Login
← Blog

CV in Switzerland: structure, length, what does not belong

If you learned in Germany or Austria how a CV is put together, you usually make one specific mistake in Switzerland: you sign it. In German and Austrian templates the signature at the end is so self-evident that the Swiss deviation barely registers — here it is unusual.

2 or 3 pages?

Most Swiss sources say 2 pages: SECO PDF, BS, HSG, ETH, Geneva, UNIGE, Fribourg, Lugano. Only BIZ Bern, UZH and Graubünden allow 3 pages; SECO Web names 3 pages as the upper limit. According to the platform’s rulebooks, up to 3 pages is not an error (a hint), but from 4 on you exceed every Swiss recommendation — and SECO points out that hiring managers only skim.

Two exceptions to the 2-page target:

  • Entry level (apprenticeship, school, career start): 1 page at most (Geneva, ORLI, VD 2019, SDBB template), 1.5 pages at EPFL.
  • Experience first: if you have more than a year of practice after your education, put work experience before education (GE, VD, VS and Lugano recommend this). Entry-level applicants may do it the other way round.

The structure Switzerland reads

Tabular, in reverse chronological order — institutionally documented in German as well as French and Italian (SECO, BIZ Bern, UZH, ETH, Valais, Vaud, Lugano, UOSP, GR):

  1. Personal details/contact (mandatory section)
  2. Work experience (most recent first — for experienced candidates)
  3. Education (mandatory section)
  4. Languages (own mandatory section with level)
  5. IT skills
  6. Interests (customary; if missing, you get a hint)

Dates for every entry as month and year (VD, GR, Lugano models), i.e. MM.YYYY — year-only dates are a hint, not an error. Ongoing entries end with “today”, “à ce jour” or “in corso”.

What German templates teach wrongly

Three habits that stand out in a Swiss CV:

1. Signature and date line. The Swiss adult CV is neither dated nor signed (BIZ Bern, UZH, SECO Web). In Germany the BA explicitly asks for place, date and signature; in Austria the signature is customary (AMS). If you bring your German habits along, you collect a hint here — and come across as someone who mixes up Swiss norms. Exception: SDBB apprenticeship templates include a date line; for apprenticeship applications, stay Swiss and check the template.

2. Certificates in the CV. Reference letters, diplomas and certificates do not belong in the CV document but as separate attachments in the dossier (SBB; Graubünden allows at most three attachments). An all-in-one PDF is a finding.

3. The file name. Document type plus name: “Lebenslauf_Firstname_Lastname.pdf” (DE), “CV_NomPrénom.pdf” (FR), “CV_NomeCognome.pdf” (IT). “CV.pdf”, “Document1.pdf” or “scan.pdf” are generic names that count as a finding. The file name is the smallest courtesy in the application process — HR sees it before any program opens the file.

The PDF the machine reads

The structure is for humans; the format is for applicant tracking systems. As described in the ATS article: a PDF with a text layer, not an image PDF, icons only with a text label. The Swiss standard is the same everywhere: if the entries are not machine-readable, the nicest structure counts for nothing.

Bottom line

  • 2 pages, 3 as an upper limit with a hint, 1 page for entry level
  • Reverse chronological, work experience before education (for experienced candidates)
  • Month and year for every entry
  • No signature, no date on the adult CV (check the SDBB apprenticeship template)
  • Certificates as separate attachments, not in the CV file
  • File name with document type and name
  • PDF with a text layer for applicant tracking systems

The CV scan checks these points against the Swiss rule catalog — with a source for every finding.

Sources (accessed 2026-10-04, from the platform’s rule catalog)

  • SECO Web/PDF: skim reading, 3-page upper limit, neither dated nor signed
  • BIZ Bern, UZH, GR25: 3 pages allowed; BIZ/UZH: no date/signature
  • HSG, ETH, GE26, UNIGE, FR23, Lugano: 2 pages majority
  • GE/ORI/EPFL/SDBB template: 1 page entry level, EPFL 1.5
  • GE26/VD19/VS25/LUG: experience first, MM.YYYY
  • SBB, GR25: certificates as separate attachments, max. 3 attachments
  • SECO Web/BS-Jug/VS25: file name convention
  • BA 2026 (DE), AMS (AT): place/date/signature as contrast