Editing Apprenticeship (section)

===Switzerland===
{{See also|Education in Switzerland|Vocational education#Switzerland}}

In Switzerland, after the end of compulsory schooling, two thirds of young people follow a vocational training.<ref name=Dubouloz>{{in lang|fr}} Catherine Dubouloz, [https://www.letemps.ch/suisse/suisse-pays-lapprentissage "La Suisse, pays de l’apprentissage"], ''[[Le temps]]'', 27 December 2016 (page visited on 20 October 2018).</ref> Ninety percent of them are in the [[dual education system]].<ref name=Dubouloz/>

Switzerland has an apprenticeship similarly to Germany and Austria. The educational system is ternar, which is basically [[dual education system]] with mandatory practical courses. The length of an apprenticeship can be 2, 3 or 4 years.

====Length====
Apprenticeships with a length of 2 years are for persons with weaker school results. The certificate awarded after successfully completing a 2-year apprenticeship is called "Attestation de formation professionnelle" ({{Interlanguage link|Attestation de formation professionnelle|lt=AFP|fr|Attestation de formation professionnelle|vertical-align=sup}}) in French, "Eidgenössisches Berufsattest" ({{Interlanguage link|Eidgenössisches Berufsattest|lt=EBA|de|Eidgenössisches Berufsattest|vertical-align=sup}}) in German and "Certificato federale di formazione pratica" (CFP) in Italian. It could be translated as "Attestation of professional formation".{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Apprenticeship with a length of 3 or 4 years are the most common ones. The certificate awarded after successfully completing a 3 or 4-year apprenticeship is called "Certificat Fédéral de Capacité" ({{Interlanguage link|Certificat fédéral de capacité|lt=CFC|fr|Certificat fédéral de capacité|vertical-align=sup}}) in French, "Eidgenössisches Fähigkeitszeugnis" ({{Interlanguage link|Eidgenössisches Fähigkeitszeugnis|lt=EFZ|de|Eidgenössisches Fähigkeitszeugnis|vertical-align=sup}}) in German and "Attestato federale di capacità" (AFC) in Italian. It could be translated as "Federal Certificate of Proficiency".{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Some crafts, such as [[electrician]], are educated in lengths of 3 and 4 years. In this case, an Electrician with 4 years apprenticeship gets more theoretical background than one with 3 years apprenticeship. Some languages have different names for a craft depending on the length of the apprenticeship; this can be lost in translation.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

Each of the over 300 nationwide defined vocational profiles has defined framework – conditions as length of education, theoretical and practical learning goals and certification conditions.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

====Age of the apprentices====
Typically an apprenticeship can commence for individuals once they are aged 15 or 18 after finishing general education. Some apprenticeships have a recommend or required age of 18. There is formally no maximum age, however, for persons above 21 it is hard to find a company due to companies preferring younger ages due to the lower cost of labour.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}