When the vocational training is just a first step

The title above is that of an article by Julie Eigenmann in the training supplement of the newspaper Le Temps of 31 May 2024.

The CFC (Certificat Fédéral de Capacités) is obtained at the end of an apprenticeship or school-based vocational training, as in the commercial section of the Lemania School.

Although the CFC is valuable in itself and gives direct access to the world of work, it is often only the first step, as Julie Eigenmann explains in this article, with concrete examples.

According to SEFRI (State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation), an apprenticeship is still the number one choice for young people in Switzerland after compulsory schooling.

Some ten years after obtaining their CFC, almost half of all apprentices were continuing or had continued their training with a vocational matriculation certificate (around 20%), a HES, federal certificate or diploma (25%) or a HES-Haute Ecole Spécialisée (2-3%).

This clearly shows that there is a permeability between the CFC and tertiary-level education, something that the general public, especially in French-speaking Switzerland, is not always aware of.

It’s true that this transition isn’t always easy, for example for the less academic students. Financial difficulties can also arise when you go back to school when you are already working. It should be noted, however, that SEFRI provides 50% of the funding for preparation for vocational and higher vocational examinations, and that some cantons have funds available. In some cases, companies may also finance these preparatory courses.

On 21 November 2023, the ^25th anniversary of the HES-SO (University of Applied Sciences Western Switzerland), Luciana Vaccaro, Rector of the HES-SO and President of Swiss Universities, published an article in Le Temps entitled ‘The HES-SO embodies the Swiss philosophy of the possible’.

After mentioning that 21,000 students attend her institution, the largest UAS in Switzerland, Luciana Vaccaro describes her role as follows: ‘Since it was founded – in response to the need for a new pillar of tertiary education (alongside the universities, the Federal Institutes of Technology and the Universities of Teacher Education) to enhance the status of Swiss vocational training – the HES-SO has not only expanded its range to include the social, health and artistic fields, but has also increased the number of gateways and courses leading to qualifications, in line with changes in society. Lifelong learning and short courses to upgrade skills, reorientate and specialise are at the heart of a mission that can be summed up in one key word: impact.

This is demonstrated by the fact that 95% of students find a job in their field within a year of graduating.

Luciana Vaccaro concludes her article, not without a touch of humour, with a personal remark: ‘The fact that a Neapolitan whose French was hesitant at the time (and who still rolls her r’s today) is at the head of such a Swiss institution is the perfect symbol of the integration that has always made Switzerland such a fertile land.

There’s no better way to put it!

To find out more about how practical work is integrated into the CFC business training at the Lemania School, discover Lemania Music, our commercial practice company, now located in the Collège Pierre Viret building: https: //www.lemania.ch/article_blog/les-epco-entreprises-de-pratique-commerciale/

To find out more about the positive role played by immigration in Switzerland over the years, discover who the founders of some famous brands were: https: //www.lemania.ch/article_blog/ovomaltine-rolex-nescafe-swatch-ou-nagra-quont-ils-en-commun-2/