Swiss Review 5/2019

Swiss Review / September 2019 / No.5 26 OSA news Apprenticeship After compulsory schooling, young people in Switzerland can choose from over 250 apprenticeships or go on to fur- ther education at high school or specialisedmiddle school. However, the route they take at this stage is not necessar- ily binding. Not only can you still do an apprenticeship af- ter getting a high-school diploma, but it is also possible to study at a university of applied science on the back of voca- tional training and vocational baccalaureate. How to choose the right vocational course? The official website www.berufsberatung.ch offers a wealth of infor- mation such as job descriptions. A specific counselling ses- sion can be provided for Swiss Abroad either face-to-face in Berne at the career guidance center (BIZ) or via Skype (register via educationsuisse). Doing an apprenticeship or studying in Switzerland Swiss Abroad can also benefit from the excellent and diverse range of educational opportunities available in Switzerland. in a wide range of fields. Normally, the prerequisite for ad- mission is an apprenticeship with vocational baccalaure- ate. However, it is also possible to gain entry on the strength of a high-school diploma plus a year’s work experience in your future field of study. The universities of teacher education provide teacher training at all school levels. The admission requirements vary depending on the course concerned. All Swiss universities organise open days that usually take place in autumn or winter. Information on the entry requirements for students with a foreign qualification is available at www.swissuniversities.ch. Information and contact details The team at educationsuisse speak English, German, French, Italian and Spanish. They can help you find the right answers to your questions and give support on spe- cific enquiries. The www.educationsuisse.ch website pro- vides an explanatory overview of the Swiss education sys- tem, clearlydepicted in a diagram. For further information or queries: email info@educationsuisse.ch or phone +41 (0)31 356 61 04 . (RG) Higher education at a university The ten public universities offer courses in law, economics, mathematics, natural science, humanities, and social sci- ence. The Federal Institutes of Technology (ETHZ and EPFL) focus on engineering, mathematics, and natural science. You can obtain a bachelor degree after studying for a total of three years, while a subsequent master coursewill last a further one and a half to two years. To gain admission, stu- dents need to have obtained their Swiss high-school di- ploma or a foreign equivalent. Special entry requirements apply to medicine. The Universities of applied sciences, which comprise around 60 schools and departments (including arts and music), offer practice-oriented bachelor andmaster degrees Whether you want to be a winemaker or an engineer, the qual- ity and professional relevance of voca- tional training in Switzerland are rated very highly. Photo: Keystone educationsuisse, Alpenstrasse 26, 3006 Berne, Switzerland, info@educationsuisse.ch, www.educationsuisse.ch