Haute école de travail social Fribourg (HETS-FR)

Name

Haute école de travail social Fribourg (HETS-FR)

Legal name

Haute école de travail social Fribourg

Website

https://hets-fr.ch

Company type

Private

Founded year

1972

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education in Social Work

NAICS

Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (61131), Educational Support Services (611710), Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Arts-Integrated Liberal Arts Colleges (EDAHACAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Newcomer & Refugee Student Support Programs (EDAJAGAH), Education Systems Strengthening (Policy, Planning, EMIS, Governance) (BPADAKAK), Immigrant/Integration Language Programs (ESL/ESOL, Civics-Integrated) (EDAMAFAK), Academic & Classroom Integration Support (Study Skills, Academic Norms, Integrity) (EDAIAKAG), Language & Communication Continuing Education (EDAAAEAF)

Keywords

• Social work education
• Higher education degrees
• Continuing education programs
• Applied social research
• Refugee integration programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Fribourg

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Public tertiary education funding: As a public Swiss university of applied sciences (Haute école spécialisée), HETS-FR is primarily funded through government subsidies (cantonal and federal), with tuition fees contributing to revenue. Additional revenue streams include continuing education programs, applied research contracts, and service provision.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Haute école de travail social Fribourg (HETS-FR) is a public university of applied sciences in social work that delivers an accredited three-year Bachelor of Arts (HES-SO) in Social Work, a Master of Arts in Social Work, continuing education (CAS/DAS/MAS, short courses, customized training), and the AlterEgauZ bridge program for refugees. It complements teaching with applied research, expert consultancy, and campus services (library, IT, daycare, cafeteria) for around 400 students in the canton of Fribourg.

Product overview

Haute école de travail social Fribourg (HETS-FR) is a university of applied sciences offering a comprehensive portfolio of social work education and services. The core offerings include a Bachelor in Social Work (3-year undergraduate degree) and a Master in Social Work (graduate program). Supporting these are continuing education programs (Formation Continue) with short courses, customized training, and postgraduate certificates (CAS, DAS, MAS). Special programs include the Hub AlterEgauZ and its Passerelle AlterEgauZ HETS, which provide academic pathways for refugees and asylum seekers. The institution also conducts applied research (Recherche & Innovation) and provides professional services (Prestations de Services). Campus services include a library, IT services, study support, cafeteria (Mozaïk), childcare (Pérollino), and free midi conferences open to the public.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bachelor en Travail Social Three-year accredited undergraduate degree in social work leading to a Bachelor of Arts HES-SO, available full-time, part-time, or as an employment-track programme with mandatory field practicum placements; intended for prospective professional social workers.
• Master en Travail Social Graduate-level programme in social work offered as part of the HES-SO Master, providing interdisciplinary, analytical, and research-oriented training for bachelor graduates seeking expert, leadership, or research roles.
• Formation Continue Continuing education portfolio including short courses, customized on-site training, and postgraduate certificates (CAS, DAS, MAS) for social-work and social-sector professionals.
• Formation AES (Accueil Extra-Scolaire) Continuing-education programme for out-of-school care (Accueil Extra-Scolaire) providers, covering 11 courses for practitioners and 2 courses for supervisors in the 2026-27 cycle.
• Offre Bilingue Bilingual French/German study track embedded in the Bachelor programme, allowing students to complete parts of their studies in either language.
• Hub AlterEgauZ Cross-institutional bridge year jointly delivered by HETS-FR, HEG Fribourg, and HEIA Fribourg, providing academic preparation and French language training (Hérodote and Hérodote Plus) to enable highly qualified refugees and asylum seekers to access bachelor studies at Swiss universities of applied sciences.
• Passerelle AlterEgauZ HETS Bridge track at HETS-FR within the AlterEgauZ Hub that prepares qualified refugees and asylum seekers to begin or resume bachelor studies in social work.
• Recherche & Innovation Applied research and innovation services including commissioned research projects, publications, and the Journal de la recherche, covering social-work practice, migration, poverty, racism, and sustainability for public authorities, NGOs, and social-sector institutions.
• Prestations de Services External service offerings to organisations including consultation, training partnerships, expert evaluations, and professional development services delivered by HETS-FR staff.

Quantifiable outcome

• The AlterEgauZ bridge program has supported highly qualified refugees and asylum seekers in accessing higher education since 2021, expanding to a Hub (three HES-SO FR institutions) in 2025.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• University of Fribourg (UNIFR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 September 2026Co-organizer of the Swiss Sociological Association Congress 2026 (September 2–4, 2026), hosted jointly at HETS-FR and UNIFR. The congress focuses on 'Communities and Societies in Movement' and revisits classical sociological perspectives on community and society.
• INVOST (HES-SO Integration Program)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerINVOST is a HES-SO integration program supporting highly qualified refugees and asylum seekers in accessing higher education. It supports the AlterEgauZ bridge program, which helps qualified refugees begin or resume studies at Swiss universities of applied sciences.
• Perspektiv StudiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPerspektiv Studium is a Swiss national program supporting university access for refugees. It co-supports the AlterEgauZ Hub bridge program alongside INVOST and the Canton of Fribourg's Social Action Service.
• Service de l'Action sociale du canton de FribourgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Social Action Service of the Canton of Fribourg is a key institutional partner in the AlterEgauZ Hub, providing support and alignment with cantonal integration objectives (Plan d'Intégration Cantonal PIC3 2024-2027).
• Centre de langues de l'Université de FribourgcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Fribourg's Language Centre provides intensive academic French language courses (Hérodote and Hérodote Plus programs) for refugees participating in the AlterEgauZ bridge year, enabling them to reach the B1+ French level required for bachelor studies.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Fernfachhochschule Schweiz (FFHS): Swiss distance-learning UAS offering flexible, technology-mediated Bachelor and Master programmes. Represents a digital-native competitor that could capture continuing education and Bachelor market share if HETS-FR fails to scale online delivery.
• Kalaidos Fachhochschule: Swiss private UAS group with social sciences and social work-adjacent programmes. A digitally forward, privately funded peer that pressures the public UAS model on flexibility, employer partnerships, and applied research commercialisation.

Direct peers

• SUPSI - Dipartimento economia aziendale, sanità e sociale: Scuola universitaria professionale della Svizzera italiana's social work and health department. Comparable Italian-speaking Swiss UAS social work programme under a similar public funding model, with relevant benchmarking for bilingual/multilingual delivery.
• ZHAW School of Social Work: Largest German-speaking Swiss UAS social work school at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences. Closest analogue for benchmarking scale, continuing education catalogue size, applied research output, and digital delivery maturity in the social work field.
• Haute école de travail social de Genève (HETS&Sa / HES-SO Genève): Geneva-based HES-SO social work school delivering the same accredited Bachelor and Master degrees in social work. Operates under the same HES-SO regulatory and funding framework as HETS-FR, providing a strong peer for tuition policy, faculty cost structure, and applied research scale.
• FHNW Hochschule für Soziale Arbeit: University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland's social work school. Offers the same federal UAS Bachelor/Master degree structure with applied research and continuing education, making it a direct peer for educational model and policy positioning.
• Ostschweizer Fachhochschule (OST) - Departement Soziale Arbeit: Eastern Switzerland UAS social work department offering federal Bachelor and Master programmes in social work. Directly comparable on mandate, funding logic, and applied research focus within the broader Swiss UAS network.
• Berner Fachhochschule, Department of Social Work: Bern University of Applied Sciences social work division, a German-speaking counterpart operating in the same overall Swiss UAS market. Comparable Bachelor/Master portfolio and applied research mandate, with direct overlap in the Bern/Fribourg bilingual catchment.
• Haute école de travail social et de la santé Lausanne (HETSL): Fellow HES-SO Haute école de travail social offering Bachelor and Master in Social Work in French-speaking Switzerland. Directly comparable mission, degree portfolio, and student profile, making it the closest peer for benchmarking enrolment, research output, and continuing education performance.

Broad incumbents

• Université de Fribourg - Departement de Travail social et Politiques sociales: Canton of Fribourg's traditional university, which collaborates with HETS-FR (Herodote language programme, SSA Congress 2026) and is itself a significant social work education and research provider. A broader, university-level incumbent operating in the same regional talent pool.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/HETSFribourg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/haute-cole-fribourgeoise-de-travail-social-hef-ts-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Haute école de travail social Fribourg (HETS-FR)