https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Switzerland in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed The academic year in Swiss universities started on September 19th, with thousands of foreign students enrolled in many of the country’s higher education institutions. but are they entitled to any financial help whilst in the country? https://www.thelocal.ch/20220919/what-financial-aid-are-foreign-students-entitled-to-in-switzerland Mon, 19 Sep 2022 15:38:15 +0200 what-financial-aid-are-foreign-students-entitled-to-in-switzerland While ETH Zurich is still the best university in continental Europe, overall Switzerland’s higher-education institutions dropped in international ranking. https://www.thelocal.ch/20220609/swiss-universities-still-highly-ranked-but-slip-in-ratings Thu, 09 Jun 2022 18:00:59 +0200 swiss-universities-still-highly-ranked-but-slip-in-ratings A new international survey of universities has ranked Zurich’s Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule (ETH) the highest in the world outside the US and the UK. How does this school excel? https://www.thelocal.ch/20210903/why-eth-zurich-has-been-ranked-the-best-university-in-continental-europe Fri, 03 Sep 2021 17:30:46 +0200 why-eth-zurich-has-been-ranked-the-best-university-in-continental-europe As Italy debates how to reopen schools after its strict Covid-19 lockdown, teaching outside is one of the solutions being suggested to help kids return safely to class. Jessica Phelan heard from teachers and parents already involved in outdoor education to find out what’s really involved and how it might work. https://www.thelocal.ch/20200623/how-teaching-outdoors-could-help-italy-reopen-its-schools-safely Tue, 23 Jun 2020 14:50:27 +0200 how-teaching-outdoors-could-help-italy-reopen-its-schools-safely Secondary schools in the Swiss canton of Schwyz are set to be the first in central Switzerland to introduce bilingual German and English classes. https://www.thelocal.ch/20191219/swiss-canton-the-first-to-introduce-bilingual-english-classes-in-bid-to-counter-private-schools Thu, 19 Dec 2019 12:09:36 +0100 swiss-canton-the-first-to-introduce-bilingual-english-classes-in-bid-to-counter-private-schools According to the PISA rankings, harassment in Swiss schools is increasing, with Switzerland having the highest prevalence of bullying in the countries surveyed. https://www.thelocal.ch/20191204/international-rankings-uncover-a-new-problem-in-swiss-schools-bullying Wed, 04 Dec 2019 15:05:14 +0100 international-rankings-uncover-a-new-problem-in-swiss-schools-bullying Swiss command of the English language is continuing to decline, according to a worldwide report that ranks diff the ability of different nationalities to speak the language of Shakespeare. Here's how the Switzerland compares. https://www.thelocal.ch/20191106/why-are-the-swiss-getting-worse-at-speaking-english Wed, 06 Nov 2019 16:48:45 +0100 why-are-the-swiss-getting-worse-at-speaking-english More than two in five Swiss residents of major urban centres have a higher education institute degree or diploma, according to statistics released by the government on Tuesday April 16th. The rate is only slightly lower in smaller cities. https://www.thelocal.ch/20190416/swiss-urban-population-increasingly-educated Tue, 16 Apr 2019 13:27:47 +0200 swiss-urban-population-increasingly-educated Swiss voters once again participated in the country's unique system of direct democracy on Sunday, casting their ballots on matters of national, regional and local import. Here are the key results. https://www.thelocal.ch/20180305/swiss-referendum-results-everything-you-need-to-know-direct-democracy Mon, 05 Mar 2018 12:33:03 +0100 swiss-referendum-results-everything-you-need-to-know-direct-democracy Children of immigrants in Switzerland are more likely to fail when they start senior high school or vocational training because their parents don’t know the Swiss system very well, according to a new study. https://www.thelocal.ch/20171218/study-children-of-immigrants-more-likely-to-fail-at-studies Mon, 18 Dec 2017 10:16:58 +0100 study-children-of-immigrants-more-likely-to-fail-at-studies The Swiss team have come second at a global competition where young apprentices show off their skills in areas ranging from baking to welding. https://www.thelocal.ch/20171020/swiss-apprentices-take-second-place-in-world-skills-competition Fri, 20 Oct 2017 13:05:56 +0200 swiss-apprentices-take-second-place-in-world-skills-competition Swiss students will have to wait several more years before they regain full rights to participate in the European Union’s Erasmus+ student exchange programme. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170829/switzerland-wont-rejoin-erasmus-before-2021 Tue, 29 Aug 2017 11:12:00 +0200 switzerland-wont-rejoin-erasmus-before-2021 Switzerland’s technology institute ETH Zurich has once again been named the best university in continental Europe in a ranking of the top 500 universities worldwide by ShanghaiRanking Consultancy. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170816/eth-zurich-named-top-university-in-continental-europe-in-prestigious-ranking Wed, 16 Aug 2017 11:57:15 +0200 eth-zurich-named-top-university-in-continental-europe-in-prestigious-ranking Swiss teachers on Monday called for salary guarantees, arguing that in many places workload has increased without any boost to their pay packets. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170627/swiss-teachers-call-for-higher-wages Tue, 27 Jun 2017 12:13:08 +0200 swiss-teachers-call-for-higher-wages Switzerland’s federal technology institute ETH Zurich has the best reputation in continental Europe, according to the World Reputation Rankings 2017 carried out by the prestigious Times Higher Education (THE). https://www.thelocal.ch/20170615/eth-zurich-has-best-reputation-in-continental-europe Thu, 15 Jun 2017 14:03:37 +0200 eth-zurich-has-best-reputation-in-continental-europe Fifteen-year-olds in Switzerland are happier than their contemporaries in most other developed countries, according to the latest PISA study. https://www.thelocal.ch/20170420/study-swiss-teenagers-are-very-happy-with-their-lives Thu, 20 Apr 2017 09:14:06 +0200 study-swiss-teenagers-are-very-happy-with-their-lives US President-elect Donald Trump expressed his “respect” for Switzerland to Swiss President Johann Schneider-Ammann in a phone call on Wednesday. https://www.thelocal.ch/20161222/trump-talks-trade-and-education-with-swiss-president Thu, 22 Dec 2016 12:57:02 +0100 trump-talks-trade-and-education-with-swiss-president Swiss children need to be prepared for a digital future by learning computer programming at school, according to politicians and economic leaders. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160620/schools-urged-to-produce-computer-whiz-kids Mon, 20 Jun 2016 14:23:23 +0200 schools-urged-to-produce-computer-whiz-kids Many Swiss schools say they are having to resort to employing underqualified teachers owing to the lack of trained professionals. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160613/schools-forced-to-hire-unqualified-teachers-survey Mon, 13 Jun 2016 10:31:51 +0200 schools-forced-to-hire-unqualified-teachers-survey Politicians in Zurich have voted against a move that would have seen children start school half an hour later as a way of easing pressure on the city's public transport system in the morning. https://www.thelocal.ch/20160411/zurich-snubs-plan-to-let-school-kids-sleep-in Mon, 11 Apr 2016 15:16:38 +0200 zurich-snubs-plan-to-let-school-kids-sleep-in