Before you start applying for jobs in Switzerland or France, it can be a good idea to acquaint yourself with the local customs and cultural differences that exist between here and your home country. A bit of time invested in learning more about your local environment and the people who live in it, can go a long way to helping you in the interview process, and ultimately in your new job!
Below is a list of organizations that have been recommended to us and have been set up to help expats through this learning process. Many of the activities they organize are great fun and they provide a wonderful opportunity to meet new people and make friends.
Some of these organizations (and others not listed below) run seminars on getting to know Switzerland and its customs. Browse through our Workshops & Seminars calendar to find an event near you.
Bureau de l'integration des Etrangers
88, rte de Chancy, 2nd floor
1213 Onex
022 546 74 99
www.geneve.ch
General information is given on living in Geneva through the above link in English: housing, health, employment, schooling, child care, culture, etc.
Note: Other brochures are available on the first website link but if you don't read French, you might not be able to find them.
Le Cafe Vivant
079 277 86 36
www.lecafevivant.ch
Fun French Language Programs©: Play Français – Sing Français – Cook Français – Dance Français. Immediate immersion into local language and culture by stimulating all your senses through action, movement, fun, and lively experiences.
Artistic activities linking locals and internationals.
Living in Lausanne course
American International Women’s Club of Lausanne
La Maison de la Femme
Av. Eglantine 6
1006 Lausanne
021 320 26 88
https://iwc-lausanne.org
The AIWC runs a series of information sessions about Living in Lausanne and the Canton of Vaud. Please check the website for details.
Newly Swissed
www.newlyswissed.com
Lifestyle blog about Switzerland for expats and locals alike; culture, design, oddities, tourism and tips on how to settle.
Settling Here
Geneva and Pays de Gex
Aislinn Delmotte
0033/673 36 96 56
www.settlinghere.com
www.facebook.com/settlinghere
Practical help and advice for people moving to, living in and moving from the Pays de Gex and surrounding area. Friendly and professional services offered by people who have gone through expatriation and understand your needs. Personalized individual assistance as well as regular information sessions with speakers and experts on the subject chosen.
If your CV needs to be provided in French, and you're not a native French speaker, you may want to enlist the services of a translation company to make sure your application (in particular the covering letter) is as accurate as it can be. If you're lucky enough to have already received a job offer, you may still need the services of a translator to help you understand the small print on your contract, especially someone qualified to do legal translations! Take a look at some of the linguistic services below that have been recommended to us:
ADR traductions Officiel
021 312 76 84
021 312 76 86 fax
www.traducteur-officiel.ch
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Provides legal and medical translations, interpreting services, official translation service for documents in French, English, Russian, Italian, German, Arabic, Chinese, Romanian, plus other languages for driving licenses, certificates, etc.
Jura Editorial Services sarl
Ward Rinehart
Sarah Johnson
0033/450 41 90 85
www.jura-eds.com
Offers English-language consulting, editorial, and publishing services to the international health and development community. Over 30 years of experience.
Helene Kubasky
Master of Arts in Translation
Diplom-Volkswirtin
076 576 15 81
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Top-quality translations of your English and French documents into German by a German-speaking professional translator.
SwissTranslate
Rue du Jeu-de-l’Arc 15
1207 Genève
022 566 13 01
www.swisstranslate.ch/en/
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Translation, proofreading, transcription, interpreting, transcreation, copywriting, audiovisual services in a selection of 100 different languages.
In this section of the site, we provide all kinds of interesting articles and useful contacts, that are not covered elsewhere within our Careers section, but are designed to help you along your way, as you start to apply for jobs in Geneva, Vaud, or neighboring France.
The topics may be quite varied - the idea is to supply you with the tools you may require to make a successful job application.
To start us off in this new section of the site, we have a few links:
