Hi All,
Learning more about the swiss matura system and how the filtering happens here to ensure only the best students come out with degree.... Say engineering at ETH for example.
Now, my thought is how competent and acceptable these students , studying engineering in German medium (ETH) or French (EPFL) v/s Students studying in English medium?
I wanted the forum to share/debate on this thought below.
My gut feeling says that studying degree in english medium has always advantage , international acceptance, good from long term career as well. Basically your career will have wider geography space.
So is money is not an issue (to put in international school then to engineering in english medium) would it make sense (is it wise) to put kids in international school, get the degree in english medium? v/s German or french medium?
Thought?
What is medium? Language?
And no, degrees from an english uni are not per definition better. Why would that be?
Being able to speak several languages can be an advantage though
By medium, I meant teaching language in school.
Ie, science, maths, geography, and other subjects taught in English v/s Swiss Matura route which is all in Either german or english.
Bascially if money is not a concern, would you one put their child in international schools and then send them for degree to UK Or US
OR
They better continue in Swiss matura model and end up with ETH or EPFL ?
Which path will give them wider career and acceptability globally????
That depends on the child.
I still do not understand why you think that UK/US degrees are so much better.
I am doing quite well here with my Dutch degree, thank you.
Most masters in technical subjects are largely thought in English at the ETH and it has a very good reputation. And I'd say being able to speak two or more languages is certainly an advantage if you want to make an international career, especially if it is with a European MNC.
Yes agree....
and it is not about UK/US universities are better... and also speaking a language is different than studying the courses in a language..
ie, people going to international schools do speak german or french language.. but they why they join international schools? why they their medium of study is english ? what is the benefit?
A lot of kids go to an international school because the parents are only a limited time in the country.
You can learn languages at any school, send them to an international summer camp, another way to learn a language well, exchange programs etc etc
And are your kids actually interested in learning languages? Not everyone likes it, some kids are much more interested in Beta courses.
Depending on how old the kids are now, do they want to go to university?
In the end it depends on whether you want to fork out 25k per semester per kid for an international school
To be fair, most young people going to Uni to study engineering, or anything else for that matter- also learn English. They will have studied it for at least 8 years- up to aged 18/19 before going on to Uni- and most will have a beyond school experience too, via film, tv, music, computers. Most of them will have also spent some months abroad on a language course, or working as Au Pairs, Camp assistants, etc, etc. The students, and their parents- recognise the need for English acquisition to succeed- but that does not mean the subjects should be taught in English.
Not sure about the US or OZ, NZ - but in the UK currently, kids do not have to study a language at all beyond a couple of years, not even for GCSEs (end of compulsory schooling exams at 15/16) and definitely not for A'Levels (Uni entrance exams at 18/19- in England the post 16 curriculum is VERY VERY narrow, 4 subjects in Year 12, and only 3 subjects in Year 13- chosen ba student. German, French, Spanish, etc, A'Level courses have very small numbers- as other subjects like Design, Sociology, Law, Business, IT, Pshychology, Film Studies, etc- have taken over form traditional subjects (same for History and Geography).
If you are that interested in sending your kids to a university in the US, why do you now want to send them to a German school?
Why should it be either / or. Students can go on to do a Degree in the UK or US after completing the Matura course in Swiss school- providing they keep their English language at the appropriate level. Win win- as having German or French language as an add on could be hugely beneficial too and open many doors.
If you have gone to school in German it makes sense to do a degree in German. If you have gone to school in English it makes sense to do a degree in English. Simply because it is that much harder doing it in a foreign language.The reasons for choosing an international school are varied: A parent may value private education over public education, they may value the language aspects, they may move in social circles, where everyone has their kids in an international school, they may value the international feel of the school. Maybe the curriculum is more familiar to them, or they moved to a foreign country when the kids where older, and integration in local schools would have been harder. Whether someone will have an edge in the global job market will depend more on other factors than the school or university he goes to. Swiss education is well regarded in most of the world, so why would it be better to study in English? Nobody that wants to work inn a global market gets around learning English and you tend to acquire the language necessary in your field of work anyways.