Alessandra Truaisch, Head of Documentary Production, FSCO
Interview
Alessandra Truaisch studied French as a foreign language, Spanish and Italian at UNIL. She is currently Head of Documentary Production at the Swiss VET/PET Centre for Vocational, Academic and Career Guidance (CSFO) in Berne.
I work in a team of 64 people. I'm responsible for providing information services in Italian for the guidance sector, including the production of printed documents, the www.orientation.ch website and other editorial projects. I therefore supervise and coordinate the editorial side of the translations. I check the content, its accuracy, the congruence between the various documents and their adaptability to the context of Italian-speaking Switzerland. I'm also responsible for the editorial side of the thematic brochures, which I monitor and prioritise (with the help of a subcommittee that assesses the needs of the Italian-speaking regions), create portraits and work with graphic designers and photographers. I enjoy a great deal of autonomy.
I studied Italian, Spanish and French as a foreign language (FLE), with a thesis in Spanish and FLE. I applied for three internships at the Careers Advisory Service and got one at the Office cantonal d'orientation scolaire et professionnelle (OCOSP) in Lausanne, as a documentation editor. At OCOSP, I was lucky enough to be trusted immediately. I learnt a lot by writing intensively, in all styles: the newsletter, information tools, sheets for the website (managed jointly with FSCO), as well as minutes of information meetings and e-mails. At the end of the course, I applied for a number of jobs, including at FSCO in Berne. My internship and my knowledge of Italian opened doors for me, provided I could work in an environment where German and French were the main languages spoken.
A good internship is not enough: you need to network, get lots of offers and be patient. Make sure you are appreciated during your internship so that you can get good references. Publishing is one of the hidden sides of the civil service. You can hire people with little experience, give them a lot of freedom and train them on the job. Luck, being in the right place at the right time, can come into play, as in my case. Try everything, don't underestimate yourself, apply even if you don't meet 100% of the criteria.
This person may have changed jobs since this portrait was written. To find out what they are currently doing or for more details about their career path, consider searching for their profile on LinkedIn or other professional social networks!