leitura... agora que o ensino profissional anda na berra [por cá]... lá por terras de sua majestade...!

"But while there is work to do on changing perceptions of vocational qualifications in the UK, in Switzerland, the apprenticeship route is a genuinely respected and valued alternative to university.

While he had the aptitude for university study, Wagner says he chose an apprenticeship –or vocational education and training (VET) as it is known – because he wanted to earn and learn on the job. "Everyone has an apprentice in their family or at least knows someone who has done one … it's just a normal thing to do," he says.

Apprenticeship programmes in Switzerland typically last three to four years, with young people spending, on average, three days a week in the workplace and two days studying at a vocational college – a combination that makes them highly employable. Ursula Peter, a careers counsellor in the north-west region of Solothurn, says: "They are considered as real professionals … the school and work experience together form a solid basis of theoretical and practical skills."

Talking to Swiss apprentices about their experiences of education, it is clear young people are encouraged to start thinking about their future early. The most academic students are generally allocated to a high school in their early teens (based on their grade average and, sometimes, an exam) known as gymnasium or Kantonsschule, to prepare for the "matura" (the A-level-equivalent qualification needed to get a place at university), while the majority stay in general education before choosing apprenticeships or specialist vocational schools at 14 or 15.

From the age of 14, all school children have one hour a week of mandatory careers education in school. They can also visit a careers adviser in their local region for one-to-one advice and guidance."

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