The service assistant's two specialisms — hospital services and business services
One common basic education three different work days
Introduction
The service assistant programme is built on a common professional foundation: cleaning technique, hygiene, chemistry, ergonomics and service. The programme has two stages. Stage 1 is the cleaning technician specialisation, which all students take and which you can finish the programme with. Stage 1 gives access to stage 2, where the path splits: hospital service or company service — the same professional backbone, but very different working days and workplaces.
The common basis
Regardless of which direction you choose, you learn the same fundamental skills: cleaning methods and method selection, hygiene and infection prevention, safe handling of chemicals, ergonomic work techniques and professional service and communication. This common foundation is what makes service assistants broadly applicable in the job market — regardless of speciality, you can be deployed wherever skilled facility services are needed.
School and on-the-job training in all three tracks
All three specialisations follow the same basic structure: you alternate between courses at a vocational college and on-the-job training in a company or institution, where you are a paid apprentice. Where you train naturally depends on your specialisation — hospital service apprentices train in hospitals, while business service apprentices more often train with private companies and in offices. The alternating structure means that you can keep testing the theory in practice while you are in training.
Stage 1: cleaning technician — the specialist in professional cleaning
Cleaning technician is stage 1 of the programme, and all students take it. Here you go in depth with the cleaning trade itself: choosing methods for demanding surfaces, measuring and assessing cleaning quality according to standards such as DS/INSTA 800, and solving special cleaning tasks that require more specialised knowledge than daily cleaning. You can finish the programme here as a cleaning technician or continue to stage 2.
Stage 2: hospital service — close to patients and staff
The specialization hospital service takes you to hospitals and hospital wards, where you work closely with nurses and doctors. Here the tasks are not only about cleaning, but also about practical patient-facing service.
- 01Transport of patients between departments and for examinations
- 02Practical assistance to doctors and nurses in daily life
- 03Serving meals to patients and consideration of diets
- 04Cleaning and hygiene adapted to the hospital's heightened requirements
Stage 2: company service — the right hand of the office and the company
The specialization business service is aimed at offices and businesses, where you solve practical service tasks in addition to cleaning.
- 01Preparation of meeting rooms and catering for meetings
- 02Post-treatment, reception-related tasks and practical help in everyday life
- 03Cleaning and tidiness of office workplaces
- 04Contact with suppliers and practical coordination
| Specialty | Typical duration | Typical place of work |
|---|---|---|
| Cleaning technician (stage 1) | Ca. 2 år | Facility service broadly, larger cleaning tasks |
| Hospital service (stage 2) | Ca. 2½ år | Hospitals and hospital departments |
| Company service (stage 2) | Ca. 2½ år | Offices and private companies |
How do you choose?
Choosing a specialisation is about where you most want to use your skills. If you thrive best with people close by and the setting of the health service attracts you, much points towards hospital service. If you are more into the administrative and practical life of a workplace, company service suits you better. And if you are most passionate about the cleaning trade itself — methods, quality and technique — you can finish with stage 1 as a cleaning technician. All three give you a solid trade with stable demand.
“Same professional backbone, three different working days — choose the specialism that fits where you want to use your expertise.”
— About the structure of the service assistant training