In Switzerland, most schools are managed by public authorities: across all levels of education, 87% of schools are public, not including double counts based on the level of education. About one third (35%) of private schools are subsidised by the public sector.
Responsible school authority (status)
Educational institutions are either public or private. Furthermore, private institutions are subdivided into government dependent private (public funding of 50% or more) and independent private institutions (public funding of less than 50%).
The organisation and the location of private schools differ from public schools.
In compulsory education, more than 90% of private schools, whether dependent or independent, accommodate fewer than 100 pupils, while this is the case for 72% of public schools.
More than three quarters of independent private schools offer two or more education levels, compared to a quarter of public schools.
At upper secondary level, private schools account for 44% of educational institutions but educate only one sixth of the students, with the majority of private schools having fewer than 100 pupils.
With regard to location, 81% of private schools are located in an urban commune compared to 56% of public schools.
Of all the schools from primary to upper secondary level, public schools in compulsory education account for the vast majority of schools (primary level: 93%; lower secondary level: 79%). At upper secondary level, more than half (56%) of the schools are public.
The proportion of the independent private schools is 7% for the primary level and 19% for the lower secondary level. The proportion of the government dependent private schools is almost zero (0.3% resp. 2%). Special needs schools differ from other levels of education, with a majority of government dependent private schools (65%). At upper secondary level, 17% of schools are dependent private and 27% are independent private schools.
The distribution of vocational schools by status differs from schools offering general education: 71% of vocational schools and 52% of general education schools are public, 16% and 7% respectively are government dependent private schools, 13% and 40% respectively are independent private schools.
The proportion of the government dependent and independent private sectors increases with educational level, with the exception of special needs schools.
