Switzerland’s study abroad programs offer students many options for personal and academic growth. Like many other countries, Switzerland exhibits a strong sense of regionalism that makes it hard to truly define a singular Swiss experience. Switzerland has been influenced in many ways by the German, Italian, and French cultures, but it retains aspects that are uniquely Swiss.

Switzerland is incredibly picturesque, and the country is home to a number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites that encompass sweeping natural landscapes and quaint, historic mountain towns. Switzerland is unique in many ways – the country is isolated, politically neutral, and retains a large amount of financial power. It is also a popular location for international conferences and conventions; most notably, the city of Geneva is home to the United Nations.

What words come to mind when you hear the name Switzerland: central, mountains, lakes, banking, chocolate, technology, yodeling, railroads, or neutral? Switzerland is known for a variety of disparate reasons, but what unites them is a country that embraces the strength that comes from diversity. The Swiss landscape awes visitors from the moment they get a glimpse of those first mountain peaks or stare into the depths of a Swiss lake. Switzerland can boast some of the finest technological research facilities and institutions in the world, but at the same time, they maintain a quaint persona as the home of yodelers and the famous Heidi. And of course, there is the continuing enigma of Switzerland’s position as a ‘neutral’ country despite their centrality in Europe. But perhaps Switzerland’s greatest achievement and the reason they deserve a place in the pantheon of world influencers is their chocolate!