What is Swissuni
Aims
Swissuni promotes University continuing education through tangible cooperation between all University Continuing Education centres, and in particular through:
- sharing information and experiences
- collaborative working between organisations (Universities and others) and institutions at both a national and international level
- support for the European network of University Continuing Education
- collaboration with the Rectors’ Conference of the Swiss Universities (CRUS)
- setting up tangible joint projects
- maintaining a shared database listing the continuing education programmes offered by all members
Members
Swissuni brings together the heads of continuing education departments in all Swiss universities (Basel, Bern, Fribourg, Geneva, Lausanne, Lucerne, Neuchâtel, St Gallen, Zurich, EPFL and EPFZ as well as universities in the Italian-speaking part of Switzerland and distance learning providers such as the study centre in Sierre). The heads of Continuing Education Centres and a representative of the Rectors’ Conference of the Swiss Universities (CRUS, by permanent invitation) work together on issues affecting continuing education and coordinate their activities. All members meet three to four times a year under the leadership of a chair and vice-chair. Geneviève Auroi-Jaggi (from the Continuing Education Service at the University of Geneva) was chair from 2002 to 2005, Klaus Burri (from the Office for Continuing Education at the University of Zurich) from 2005 to 2008 and Hansruedi Frey (from the Centre for Continuing Education at ETH Zurich) from 2008 to 2011. Since 2011, the chair has been held by Suzanne de Jonckheere (from the Continuing Education Service at the University of Geneva).
Activities
The annual programme determines the direction of Swissuni’s activities and its research projects; amongst other things, the association is appointed by the CUS to carry out comparative studies. Swissuni also organises days and lectures with expert speakers on topics associated with lifelong learning. Various projects are carried out and publications produced in the areas of harmonising course titles, quality assurance, accreditation of prior learning, the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) and continuing education’s place in the Bologna Process, as well as statistical research on continuing education in Switzerland.
Background
Since 2002, as part of Switzerland’s initiatives to promote continuing education, the continuing education departments of the Swiss Universities and Federal Institutes of Technology have contributed to setting up university continuing education in conjunction with the Rectors’ Conference of the Swiss Universities (CRUS).
As the special measures taken at a national level expired in 2000 and the CRUS was being reorganised, the working group on continuing education decided to pursue collaboration with all the continuing education departments and to create the Swissuni Association. The Association’s articles were approved in Bern on 20 June 2002.