Swiss Education Levels

Compared to the Anglo-Saxon world, the Swiss education system might seem slightly odd. For one thing, the school year inexplicably starts in August and not at the beginning of the year.

Moreover, Switzerland has a dual education system where children are divided into different education streams in their teens. The two main paths available are either the apprenticeship or the matura.

Apprenticeships are usually for a period of 2-4 years, during which time the students go to school for part of the week and then to work for the rest of the week.

The matura is the academic option and requires four years of school at a Gymnasium and is required for university entrance.

In general, the Swiss are proud of this system and see it as an economic success factor. Those who prefer practical learning can complete an apprenticeship and learn on the job while earning a salary. And those who are academically inclined can attend a Gymnasium and already specialise in the direction of their academic interests.

The Swiss economy relies on both hiring apprentices and matura students, with many companies offering jobs for graduates from the two education paths.

However, time and again the question arises as to which career opportunities the different paths offer and what level of education is required in Switzerland to have a successful career?

Apprenticeships and Practical Education

Apprenticeships in Switzerland are not only a key pillar of the economy, they also offer practical hands-on experience and are a solid qualification for the apprentices.

Unlike their university-bound peers, apprentices start gaining work experience much earlier and are qualified earlier. This not only means that they start earning a salary well before the matura students, but they also gain valuable work experience.

Moreover, as it is a practical qualification, the skills learned during the apprenticeship are directly applicable to the job.

For these reasons, an apprenticeship is a very valuable qualification in Switzerland.

Yet still, people question whether its possible to climb the corporate ladder with an apprenticeship.

According to the Aargauer Zeitung, the 100 largest Swiss employers, had more than 200 people in their top management who started their careers as apprentices.

Other famous Swiss CEOs who started as apprentices are:

  • André Lüthi, CEO of the travel agency Globetrotter, baker apprenticeship
  • Christoph Tonini, CEO of the media company Tamedia, printing apprenticeship
  • Hansueli Loosli, Chairman of the Board of Swisscom and Coop,
  • Martin Senn, CEO of the insurance group Zurich, banking apprenticeship
  • Martin Scholl, CEO of Zurich Kantonalbank, banking apprenticeship
  • Oswald Grübel, former CEO of Credit Suisse and of UBS, banking apprenticeship
  • Peter Meier, CEO of the travel agency Kuoni, business administration apprenticeship
  • Sergio Ermotti, former CEO of UBS, banking apprenticeship

University Degree

With the implementation of the Bologna system in Switzerland in 2001, Switzerland introduced the academic system of bachelor and master degrees as we know them today.

Previously, students at Swiss universities completed a Lizenziat (equivalent to a master’s degree) in their chosen major. However, with the Bologna reform, Swiss students can now receive a bachelor degree and later a master’s degree.

Moreover, in Switzerland, doing a gap years before university is not that common. Swiss students will often go directly from completing their matura, straight to university for their bachelor and master degree.

To compensate for this, many students instead go on abroad for one, or several, semesters. Exchanges give Swiss students the experience of going abroad, without the directionless or slacker connotations that a gap year might have, and are thus a very popular and quite a Swiss thing to do.

Bachelor Degree

Due to the previous Lizenziat system, the idea of a bachelor degree was not well known in Switzerland before and it does not hold the same status as it does in Anglo-Saxon countries.

For a career in medicine, law, and most STEM subjects, a bachelor degree often won’t get you far.

However, other majors, such as bachelor of business, information technology, or communications, may be enough to find a graduate position.

In fact, two of my universities friends with a bachelor degree in business, both found full-time positions after graduation and both earn more than many master graduates.

Master Degree

Nonetheless, as the master is seen as an almost replacement of the Lizenziat, it is still the default option for many Swiss students and companies.

From my own experience, I can say that it is much easier to find positions for master students. There also seem to be more internship and graduate programs open to master students. And even if the graduate programs are open to both bachelor and master students, the latter often carry the advantage in competitive processes.

However, this may also simply be due to the fact that by the time a student has received a master’s degree, they have likely had internships or held a part-time job and thus have more work experience.

Overall, master graduates generally have good chances in the Swiss job market. According to a survey by the Bund, one year after graduation just 1.7% of ETH master graduates are unemployed. For master graduates from the University of St. Gallen, this number is even lower at 0.6%.

As the Bologna reform was only introduced in 2001, most Bologna graduates have not reached the CEO level yet, but Famous Swiss CEOs with a Lizenzitat degree or equivalent are:

  • Andreas Meyer, former SBB Chairman of the board, MBA from INSEAD
  • Fabrice Zumbrunnen, CEO of Migros, Economics and Sociology at the University of Neuchatel
  • Georges Kern, CEO of Breitling, Business Administration at the University of St. Gallen (HSG)
  • Nathalie Wappler, Director of SRF, Master from the University of Constance
  • Thomas Oetterli, CEO of Schindler, Business Administration at the University of Zurich
  • Urs Riedener, CEO of Emmi, Marketing at the University of St. Gallen (HSG)

Doctorates

Graduates with a doctorate actually have a higher rate of unemployment one year after graduation than master graduates. According to the survey, 4.4% of PhD graduates from ETH and 3.2% of the PhD graduates from the University of Basel are unemployed one year after graduation.

Still, 10 of the top 50 CEOs in Switzerland have a PhD and especially in the Swiss pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector, PhD. graduates are in demand.

Famous Swiss CEOs with a doctorate are:

  • Antje Kanngiesser, CEO of Alpiq, PhD. Law
  • Christian Mumenthaler, CEO of Swiss Re, PhD. Physics from ETH
  • Hariolf Kottmann, CEO of Clariant, PhD. Organic Chemistry from the University of Stuttgart
  • Pierre-Alain Ruffieux, CEO of Lonza, PhD. Biotechnology from EPFL
  • Thomas Gottstein, CEO of Credit Suisse, PhD. Finance and Accounting from the University of Zurich

Having a Piece of Paper is Key

The key thing to know is that in Switzerland, having a piece of paper with a qualification on it is crucial.

Back home I could go rock climbing or even operate a motorboat without a licence. However, I have now learnt that in Switzerland, no matter what it is, you need to have a piece of paper that confirms you can do whatever you want to do.

Swiss take their licences and qualifications seriously – and this extends to the job world.

Although unemployment is incredibly low in Switzerland, it really does start to get difficult if you do not have a qualification. Only 5-10% of young adults in Switzerland do not have a state-recognized qualification and this group has a much higher rate of unemployment.

Therefore, it is not the type of qualification which determines how successful you will be. But, it is very important that you at least have a certification to even stand a chance in the Swiss job market.