Swiss Review 6/2018

Swiss Review / November 2018 / No.6 23 Signatures from 137 countries for OSA’s e-voting petition E-voting must be made available to all Swiss Abroad by 2021. The Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA) submitted this demand to the Federal Chancellery on 30 November. Thousands of Swiss citizens living abroad support the demand. OSA’s online petition in support of e-voting is literally backed by people all over the world. By the time the signature deadline was reached, Swiss citizens from 137 countries had signed the petition, which was submitted to the Federal Chancellery on 30 November. Through their signatures thousands signalled their support for the demand that Switzerland rapidly introduce an electronic voting and election system. The petition addressed to the Federal Council and parliament specifically calls for e-voting to be made available to all Swiss Abroad by 2021. OSA feels confirmed in its position: it is convinced that e-voting is the only way to guarantee that all Swiss Abroad are able to exercise their political rights. A total of 172,100 Swiss citizens living abroad are registered on an electoral register and can therefore vote in Switzerland. However, often their voting intentions remain unfulfilled. Since the election documents often arrive too late, voters living far away from their home country are frequently unable to vote. At the meeting of the Council of the Swiss Abroad on 10 August in Visp, several delegates emphasised that e-voting was ultimately the only way to guarantee that Swiss citizens living abroad were able to exercise their political rights. Through the petition the Swiss Abroad are now starting to exert more pressure over this issue. However, it remains to be seen how the Federal Council and parliament will react to the petition. At the time of writing, the authorities had yet to respond to OSA’s request. (MUL) www.evoting2021.ch University or apprenticeship? Advice from educationsuisse on education in Switzerland University or apprenticeship? These are two different education pathways, which are not mutually exclusive. In- deed, the Swiss education system is characterised by a high degree of flex- ibility. Consequently, there are many ways to begin or to change to a differ- ent education programme. The educa- tional opportunities are highly di- verse. An overview of the Swiss education systemcan be found on our website www.educationsuisse.ch. Anyone who wishes to study in Switzerlandwitha foreignhigh school diploma, should inquire about the ad- mission requirements of the universi- tieswell in advance; sometimes admis- sion fails because a basic subject is missing. The next step is to find the right field of study. The swissuniversi- ties website www.studyprogrammes. ch, can be of some benefit here. Many universities, universities of applied sciences and universities of teacher ed- ucation organise information days, which usually take place in autumn or winter. Several universities also have their own study counselling offices. Those who would like to complete an apprenticeship after compulsory schooling or high school, can choose from around 250 occupations. The of- ficial website of the Swiss Career and Academic Studies Consulting, www. berufsberatung.ch, offers a wealth of information such as job descriptions, education descriptions, tips andmuch more. Once the area of interest has beendefined, trial apprenticeships (1-5 days) inanenterprise are a suitableway of receiving an insight into the profes- sion. One normally starts finding an apprenticeship at least a year before commencement of the apprenticeship. Sometimes companies require apti- tude tests (such as Multicheck), which must be attached to the application. A so-called bridge year can be a good interim solution for those who are still uncertain about their career choice. Such additional school years of pre-vocational training years are or- ganised in all cantons. In order to successfully complete aneducation inSwitzerland, sufficient knowledge of a national language is important. A good command of Eng- lish is an advantage, but by no means enough. Only a fewuniversity-level de- greeprogrammes (Master’s) areoffered entirely in English. (RG) Information sheets on individual topics, general information and personal advice, also on career and academic choices, can be obtained from educationsuisse: info@educationsuisse.ch, Tel. +41 (0) 31 356 61 04 . Our employees speak German, French, Italian, English and Spanish. IMPRINT: “Swiss Review”, the magazine for the Swiss Abroad, is in its 44 th year of publication and is published in German, French, English and Spanish in 14 regional editions. It has a total circulation of 425,000, including 218,287 electronic copies. Regional news appears four times a year. The ordering parties are fully responsible for the content of advertisements and promotional inserts. This content does not necessarily represent the opinion of either the editorial office or the publisher. EDITORS: Marc Lettau (MUL), Editor-in-Chief; Stéphane Herzog (SH); Jürg Müller (JM); Simone Flubacher (SF), responsible for “news.admin.ch” , Relations with the Swiss Abroad, FDFA, 3003 Berne, Switzerland EDITORIAL ASSISTANT: Sandra Krebs TRANSLATION: Schnellübersetzer GmbH LAYOUT: Joseph Haas, Zürich PRINT: Vogt-Schild Druck AG, 4552 Derendingen POSTAL ADDRESS: Publisher, editorial office, advertising: Organisation of the Swiss Abroad, Alpenstrasse 26, 3006 Berne, Tel.: +41313566110, Fax: +41313566101, Postal account (Swiss National Giro): 30-6768-9. Email: revue@aso.ch COPY DEADLINE for this edition: 3.10.2018 All Swiss Abroad who are registered with a Swiss representation receive the magazine free of charge. Anyone else can subscribe to the magazine for an annual fee (Switzerland: CHF 30 / abroad: CHF 50). Subscribers are sent the magazine direct from Berne. www.revue.ch CHANGE OF ADDRESS: Please advise your local embassy or consulate. Do not write to the editorial office in Berne.