miss the many interesting conversations we held when solving case studies or during the breaks.

"The MAS MTEC offers a wide range of courses, held by excellent professors. This gives you the opportunity to tailor the programme individually, according to your needs and interests. I appreciated very much this flexibility of the programme."

Christina Beerli
Senior Specialist International Relations, Eidgenössische Finanzmarktaufsicht FINMA

"My horizon was broadened substantially by the MAS MTEC study through its content as well as through the collaboration with fellow students on the training tasks. An important component was the exchange with the other students, all professionally experienced in completely different fields. Furthermore, the comprehensive training in business management provided the basis for my step into entrepreneurship, which I took already during the study.

"I appreciated very much the flexibility of the programme and the diversity of possibilities to study selected subjects more in-depth. The very high quality of the professors from all fields is a further advantage of the MAS MTEC programme."

Patrick Hämmerle
Owner and CEO of Hämmerle + Partner GmbH, Zurich

"After years of experience in industry the MAS MTEC has been a veritable eye-opener for a person like me with a background in engineering. This was especially true in fields like human resources, management theories and economics, where I had to realise, that there is a firm scientific foundation and that results in research are very often neglected when solving problems in everyday business operation.

"MAS MTEC offers an overwhelming choice of readily accessible study subjects due to the size and the diversity of the ETH. This fact allows the participants a pronounced individual focus, which I found an interesting feature compared to the more formalised and structured MBA studies on the market."

Heinz Wipf
Program Management in Air Navigation Service Provision

"The MAS MTEC boosted my career: At the company where I am working I got immediately a position as plant manager with responsibility for 20 employees and 3 shift leaders. In addition several jobs were offered to me almost out of nowhere. I applied for a position as site head and got the job: in the future I will be responsible for about 150 people in a company that is market leader in its segment. Important to know is that the MAS MTEC really made the difference between me and other applicants."

Alexander Huber
Supplier Relationship Manager, Novartis Technical Operations, Novartis