The Marcel Benoist Swiss Science Prize is Switzerland's most prestigious research prize. It honours individuals whose research work has originated predominantly in Switzerland and has made a significant contribution to science and society. Of the previous winners, 11 have gone on to win the Nobel Prize.

In 2024, the Marcel Benoist Prize was awarded in the field of humanities and social sciences. In 2025, leading figures in Swiss research from the fields of mathematics, engineering or natural sciences can be nominated.

The winners of the Marcel Benoist and Latsis Swiss Science Prizes will receive their awards at a joint award ceremony of the two foundations in the presence of Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin. The ceremony will be held on 6 November 2025 in the Federal Palace. The prizewinners will be announced in September.

Nominations to be submitted by 24 February

The Marcel Benoist Foundation has appointed the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) to evaluate nominations and to select the prizewinner on behalf of the Foundation Board. Researchers, representatives of universities, research institutions or other public or private law institutions may nominate currently active researchers who work at a Swiss institution. The relevant research work must have been carried out predominantly in Switzerland. Candidates are not permitted to nominate themselves. Full nomination information is available on the website of the Marcel Benoist Foundation.

Nominations can be submitted on the Marcel Benoist Foundation website from now until 24 February: https://marcel-benoist.ch/en/nomination-2025.

The Marcel Benoist Foundation

The Marcel Benoist Foundation was established in 1920 when the Federal Council accepted Marcel Benoist's legacy. Since 2018, the foundation has been set up as a public-private partnership, supported by a Patronage Committee with private donors. The Federal Council elects the members of the Board of Trustees from the worlds of science and economics, and the head of the EAER awards the prize. The Foundation Secretariat is provided by the EAER's State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI). In addition, the SNSF selects the prizewinner for the Board of Trustees, which has been chaired since 2023 by Nobel Laureate Didier Queloz.

Nomination procedure launched for Marcel Benoist Swiss Science Prize