A personnel assistant (in Switzerland) performs day-to-day assistance functions and tasks in the human resources department of larger companies. In SMEs and the public sector, they can even independently manage payroll and personnel administration and deal with basic questions of employment and social security law. They also support the planning and coordination of all personnel activities as well as personnel-oriented company management.

The HR assistant course lasts one to two semesters, depending on the training institution, and is completed on a part-time basis. Find out more directly from your chosen provider.

A survey of prospective students who have enquired at one or more schools about training as a personnel assistant reveals the following results:

• For 51%, an online assessment led to a school inquiry
• 24 % already knew the schools before the inquiry
• 25 % were recommended the school they enquired about

Schools with good online ratings are more frequently requested for HR assistant training (now HR assistant), as this survey result from the education platform Ausbildung-Weiterbildung.ch confirms. This is why the education platform also publishes star ratings of schools by students to make it easier for future students to choose a school.

We learned more interesting reasons via text responses:

• Schools near me
• Location and start time would be suitable
• I would like to take a trial lesson
• Looking for training as close to home as possible
• Internet research
• Since everything is online
• Online lessons
• because I don't know the school
• Location conditional
• By chance
• Start date
• because I would like to have more information about the training and the provider is not unfamiliar to me
• the training day fits best
• because I am under time pressure
• I came across it at www.ausbildung-weiterbildung.ch
• out of curiosity

After completing the course, HR assistants can, for example, pursue continuing education, further training to become an HR specialist with a federal certificate, as well as various courses offered by schools, associations and colleges of Higher Education.

Admission to the certificate examination "HR Assistant with certificate from HRSE Human Resources Swiss Exams" is granted to those who have a Federal VET Diploma or a high school diploma and at least two years of general professional experience after graduation or at least four years of general professional experience without one of these qualifications. The duration of employment is geared towards a 100% job, with a lower workload the required minimum professional activity is extended accordingly.

During training as an HR assistant, you will acquire the knowledge required to perform a qualified job in personnel administration. In smaller companies, they carry out HR administration tasks independently. In larger companies, HR assistants effectively support and relieve their line manager.

You can achieve the following with a personnel assistant training course:

• Gain an overview of important topics in human resources
• Build a good foundation in human resources through HR assistant training
• Acquire basic knowledge for general personnel administration
• Expand knowledge of personnel issues
• Develop yourself in your private life too - e.g. by dealing better with priorities
• Preparation for external examination - also through simulation test
• Gain confidence through HR assistant training, feel comfortable in the HR sector and want to develop further
• Gain a foothold in human resources as a personnel assistant

74% of all people who are interested in further training as a human resources administrator do so in order to match this training opportunity with their own needs. They want to find out whether the training meets their own needs. This is shown by the survey conducted by the education portal Ausbildung-Weiterbildung.ch among the relevant people. In turn, 13% confirmed that they had been mentioned in job advertisements for HR assistant jobs as the reason for their inquiry. Another 13 % developed their interest through a recommendation. The free text responses also revealed other reasons:

• Knowledge building: "I already work in HR and would like to acquire more knowledge", "I would like to complete this course to deepen my knowledge, as I already worked in HR", "I would like to expand my knowledge in HR assistance and use this to benefit my current job", "To increase my knowledge in HR assistance", "To expand my knowledge", "Current HR consultant, expand specialist knowledge"
• Proof of qualification: "to be able to continue my professional training", "I want to continue my training in the direction of HR assistant", "retake failed exam", "because I already work as an HR assistant and have no training", "personal further training, personal perspective HR specialist", "possibly decisive for my future", "already work in HR", "is required in my job", "I already work in this function, but I still need further training", "I am aiming for the HR Fachfrau FA", "HRSE certificate exam is a must for admission to the eidg. FA HR"
• Interest: "Interest in human resources", "I need information about Swiss labor law and payroll accounting in Switzerland", "Learning something new that interests me"
• Job change: "I would like to work in HR", "I would like to develop myself further", "I would like to work in a new profession", "I work in HR but don't have a degree in it. I am looking to change jobs in HR.", "Because I want to change to this area."

The criteria for admission to the HR Assistant certificate examination are as follows:

• Matura or Federal Diploma of Vocational Education and Training (apprenticeship certificate).
• 2 years of general professional experience after completion of training.
• 4 years of general professional experience without a high school diploma or certificate of proficiency (apprenticeship certificate).
• Part-time employment of less than 100% is counted pro rata temporis.

Participants in the further training course for HR assistants learn the following subjects:

• Fundamentals of Human Resources Management (HRM mission, sub-processes, etc.)
• Personnel administration (recruitment, employment references, etc.)
• Salary administration (payroll accounting, social insurance, etc.)
• Labor law basics (contract, duties, etc.)
• other topics such as commercial register, education system etc.

In short, the HR assistant further training (now HR assistant further training or HR assistant further training) provides the necessary knowledge to independently manage personnel administration in an SME or public company.

The Personnel Assistant certificate examination consists of five parts, which are conducted online and take a total of three hours. The "Personnel administration" and "Wage administration" parts of the exam have a weighting of 30 percent. The "Fundamentals of employment law" section has a weighting of 20 percent and the two sections "Fundamentals of human resource management" and "Other areas" each have a weighting of 10 percent.

Upon successful completion of the course, the HR Assistant certificate is issued with recognition from the Swiss Association for Professional and Higher Professional Examinations in Human Resources. The certificate is established and recognized by employers and is almost invariably a prerequisite for job advertisements in the field of HR assistance.

The HR Assistant course is suitable for HR assistants:

• for all those who would like to enter the field of human resources. (Training is a prerequisite for most vacancies).
• For employees who have acquired theoretical knowledge in practice and would like to consolidate and deepen their knowledge of human resources.
• For future graduates of the HR Specialist with Federal Certificate course, passing the certificate examination is a prerequisite for admission.

In the field of personnel assistance, the responsible body HRSE offers a certificate examination that is supported by HR Swiss, the Association of Personnel Service Providers Swissstaffing, the Zurich Commercial Association, the Swiss Employers' Association, the Association of Personnel and Training Professionals (VPA) and the Association of Swiss Labor Market Authorities (VSAA). As a result, the "Human Resources Assistant with Certificate from HRSE Human Resources Swiss Exams" qualification enjoys a wide-ranging reputation in Switzerland.

The content of all the training courses mentioned is basically the same:

• HR Assistant (Cert.)
• Human Resources Administrator (Certified)
• Personnel Assistant (Cert.)

What is different is the recognition by the association HRSE (Human Resources Swiss Exams).

Anyone wishing to train as an HR specialist in the future should complete a course with an HRSE certificate.

Anyone who has completed training and passed the HR assistant exam can find employment as a human resources assistant and perform administrative tasks. HR assistants are responsible for creating job advertisements and publishing them in various media, providing information to applicants by telephone, creating company profiles and job advertisements and sending application documents to interested parties. You are therefore the contact person between the company and applicants. They are responsible for reviewing the application dossiers and making a rough assessment of the candidates (invitation to interview, second choice or rejection). They are involved in job interviews, clarify the salary level and social benefits, take care of cross-border commuter, work and residence permits for foreign employees and draw up employment contracts on the instructions of Human Resources. They take care of exit interviews, references and leaving formalities. A human resources assistant also acts as an internal contact between the company and employees, for example on issues such as illness, salary, working hours, accidents, bonuses, promotion issues, problems in the workplace, burn-out and transfers.