Tips for your application

Recruitment process for an apprenticeship

To make a professional decision, we want to gain a comprehensive overview of applicants’ abilities, skills and personalities. We wait until early August for all the applications to come in.

Pre-selection
School grades and our requirements linked to the apprenticeship are extremely relevant for pre-selection. You can find detailed information about the relevant apprenticeship sections.

Initial meeting
After carefully reviewing your application and making a positive assessment, we invite you and the other candidates to an initial meeting. Depending on the apprenticeship, this involves an assessment (exercises or test), an aptitude test, or a trial half-day or day. The training managers and vocational trainers for your specialist field attend this meeting.

Second meeting
At the second meeting we go into more detail and clarify any questions we have from the initial meeting. This gives you an opportunity to gain some insight into your future activities and contribute as well. The discussion that follows will focus on you and your particular motivation for doing the apprenticeship. We want to know why you are interested in the apprenticeship, whether you are a good fit with us (company culture) and whether you feel comfortable.

We will be happy to introduce to you other team members and/or apprentices. Make use of this opportunity to ask us questions.

Apprenticeship agreement
By the end of October at the latest we will have selected those applicants we want to support as they embark on their careers. If we decide for you, we invite you and your parents to another meeting. During the meeting we will discuss all the details of the apprenticeship agreement, such as salary, working hours and vocational college, and will cover any queries you or your parents may have. The highlight is when all the parties sign the agreement. At the end there is a brief visit to your future workplace, so that your parents know where you will be working during your apprenticeship.

Taster days

In the laboratory, we offer several taster days every year, regardless of whether you apply for an apprenticeship. For all other five apprenticeships, we can unfortunately only offer this in connection with an apprenticeship application due to the high level of interest.

Together with other interested parties, you will visit the workplace on the taster day and gain a first insight into the everyday life of your apprenticeship. You will be supervised in each department and given an insight into the diverse work processes. On this day, you will also have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have.

Please send us your letter of motivation, CV and school reports from the last few years of school with your taster apprenticeship request. As soon as we have received your documents, we will contact you promptly with further information.
Taster apprenticeship request

Tips for your application

First impressions count, so it is important that we are convinced by your application and that you make a good impression. We have put together some points that you should bear in mind.

Application documents

  • a cover letter
  • a curriculum vitae
  • a color photo of yourself
  • the results of your assessment test ( e.g. the “Multi-Check” or “Stellwerk” test )
  • copies of school reports from your senior grades
  • if you have them, taster day evaluations, employer references and confirmation of employment
     

Cover letter
The cover letter is an important part of your application. It should explain why you are applying to us and for this apprenticeship in particular:

  • mention the apprenticeship you are applying for
  • say which school you attend and what subjects you like, etc.
  • tell us why you are applying for this apprenticeship:
    • What are you interested in?
    • What are you good at?
    • What excites you about this apprenticeship?
    • Why do you want to do an apprenticeship with us?
       

Document layout
As well as the content of your documents being important, pay attention to the following:

  • your documents should look good and be carefully designed – make sure that the layout is clear and sensible
  • keep your cover letter brief and informative
  • make sure you have been thorough and check your spelling
  • ask someone to read through your application before you send it off
     
Applying for an apprenticeship

Tips for the interview

Your application has convinced us and you will be invited to an interview at Geistlich. We will get to know you better and you will have the chance to find out whether an apprenticeship with us is right for you. Here are some tips to make your interview a success.

Before the interview

  • Find out about us from our website
  • Give some thought to the questions you would like to ask about the company and about the apprenticeship
  • Note the time and place of the interview and get directions
  • Write down the name of the person who is interviewing you
  • Be punctual or, even better, arrive 5 minutes early
  • Make sure you look smart
  • Consider which questions you might be asked and how you want to answer them. For example:
    • What are your motivations for doing an apprenticeship at Geistlich?
    • What are your skills?
    • What are your hobbies?
       

During the interview

  • Greet and say goodbye to the interviewer by name
  • Be yourself – we want to find out who you are
  • Maintain eye contact, listen attentively and let the other person finish speaking
  • Consider specific examples and situations when you have been able to demonstrate your skills
  • Ask the questions you have prepared; if anything is unclear during the meeting, ask about it
  • At the end of the interview ask what happens next

If you feel nervous, please don’t worry – that’s completely normal. Just be yourself. We’re looking forward to finding out about YOU!

If you have any questions about apprenticeship recruitment, please contact us berufsbildung@geistlich.ch or Tel: +41 41 492 55 55