Bilden und forschen in Graubünden
When robots suddenly speak Romansh
Machine translation and NLP
Preserving a language with AI
Allegra! Diese fröhliche rätoromanische Begrüssung kennen alle, die in Graubünden schon einmal Ferien gemacht haben. Seit 1938 ist Graubünden der einzige Kanton der Schweiz mit drei offiziellen Landessprachen. Doch die romanische Sprache hat Mühe, sich im digitalen Zeitalter zu behaupten. Auch nach über 80 Jahren ist es auf nationaler Ebene kaum möglich, sich vollautomatisch und barrierefrei auf Rätoromanisch zu informieren.
How can a language in decline be brought successfully into the digital future?
Artificial intelligence has a crucial role to play. Together with the language organisation Lia Rumantscha, researchers at the University of Applied Sciences Graubünden have developed an initial Romansh translation tool. For prospective students and researchers, this presents fascinating methodological challenges. As a classic low-resource language with very limited data, Romansh offers demanding research opportunities in natural language processing (NLP), machine translation and data augmentation. You can work on a project that combines exceptional scientific challenges with an immediate impact on society.
Historical sources
500 years of language development in code
Translation algorithms and language models need reliable data to keep improving. Graubünden offers an exceptional foundation with few parallels worldwide: the institute behind the Dicziunari Rumantsch Grischun (IDRG) comprehensively documents Romansh vocabulary.
Its collection draws on more than 500 years of language in use and around two million paper vocabulary slips, all of which have now been digitised. This vast digital corpus opens up fascinating research opportunities, from computational lexicography and named entity recognition (NER) to training bespoke large language models (LLMs) that directly benefit the public.
Meaningful connections and new career paths
Data-driven degree programmes and EdTech
If data can strengthen an endangered language, it can also advance education, connections between people and entirely new technologies. Graubünden offers a forward-looking environment for study and innovation with a clear focus on key digital fields, including pioneering master’s programmes in Data Visualization and User Experience Design that are unique in their form. For your career, this means developing highly specialised skills that are in exceptional demand in research, the technology industry and the public sector, in an environment where innovative projects move directly into practice.
This also creates exciting opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration in education. While programmes such as the First Lego League introduce children to STEM subjects through play, students, researchers and teachers at the Pädagogische Hochschule develop pioneering teaching methods. Romansh is increasingly taught through playful, digital and interactive approaches. For you, this means direct access to real pilot classes, close collaboration with educational institutions and the opportunity to turn your own research into state-of-the-art EdTech solutions.
Graubünden offers a rare and compelling combination: research into a language at the heart of the canton’s identity, alongside the development of technologies with relevance far beyond Switzerland. Perhaps we will soon hear “Buna saira!” even more often in everyday life, as digitalisation, AI and applied research in Graubünden bring people, generations and languages a little closer together.
Education and research pathways at a glance
Pädagogische Hochschule Graubünden
- Pädagogische Hochschule Graubünden
- Bachelor’s degree in Kindergarten and Primary Education (Years 1–2)
- Bachelor’s degree in Primary Education (Years 1–6)
- Additional teaching qualifications
- Master’s degree in Special Needs Education
- Master’s degree in School Development
- Master’s degree in Lower Secondary Education for holders of a subject-specific bachelor’s degree
- Master’s degree in Lower Secondary and Academic Upper Secondary Education for holders of a subject-specific master’s degree
University of Applied Sciences Graubünden
- University of Applied Sciences of the Grisons
- Bachelor of Science in Information Science
- Master of Science FHGR in Data Visualization
- Bachelor of Science FHGR in Digital Business Management
- Bachelor of Science FHGR & BFH in Media Engineering with a relevant specialisation
- Master of Science FHGR in User Experience Design
- Executive Master of Business Administration in Digital Transformation
- Certificate of Advanced Studies FHGR in Digital Trends in Information Practice
- Master of Advanced Studies FHGR in Information Science
- Certificate of Advanced Studies FHGR in Fundamentals of Information Practice
- Certificate of Advanced Studies FHGR in Library and Archival Practice
- Certificate of Advanced Studies FHGR in Museum Practice
