Vocational education and training

Exchange and Mobility in Vocational Education and Training

Learners, newly qualified apprentices and teachers benefit from exchanges and mobility in vocational education and training (VET). The commitment of Swiss VET institutions to facilitate exchange experiences creates an attractive, high-quality learning and working environment.

In the VET work placement, learners and newly qualified apprentices bring different ways of working to bear, experience a different work culture and, in that way, broaden their technical, linguistic, intercultural and personal horizons. 

In the practice-based exchange of expertise, educational staff can get to know new teaching and learning methods, aids and procedures. The transfer of knowledge with other educational institutions widens the network and lays the foundations for a common mobility culture.

On this page, we show you different opportunities for exchanges in vocational and professional education and training.

Nuria Regensburger talks about her experiences at a Swedish company and the differences to Switzerland. As an extension to her duties in Switzerland, the commercial apprentice worked in logistics an engineering in Sweden.

Programmes

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National Exchange in Vocational Education and Training

[Translate to english:]

VET-learners, VET-graduates and upper secondary specialized school students can gain professional experience in another language region of Switzerland. They develop their professional, linguistic, personal and social skills and add that certain something to their CV. Apprentices and apprenticeship graduates benefit from funding for their stay through their educational institution.

International Programme

[Translate to english:]

The International Programme enables Swiss actors in the field of education  and youth work to implement projects aimed at networking, creating training opportunities or developing the quality of institutional processes in cooperation with European and non-European organisations.

Class exchange

Lebensfrohe lachende Kinder im Sommer beim Klassenaustausch. Alle blicken in die Kamera.

School classes from different language regions of Switzerland meet up to immerse themselves in another culture and use a foreign language by conversing with other pupils of the same age in a fun way. The class exchange funding programme supports visits from elementary, secondary and vocational school classes. As part of the programme and in collaboration with various institutions in the field of culture and education, Movetia is also developing new and innovative forms of theme-based exchanges.

Language Assistants Programme

Young teachers can work as language assistants to experience another culture, improve their knowledge of a foreign language and, at the same time, gain their first work experience. With their input, they bring something extra to the lessons at the host schools and motivate the pupils with an authentic language experience. Movetia arranges placements for young teachers from Switzerland at schools abroad – and for young foreign teachers at Swiss schools.

International Mobility Vocational Education and Training

[Translate to english:]

Internships abroad enable apprentices and apprenticeship graduates to polish their profile for the future. Support is available via projects organised by the student’s own vocational college or training company, but also via ‘pool projects’ as they are known. Teaching staff interested in continuing education also have access to various activities such as job shadowing, work shadowing or network positions for the purpose of international knowledge transfer.

Cooperation partnerships Vocational Education and Training

[Translate to english:]

Cooperation partnerships facilitate European cooperation. The institutions involved work together to develop innovative concepts, methods and instruments, share good practices and utilise synergies. This helps to develop quality in the educational landscape and to strengthen international networks. All institutions involved in vocational education and training benefit from this.

Alliances for innovation Vocational Education and Training

[Translate to english:]

Alliances for Innovation are an Erasmus+ project format. The format encourages strategic cooperation among higher education and vocational education and training actors within the broader socio-economic environment. The focus is on enterprises and research. Necessary skills, knowledge and abilities are identified and developed with regard to labour market trends and innovation and sustainability in general and vocational education.

Centres of Vocational Excellence

[Translate to english:]

Centres of Vocational Excellence are a project format of the Erasmus+ Programme. By the "bottom-up" development process, this project format aims to promote cooperative platforms that are both nationally/locally anchored and internationally networked. Furthermore, they want to address sector-specific interests or societal challenges. Knowledge and innovation centres are to be created by involving companies (especially SMEs) in applied research projects. In addition, entrepreneurial initiatives by learners are to be…

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“Participants benefit from interacting in an international, skills-related further training programme with job shadowing. They acquire extra confidence in the language of instruction and can use their skills authentically in bilingual lessons with modern methodology. The VET learners are also pleased about this.”

Mary Miltschev, Zurich Secondary School

“Languages are very important in everyday life. They can open doors to a successful career. Joint games, activities, sports or mealtimes were particularly important to the students.”

René Affolter, Teacher, Emme learning center