The route to the federal certificate of proficiency in IT and the role of the examiner

What is necessary for successful completion of an apprenticeship in IT and what contribution does adesso make to this?

Every year we read in the media that would-be apprentices cannot find an apprenticeship because not enough companies are willing to train them, or that companies offering apprenticeships are desperately looking for apprentices but cannot find any. But what happens when apprentice and company do find each other? The answer is simple: the apprenticeship can begin. This blog post is not, however, about the beginning of the apprenticeship, but about how vocational training is completed.

According to the Education Ordinance, anyone who wants to complete an apprenticeship in Switzerland as a computer scientist with a Swiss Federal Certificate of Proficiency (EFZ) must, towards the end of their basic vocational training, complete "a practical assignment as an individual practical assignment (IPA) of 70 - 90 hours" (Art. 20 of the Vocational Training in Computer Science), in which "the learner [must demonstrate] that they are capable of performing the required activities in a professionally correct manner appropriate to the needs and situation”. The result of the work and the documentation as well as the technical discussion and the presentation are evaluated with different weighting.

This sounds like a lot of work, and it is. In other words, the learner has to solve a task within two weeks (e.g. creating a homepage, extending the company's standard application, creating a network plan for a customer, ... the possibilities are endless) and document it in a report, taking into account specific criteria. All the work is planned at the beginning and implemented using a project management method of one’s choice. Help may be requested but must be documented in detail. The work itself is designed as individual work.

The IPA and the performance of each learner are evaluated by at least two experts. And this is where I come in.

The role of examiner

Since 2014, I have been working as an examiner for IT professions at the IHK (Chamber of Industry and Commerce) Hochrhein-Bodensee in Constance and usually examine the final papers of IT specialists in application development. Having enjoyably completed two apprenticeships myself, I feel it’s my duty to make this opportunity available to others as well.

In 2019, I was asked whether I would be interested in taking on this activity for the canton of St. Gallen. After receiving positive references, I was checked for suitability by the chief experts. The requirements for an examination expert are pedagogical and methodical-didactic skills; neutrality, correct and fair assessment as well as several years of experience in company education and training. Subsequently, I was appointed as an examination expert in vocational education (PEX). On a one-day basic course at the Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training, I gained the necessary basic understanding of the education ordinance and the correct conduct of a final examination in Switzerland.

Filled with a backpack full of knowledge and experience, as a part-time examination expert I’m now taking exams for the third year in a row.

This is a time-consuming task between February and roughly May every year, in which:

• The task of the responsible specialist is checked for completeness and whether it can be fulfilled by the learner
• A validation meeting is held with the learner, as well as the responsible professional, to clear up all questions and avoid misunderstandings before the start of the IPA
• At least two visits are made during the preparation of the IPA to check the status of the IPA
• The report of the IPA is read and evaluation against the criteria is carried out
• The exam questions are created individually with reference to the IPA
• The presentation is evaluated
• An overall grade is created

To take on this task for more than one learner is only possible for me thanks to the annual working time model of adesso which allows me to block appointments in my calendar during working hours and make up or work ahead at other times. In addition, I’m fortunate that I’m able to charge two whole working days for my work as an audit expert as working time, so that the task doesn’t have to be carried out fully in my free time. Despite receiving this support with time, my activities are still subject to confidentiality. With the exception of knowing my absences, adesso is not involved in the audit process.

As exhausting as spring is in this respect every year, I’m very happy to be able to accompany young people to the completion of their training and to see how much they were able to learn in the course of their apprenticeship.

It’s also exciting to see how and with what means the various challenges are mastered by the most diverse personalities.

I love this role – I’m grateful that adesso supports me in it and I hope that apprenticeships will continue to be highly valued in our society.

Furthermore, I’d like to thank all the companies which, despite the effort involved, employ apprentices and support them through until their completion. adesso also trains apprentices at its largest locations in Switzerland – in Bern and Zurich.

Learn more