a visit to Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand

Classic Swiss school in Lausanne

Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand is a classical Swiss school in Lausanne. The peculiarity of the school is that like in the most private schools here dominate not international students, but Swiss children, who live in the vicinity of Lausanne.

I visited Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand at the end of March 2017, during my trip to the schools of Lake Geneva, and spoke to both the management and the students.

Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand is a school with over 100 years of history. Previously it operated as a private school for local children and it always offered the Swiss Federal Maturity program in French. In 1972, the school received accreditation for the International Baccalaureate (IB) program and then Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand became the second school in Switzerland to start offering this program.

At the same time, everyone, even international students up to grade 10, studies according to the French program. After grade 9, students who want to study the IB program, do extra classes of the Pre-IB program in grade 10, and then they follow with IB in English, the rest of the students graduate from Swiss Federal Maturity in French. There are 650 students in the school, and only 50 students, among them mostly all international, live in a boarding house. The main language at the school is French, as teaching up to grade 10 is in French. It is now planned that in the 9th grade it would also be possible to study in English so that students have enough time to improve their English before the IB program.

25% of the school's students choose the IB program, the rest - follow the Swiss Federal Maturity program. Accordingly, the majority of students remain to pursue higher education at Swiss universities. The school positions itself not as an international school, but as a school for local students with the presence of foreign students, who are also more focused on entering public universities in Switzerland. The school has only about 10 percent of international students who easily integrate into the Swiss community.

Most boarding students begin their studies at the age of 15-16, although the school accepts boarders from the age of 10. At the same time, those foreigners who want to study under the Swiss Federal Maturity program should remember that they need to know three languages at an advanced level: French, German and English, therefore, the earlier they start studying in Switzerland, the more opportunities to learn these languages. and pass exams stress-free.

What program to choose: IB or Swiss Federal Maturity

In order to understand the advantages of studying at school in French, one must take into account the fact that if a student graduated from school under the Swiss Federal Maturity program, the student himself chooses where he will continue to study in Switzerland and he would be accepted to any university and any specialty with free education in one of the state languages ​​of the country.

The Swiss Federal Maturity program does not provide for any grounds for the competition to Swiss universities, since there is no graduation score, the student either passed the program and the doors to any university in the country are open for him, or he did not pass it. The program provides that students study 15 general subjects in last grades and they have to keep up with any of them, including knowledge at an advanced level of 3 languages: the language of instruction at school (in Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand it is French), the second state language of the country (optionally German or Italian) and, in any case, English.

It is the knowledge of three languages ​​at an advanced level that leads to the fact that many foreign students, especially those who began their studies in Switzerland at an older age, do not have time to learn three languages, and choose to study the IB program, the disadvantage of which when entering universities in Switzerland it will be that there is a competition for students with any diploma other than Swiss Federal Maturity. For example, for admission to the Polytechnic University of Lausanne, you need a minimum IB score of 38, mathematics and one of the sciences at the advanced level, and the second science at the standard (usually physics and chemistry). At the same time, in order to study at this university for free, education at the university will also be in French. With these goals in mind, it will be the best choice to send your child to school early, so that there is enough time to learn all languages ​​and successfully complete the chosen program.

Accommodation in the school residence

Among the students who live at the boarding house, there are representatives from Asia, Russia, Eastern Europe, and also students from the German part of Switzerland. In total, the residence is home to about fifty people. The school residence is located in the main school building on three floors, all rooms with amenities, on each floor there is a common recreation room.

The school restaurant is located in the elementary school building and offers healthy quality meals three times a day. Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand is proud that their school restaurant has been awarded the Golden Fork label, which means kids only get healthy food.

Basically, children live in rooms for two or three people, graduates live in rooms for one. All rooms are very comfortable, decorated by the students according to their preference. Children can do their homework right in their room, or, if necessary, in the library.

In one of the rooms, I met a girl from Russia who was studying at Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand for the second year. Christina entered school at the age of 15 and, according to the academic level, she was offered a place to choose from either in the 9th or in the 10th grade. Since Christina is still improving her French, she started studying in the 9th grade, and in a year she improved both languages ​​perfectly and finished all subjects perfectly. At the school council, it was suggested that she go straight to grade 11 for the IB program, which she chose. Christina says that she did not feel that she did not have enough knowledge and that it is quite easy for her to study at IB.

The Ecole Nouvelle de la Suisse Reomand campus is located in a residential area of ​​Lausanne, a little away from the bustling city center, and is within walking distance of the university campuses, the city center, and the waterfront. The 2.5 hectares of territory, located on several levels, have a tennis court, a sports ground for playing volleyball, basketball, and football, and jogging tracks. The school also has its own multifunctional gym.

The location of the school near Lake Geneva and the mountain ranges gives everyone the opportunity to engage in summer water and winter ski sports.

Finally, I want to say that I liked the school which left the impression that studying here is very comfortable.