EFZ commercial clerk self-test: Is this course the right one for me?

What does the day-to-day work of an EFZ commercial clerk look like?

Business administrators with a federal certificate of proficiency are needed for business management processes in all companies and sectors. They work in agile forms of work and organization and carry out administrative and organizational tasks in a networked environment.

EFZ commercial clerks carry out their work with different specializations: Depending on their interests and skills, they specialize in finance, communication (in German and/or foreign languages) or technology.

The specific day-to-day work and activities depend on the sector in which an EFZ commercial clerk works. In general, the tasks of EFZ commercial clerks can be summarized as follows:

• Carrying out administrative work with the appropriate tools and technologies of the digital working world (e.g. creating documents, preparing multimedia data or managing databases, taking into account data protection and data security)
• Interaction with various contact groups internally and externally (e.g. receiving requests, informational discussions, shaping customer or supplier relationships)
• Collaboration in entrepreneurial work processes (e.g. accounting work, writing minutes, evaluating market-related statistics, developing marketing materials) and their coordination
• Industry-specific* processing - a broad and multifaceted field ranging from the preparation of documents in law firms to customs declarations in delivery services

* Please note: Unlike basic vocational training, commercial training at a commercial college is not available in 19 sectors (https://kaufmaennische-grundbildung.ch/berufsfeld/) to choose from. Training takes place in the general field of "Services and Administration" (occasionally there are also training opportunities in the hotel, catering and tourism sector).

Target groups and skills: For whom is the school-based route to this EFZ suitable? What personal qualities and skills are required?

The commercial school courses "Kauffrau EFZ /Kaufmann EFZ" are aimed at:

• Adolescents and young adults who wish to complete a commercial apprenticeship at school and obtain the Federal Certificate of Competence (EFZ).
• Adolescents and young adults who are completing a commercial apprenticeship and would like to obtain the EFZ even though they have not found an apprenticeship position in a company.
• Adults who are looking for an entry into the commercial sector and want to complete a solid apprenticeship with an EFZ qualification.

Important personal qualities for this job are

• Service and customer orientation
• Precise, independent and reflective action
• Willingness to engage in lifelong learning
• Good communication skills
• Reliability and a sense of responsibility
• Good German (at least level B2)
• Foreign language skills

Prerequisites for admission to basic school-based training as an EFZ commercial clerk:

For admission to the commercial school course for merchants EFZ you need:

• a (good) completion of compulsory schooling (lower secondary level)
• Good written and spoken German (at least B2)
• Your own laptop (the Windows operating system is usually required)

Many schools also require an aptitude test (interview or multicheck test), and some also require keyboarding skills (10-finger system).

Subject matter and content of the training

Areas of competence

The subject matter of the apprenticeship for commercial clerks is no longer divided into subjects, but is instead focused on five areas of competence. Within the learning units of the competence areas, various of the former subject contents are applied in an interdisciplinary and practical manner. The five areas of competence are

1 - Acting in agile forms of work and organization(includes learning material from the previous subjects German, Business and Society, Information, Communication, Administration)

• Review and further develop commercial skills development
• Building and using networks in the commercial sector
• Receive and process commercial orders
• act as a self-responsible person in society
• Incorporate political issues and cultural awareness into his actions

2 - Interacting in a networked working environment(includes learning material from the previous subjects German, English, Business and Society, Information, Communication, Administration)

• collaborate and communicate in different teams to process commercial orders
• Coordinate interfaces in operational processes
• have a say in specialist economic discussions
• carry out commercial project management tasks and work on sub-projects
• Help shape operational change processes

3 - Coordinating business work processes(includes learning material from the previous subjects German, English, Business and Society, Information, Communication, Administration)

• Plan, coordinate and optimize tasks and resources in the commercial work area
• Coordinate and implement commercial support processes
• document, coordinate and implement operational processes
• Implement marketing and communication tools
• manage and control financial transactions

4 - Shaping customer or supplier relationships(includes learning material from the previous subjects German, English and French)

• Receiving concerns from customers and suppliers
• Conducting information and consultation meetings with customers or suppliers
• Conducting sales and negotiation talks with customers or suppliers
• Maintaining relationships with customers and suppliers

5 - Use of technologies of the digital working world(includes learning material from the previous subjects computer science, information, communication, administration)

• Use applications in the commercial sector
• Researching and evaluating information in the economic and commercial field
• Evaluate and prepare market and business-related statistics and data
• prepare business-related content in multimedia format

Foreign languages and national language

The national language is the language of the school location. All prospective commercial apprentices must acquire knowledge of 2 foreign languages (including at least 1 other national language), and they have a choice (compulsory option):

• Either they acquire in-depth oral and written skills in both foreign languages, with which they can communicate on economic topics (this choice is mandatory for candidates for the vocational baccalaureate)
• or they acquire in-depth oral and written skills in the first foreign language; in the second foreign language, oral language skills and listening comprehension and cultural skills are acquired, which usually have to be demonstrated in the form of project work.

Options

In the course of the second school year, students design their education according to their abilities and interests. They choose one of the four options (candidates for the vocational baccalaureate can only choose from the first three options):

• Finances
• Communication with stakeholders in the local language
• Communication with stakeholders in the foreign language
• Technology

The training profile is documented in an online portfolio. In addition to the options and compulsory choices, other achievements - such as language certificates or ICT certificates (e.g. ECDL) - are also recorded in the portfolio and serve well later in the application process.

Internship

The skills acquired are put into practice and practiced during the internship.

Costs of the training

Course fees for the three-year commercial school training course to become an EFZ commercial clerk:

• Tuition costs: The cost of tuition varies depending on the business school and also depends on the amount of supervision provided at school and during the internship. They range from around CHF 22,000 to CHF 37,000.
• Additional costs: Some schools charge extra costs for enrollment, teaching materials, language certificates, ECDL, etc. Additional costs can amount to almost CHF 2,500. At some schools, these services are included in the tuition costs, in which case there are no additional costs.

Revenue:

• Internship salary: An internship salary is usually paid during the 2 semesters of the internship. The amount depends on the company and the scope of the internship; the recommendation of the commercial association (from 2022) for full-time internships is CHF 1,480 per month, i.e. CHF 17,760 per year.

The costs that course participants have to pay for the training (in addition to their living expenses) - if they receive the recommended internship salary - amount to a total of around CHF 4,000-20,000.

Duration and course of training for commercial clerks EFZ

The training for commercial clerks EFZ at commercial schools is as follows:

• Vocational training to become an EFZ commercial clerk at a commercial college takes3 years.
• The training takes place asFull-time training(Monday-Friday all day) in the form of classroom teaching and, with some providers, partly also in distance learning or by means of various online formats.
• Some commercial schools also offer the EFZ qualification within the 3-year training program withVocational baccalaureate(BM 1) (the connection to the vocational baccalaureate after the EFZ (BM 2) is guaranteed in any case).
• Of the 6 semesters, 4 semesters are usually devoted toLessons at the commercial schooland 2 semesters to theInternship in a company. At most schools, the internship takes place in the 4th and 5th semester; the 6th semester at the school is used for exam preparation.*
• ÜK:The inter-company courses for industry-specific training ("Services and Administration" sector) are usually also held at the business school.
• TheInternship positionis organized by some schools; some schools only support their students in finding an internship. Commercial schools are often connected to a network of companies that offer internships.
• During the internship, the students will create aLearning documentation,in which they record their work and increasing skills. The support offered by the commercial schools during the internships varies in intensity.
• Pupils record their individual educational design, i.e. the option as well as all compulsory, optional and additional achievements (e.g. language certificates) in aOnline portfoliowith which they can identify their profile.

* In some schools, the internship is completed in semesters 5-6; more rarely, semesters 1-2 are purely school-based and semesters 3-6 are a mixture of internship and school.

Degree, diploma and title

Qualification procedure for commercial clerk EFZ (final apprenticeship examination)

Anyone who has completed commercial school, including an internship, is admitted to the qualification procedure for commercial apprentices. The qualification procedure takes place annually. It consists of the following elements:

Practical work (50 min.):Here, candidates demonstrate in a case study that they have skills in (as far as possible) all areas of commercial competence and can carry out the required activity in a professionally correct manner and in a manner appropriate to the needs and situation.

Professional knowledge and general education - a total of 5 oral or written examinationseach with 20% weighting (total time 4.75 hours):

Written examinations:

• Interacting in a networked working environment (75 min.)
• Coordinating business processes (75 min.)
• Use of technologies in the digital world of work (75 min.)

Oral examinations:

• Acting in agile forms of work and organization (30 min.)
• Designing customer or supplier relationships (30 min.)

The final grade is calculated from the examination results of the examinations mentioned (60%) and the experience grade (40%). The experience grade is based on the grades achieved in the course of the lessons and the internship.

Diploma and title

Successful graduates receive a federal certificate of proficiency (EFZ) and are entitled to use the federally recognized and protected title:

• German: Kaufmann/Kauffrau (Service and Administration DA) EFZ
• or French: Employé/e de commerce (Services et administration SA) CFC
• and Italian: Impiegato/a di commercio (Servizi e amministrazione SA) AFC