Medical residency in Switzerland

Visas, Permits, Passports and Naturalization
1
I have a specific concern and hope someone can help. I am a doctor from Estonia (recently graduated) and would like to do my medical residency in Switzerland. Could you please advise on this procedure and what are the steps I should take in the first place? Should I contact the hospitals for more details or who/which instance/institution is responsible for a residencyship? Please kindly advise.

2
In order to get a residency in CH, you will first need to speak a Swiss language. (That would seem obvious, I know, but I read many questions from doctors who think that they can come to CH without language skills and walk into a residency position. Um... no.) Since the most commonly-spoken language in CH is German, there are more German-speaking hospitals... followed by French, and then by Italian. My experience is directly within the German section of CH, so my comments are specifically related to that region. Hospitals here are looking for German at or above the B2 level... and remember that Swiss German is NOT like High German. It will take some additional work to gain fluency!

You need to contact the hospital departments directly about their openings for Assistenzärzte (residents). These are essentially specialized job openings that are posted on employment websites and HR websites, as well as in publications. There is a section on the FMH website ( www.fmhjob.ch ) that lists positions, as well. It is in German.

The actual process proceeds like with most other jobs... you submit a Motivationsschreiben/cover letter and a Lebenslauf/CV, and hope and pray that you are granted some interviews. If you are lucky enough to get interviewed, and they like you, they may offer you the position. Note that there could be a wait before you can get started... mine is almost six months, but part of that is waiting for the actual receipt of my medical degree.

Once you have an offer, then your diploma then needs to be officially recognized by MEBEKO in Bern, so that you are able to legally practice medicine in CH. If you earned an EU medical degree, and the country where you studied has direct acceptance, and you are an EU citizen, this should be relatively straightforward. If any of those are not the case, however, there could be additional paperwork involved for you and the hospital that wants to hire you.

It is generally not very easy to get a position in CH as a foreigner. The competition is usually quite high, because Swiss residents earn a very competitive salary (currently about twice what residents in the US earn), and the work week is capped at 50 hours (vs. ±80 in the US). Also, CH is not a huge country, so there are not as many positions as you might find in Germany and other places. However, if you can speak the language very well, and have some additional elements to your application that will make you stand out from the crowd, then you will stand a better chance.

As a foreigner, you may find more success looking at the smaller hospitals, and/or in specialties that are currently underfilled (such as psychiatry, medical rehabilitation, etc.). Once you get a year of experience within the Swiss system, you then may have much more flexibility for movement into other specialties, if you make good contacts and perform well.

I'm sorry, but I am not well-versed in how the process works in French- or Italian-speaking CH. That would be a question for someone in those regions of the country.

I hope that helps a bit! Good luck to you...

3
Switzerléand has too many doctors in training; the competion is more than fierce

4
We're talking about residency here - about fully qualified doctors who already have their degree. There is certainly a shortage of those in Switzerland - there's a reason most doctors here have accents from the big canton to the north...

Competitive training or otherwise, Switzerland does not train enough doctors to meet its own needs.

5

And as this: http://www.tagesschau.sf.tv/Nachrich...-jaehrlich-aus and similar articles point out: about 200 of them leave the country every year.

6
Do you speak any of the national languages, German, French or Italian? This is essential if you want to do a residency here. Good communication skills are essential in medicine, as you know well.

You have a much higher chance of achieving this if you aim at regions other than Geneva/Zurich/Lausanne- as they have far too many applicants.

Also it depends what speciality you are aiming for- as some are much more popular than others, some have shortages. If you were interested in General Practice/family doctor (non hospital based) for instance, there is a huge shortage in some areas, as all the baby boomers are coming up for retirement with nobody to replace them. Swiss Doctors are not going into General Practice, and foreign Doctors arriving in Switzerland all want to be specialists. Recent arrivals in Geneva are setting up as specialists in areas of medicine where there is no shortage at all!

7
In fact, right on cue this was in the news today:

http://bazonline.ch/basel/stadt/Haus...story/11176576

8
. . . . . . . . .

9
Dear suslikusa:

Im from honduras and i want to do my residency in CH... I can speak spanish and english. I know i have learn the language, but what next after do that . Have you applied for any university ... I would like to know the steps for how to get in to the system for the medical residency! Anyone can give us an advise?

10

See cugeno’s reply - post number 2.

11
hi friends,

I have completed my medical graduation from bombay ( india ).(5 and half yrs)

I was in belgium for abt a year so i am fluent in french...I love europe and would really like to do residency in radiology as i am very interested in the branch...

can u please guide me regarding the steps and possibly some official website for international medical graduates for application of residency in swiss..

I dont know anyone in swiss and am very confused as to where to contact or apply for the residency... is there a centralized exam for residency ?! or i have to apply to individual hospitals ?!

waiting eagerly for your guidance.

thankx a lot ,

Dr Ishan Gadekar

12
That combination of French-speaking Switzerland (which tends to be tough for non-EU/non-Swiss) and Radiology (which is incredibly competitive in general) is not necessarily likely to yield a spot. I mean, go for it, but bear in mind that you are facing a rather steep, uphill battle. Many docs I know who want to do something competitive in Switzerland start out in a position in a field that may not interest them, per se, but that has more open positions (Emergency Med/Surg, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, etc.). Then, after 6-12 months of Swiss experience and making contacts in more desirable specialties, they have a decent chance to move laterally within the system. That is a far more likely scenario than finding a direct placement into a Radiology position, at any rate.

There is no place I know of that outlines application procedures for Switzerland, because it is not a standardized process. Applicants simply need to seek out openings (generally found online), and apply for them. If you get an interview, good luck and make the most of it!

13
Hi,

I am a last year medical student from lebanon looking for a residency in switzerland in a french speaking university hospital.

1-Can anyone give me a list with the names of these hospitals please?

2-I was also wondering what is the procedure for application?

3- is there a website that ranks these universities?

4- Is there any test that I will have to sit for prior to my application?

5- would a residency in switzerland make me eligible to apply to the european board? If not where can i practice having graduated from a residency program in switzerland?

6- I am intersted in internal medicine/ pediatrics, how competitive are these fields?

My partner has a master degree in finance from lebanon as well and 3years of working experience. How easy would it be for him to find a job in switzerland?

1- any advice on where he could apply for work?

2- is there any special procedure for him to follow?

3- any exams he should take?

Thanks, I appreciate the help anyone can provide.

Best.

14

Again I refer you to post number 2.

15
Hey,

i have read post #2. It helped me by giving me a broad idea but it does not fit what am asking for. I am looking for more precise information about a french speaking UH (i dont speak german ) ). Also i wish to know about my partner's options.

However, thanks for your reply.

16
Dra Moreno! Hi, Im from Honduras too.. Did you find any information about residency programs in CH?

Greetings!

17

What Swiss languages do you speak? If you don’t know German, French or Italian to a high level you simply won’t be hired. Also see post number 2 regarding getting any qualifications recognised. Only when you have both of these might you stand a chance of employment.

18
allo everybody,

I am medical medical graduate , married to a swiss and shifted to Bern from New Delhi Can anybody working as dr in bern/inselspital to help me out to start my professional life?

I have done so far upto B1 hochdeutsch/high deutsch and i have B permit.

Thanks in advance

dr remo

19
Hallo everybody,

I am recent medical graduate , married to a swiss and shifted to Bern from New Delhi. Can anybody working as resident in bern/inselspital to help me out to start my professional and PG life?

I have done so far upto B1 hochdeutsch/high deutsch and i have B permit.

I am planning to enroll and have zertifikat upto B2

Thanks in advance...

dr remo

20
1) Get to B2 -- at least -- in German. Your B-card (plus your marital status with a CH citizen) are great to have, but without the language skills you will not be hired.

2) Apply to positions that interest you, they are listed on the hospital websites and in Swiss medical publications.

3) Cross all digits and pray that you are selected for an interview -- apply broadly to make this a more likely scenario.

4) Wow them in an interview setting with your language skills, charming personality, demonstrated work ethic, impeccable hygiene, and witty repartee.

5) Get a job offer.

6) Start working.

Good luck.