About us
aprentas is the training association for basic and further vocational training for scientific, technical and commercial professions. aprentas today trains around 500 apprentices in 13 different professions. The apprentices come from the supporter companies Novartis and Syngenta and about 100 member companies.
The further training offer is open to everyone. It includes courses and further education in the areas of "Occupational Safety and Health" and "Chemistry Pharma Life Sciences". As part of our VET HUB, we offer basic courses and further training for vocational trainers. Our tailor-made company courses also cover specific company needs in a targeted manner.
Services for members and third parties in the area of training and further training round off the service offer.
aprentas is committed to developing and helping to design vocational training in Switzerland and assumes its social responsibility in this area and on educational policy matters.
Back in 2004, the scienceindustries Business Association transferred the mandate for representing interests on vocational training matters throughout Switzerland to aprentas. aprentas is therefore responsible, among other things, for revising the education regulations in the corresponding professions. aprentas is also involved in the education task force of the Swiss Employers’ Association, the Education Committee of the Basel Chamber of Commerce and the steering committee of tunBasel.
aprentas maintains a very good partnership with the cantons in the interests of offering high quality vocational training. Representatives of the cantons of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft serve on the aprentas Board of Directors. aprentas runs the vocational training school in Muttenz on behalf of the canton of Basel-Landschaft. check-in aprentas is a joint job integration programme between the aprentas training association and the Office for Vocational Education and Training in the Basel-Landschaft canton. The programme receives financial support from the Novartis Foundation for Education and Training. aprentas also works together with the cantons of Schaffhausen, Bern and Aargau, primarily as a provider of industry-wide courses.
aprentas has additional commitments on a range of bodies and expert committees. It also organises an annual forum on current educational policy matters with expert speakers.
aprentas is focused on delivering the highest quality when executing its mandate. In May 2005, it was awarded the internationally recognised process-oriented ISO9001 certification. In 2023 aprentas switched to the new norm ISO 21001, which is regarded as the ‘ISO of education’. In 2026 aprentas has been successfully recertified according to ISO 21001.
aprentas was founded in October 2000 by the companies Ciba (today BASF Schweiz AG), Novartis and Syngenta. From a legal perspective, aprentas is an association with its registered office in Basel. It is a not-for-profit association and is politically and denominationally independent. The highest organ is the general meeting. Membership is open to companies and institutions.