Dr. Alex Widmer

Professor

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Biography

Alex Widmer is a Full Professor of Plant Ecological Genetics at the Institute of Integrative Biology within the Department of Environmental Systems Science at ETH Zurich. Born in Basel, Switzerland, he completed his studies in Biology at ETH Zurich in 1992 and earned his PhD from the same institution in 1996. He has an extensive background as a postdoctoral fellow at the Geobotanical Institute, ETH Zurich, and has also worked at Indiana University Bloomington, USA, and Université Paris-Sud, France. In 2003, he returned to Switzerland as a group leader at the Geobotanical Institute. He was appointed Associate Professor in 2005 and became a Full Professor in 2009. His research interests focus on evolutionary processes in plants, including the genetic basis of adaptation, evolutionary reproductive isolation, and ecological speciation. He emphasizes the links between ecological and evolutionary processes in the context of environmental change, utilizing population genomic and transcriptomic analyses alongside field and greenhouse experiments.

Research Interests

Courses

General Biology General Biology I+II Soils Vegetation Alps (Block Course) Flora Vegetation Alps Ecological Genetics Ecology Evolution: Seminar

Requirements for ETH Zurich

Master Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3.4
IELTS
Overall
Required:7
TOEFL
Total
Required:100
GRE General
Verbal
Required:159
Verbal Percentile
Required:80
Quantitative
Required:168
Quantitative Percentile
Required:81
Analytical Writing
Required:4.5
Writing Percentile
Required:85
Prerequisites
Bachelor's degree in a related field (Engineering, Natural Sciences, or Mathematics) Minimum 180 ECTS credits Subject-specific knowledge equivalent to ETH Bachelor's programs
Application Checklist
  • Bachelor's degree diploma or transcript
  • Official academic transcripts
  • Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  • Letter of Motivation (1 page)
  • Two academic recommendation letters
  • English language proficiency certificate
  • GRE General Test (for non-EU/EFTA applicants)
Specialization Notes

The GRE is mandatory for students who did not obtain their Bachelor's degree in an EU/EFTA state. Some departments (e.g., Computer Science) have specific ECTS credit requirements in core subjects.