Zürich is a significant knowledge and research centre, the basis of which is provided by the public elementary school system and the internationally renowned technical colleges.

Switzerland is one of the countries with the highest investment in research in percentage of GDP and the most patents per inhabitant. Zürich is kept at the forefront thanks to active support from its universities and also from several technical colleges and research institutes.

The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) is the flagship of Swiss colleges and is in the top five European universities. It has some 13,000 students spread over 16 departments, while Zürich University – the largest in Switzerland – has 24,000 registered students.

The Pedagogical College, the Zürich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) and the Zürich University of the Arts (ZHdK) are another three top-class technical colleges which contribute to Zürich's reputation as a knowledge and research pole by providing applied research and development.