Valais ConnectValais, engraved in our hearts

The problem

Student life in Valais exists. It is just scattered.

From Monthey to Brig, students live in different schools, languages and valleys. There is no shortage of opportunities: what is missing is the link between them, and between you. Here is each problem, its cause, and the concrete answer Valais Connect brings.

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Valais Connect
Today, everything is scattered. Valais Connect brings it together.

The situation

Twelve problems, three roots

Valais has renowned schools, companies that hire and a rich community life. Yet day to day, students keep running into the same obstacles. They all come from three causes.

The three roots of the problem

  1. Everything is scattered

    Events, jobs, housing, study notes and help travel through dozens of channels that never talk to each other.

    How Valais Connect answers

    Everything in one place

    Events, jobs, housing, resources, buying and selling and mutual aid behind a single account and a single search.

  2. Everything is siloed

    Each class, school and language region lives in its own bubble: you only know the people you already meet.

    How Valais Connect answers

    Open to the whole canton

    Communities for schools, programmes, cities and interests, open to everyone, and the option to message any student.

  3. Nothing is protected

    Buying, paying, getting something delivered or helping each other between strangers happens with no guarantee, and with the risk of scams.

    How Valais Connect answers

    Protected end to end

    Payments held until handover, members you can report, a moderation team and disputes settled.

The problem in detail

Each problem, its cause and its solution

For each obstacle: an everyday situation, why it happens, what it costs, then exactly what Valais Connect changes.

The first names and situations below are made-up examples to illustrate each problem, not testimonials.

The three roots of the problem · 1/3

Everything is scattered

Problem 01

Information scattered everywhere

LéaTypical situation
Léa moves from Fribourg to study in Sion. On Monday, she sees in a story that a welcome party took place… on Saturday. The news was shared in a class group chat she had not joined yet.
Why it happens
Every association, school and class uses its own channel: group chats, social networks, posters, e-mails. Nobody has the full picture.
What it costs
You miss events, jobs and good deals simply because you were not in the right group at the right time.
With Valais Connect
One feed and one calendar for the whole canton

Posts from your communities, student events and listings land in one place, and you choose what matters to you.

See the feature in detail
Problem 02

Invisible jobs and internships

MalikTypical situation
Malik is looking for an IT internship near Sierre. He spends his evenings on national job sites, while a small company in Visp was looking for exactly that: the offer was only on its website and in the cafeteria.
Why it happens
Small Valais companies post their offers where they can: their website, word of mouth, a notice board. Big platforms bury them among offers from all over Switzerland.
What it costs
Students look elsewhere, companies struggle to hire locally, and talent leaves the canton.
With Valais Connect
Valais opportunities, in one place

Offers are published by the Valais Connect team, those collected from public sources are reviewed before going live, and the best matches for your profile come first.

See the feature in detail
Problem 03

Housing that is hard to find

ElenaTypical situation
Elena starts in Martigny in September. At the end of August she still has nothing: a “perfect” listing asked for a deposit before any visit, and flatshares are mostly found through friends of friends.
Why it happens
Listings are spread across general websites, groups and notice boards, with no student filter and no idea who is behind them.
What it costs
Lost time, rents over budget and the risk of scams, right when your studies begin.
With Valais Connect
Housing between students, near your school

Rooms, flatshares, studios and sublets posted by members of the platform, filtered by town and budget.

See the feature in detail
Problem 04

Lost study notes

NicolasTypical situation
Before the statistics exam, Nicolas looks for the summaries a student wrote last year. They exist, somewhere, on the phone of someone who has already graduated.
Why it happens
Notes and summaries are swapped between friends by message or USB stick, and stored nowhere.
What it costs
Every class year redoes the same work, and those without the right network revise with less.
With Valais Connect
A shared, lasting library

Course notes, summaries and useful links sorted by school, programme and subject, available from one class year to the next.

See the feature in detail
Problem 05

Mutual help that gets lost

ChloéTypical situation
Chloé needs someone driving from Sierre to Sion tomorrow morning, and a camera for a project. She posts in three groups. Replies come the next day, and nobody knows how to split the fuel.
Why it happens
There is no shared place to ask for or offer help between students: everything depends on goodwill and on which group you happen to be in.
What it costs
Half-empty cars, equipment gathering dust and students left to cope alone.
With Valais Connect
Mutual help, organised and secure

A space to ask questions, offer or request a hand, share a ride, lend equipment or support a fundraiser.

See the feature in detail

The three roots of the problem · 2/3

Everything is siloed

Problem 06

Isolated students

YanisTypical situation
Yanis comes from Ticino. After two months in Sion, he only knows the ten people in his course group. He would love to meet other ski touring fans, but does not know where to start.
Why it happens
Nothing helps you discover students from other classes or schools, apart from chance encounters.
What it costs
Loneliness, falling motivation and the feeling of not being part of student life in Valais.
With Valais Connect
Profiles and a network that open doors

Your profile shows your school, programme and passions: other students find you, follow you and message you in one tap.

See the feature in detail
Problem 07

A canton divided by language

JonasTypical situation
Jonas studies in Brig. He would like to join the hackathon in Sion, but hears about it too late, and everything was announced in French.
Why it happens
Student channels are organised by region and language. Both parts of the canton live side by side with no shared tool.
What it costs
Two parallel student lives in one canton, and collaborations that never happen.
With Valais Connect
One platform, in your language

The whole canton uses the same platform, in French, German or English: the communities of Brig, Visp or Sion and their events are visible on both sides of the language border.

See the feature in detail
Problem 08

Schools that do not talk to each other

SofiaTypical situation
Sofia studies design and needs a developer for her final project. The computer science students are a few kilometres away, at another school, but she has no way to reach them.
Why it happens
School tools (intranets, course platforms) are closed to their own campus. You already need to know someone to enter another circle.
What it costs
Few projects across programmes, even though the skills of the canton’s schools complement each other.
With Valais Connect
Communities open to every school

Schools, programmes, cities and interests: each community has its own posts, members and events, open to the whole canton.

See the feature in detail

The three roots of the problem · 3/3

Nothing is protected

Problem 09

Buying second-hand with no guarantee

MatteoTypical situation
Matteo finds a second-hand laptop at a good price. The seller wants a bank transfer before shipping it. Matteo hesitates: he knows nothing about him, and if nothing arrives, he has no recourse.
Why it happens
Classic classifieds connect strangers without protecting the payment or checking the handover.
What it costs
Scams, items not as described, or deals that never happen out of mistrust. Useful things end up in the bin.
With Valais Connect
A student marketplace with protected payment

Sell, buy or give away books, computers, furniture or bikes. Your money is held until you confirm you received the item.

See the feature in detail
Problem 10

No car, no pick-up

InèsTypical situation
Inès lives in Monthey and finds the perfect desk… in Sierre. She has no car, neither has the seller. The deal falls through.
Why it happens
Standard delivery services are not made for items between private people, and are expensive for short distances.
What it costs
Cancelled deals, train rides with a box under your arm, and items nobody picks up.
With Valais Connect
Student couriers, tracked live

An available courier nearby picks up the item from the seller and brings it to you. You follow every step to your door.

See the feature in detail
Problem 11

Paying each other is a headache

LukasTypical situation
This month Lukas shared three rides, bought a book and helped someone out. Between cash, transfers and “I’ll pay you back tomorrow”, he no longer knows who owes him what.
Why it happens
Each exchange is settled a different way, with no link to what was bought or done.
What it costs
Forgotten amounts, awkwardness between friends and no record if there is a disagreement.
With Valais Connect
One wallet, topped up with TWINT

A single balance to pay for purchases, deliveries, rides and favours in the app, and to send your earnings to your bank.

See the feature in detail
Problem 12

Fake profiles and scams

AmélieTypical situation
Amélie gets a message from a “landlord” offering a room if she pays right away. The profile was created the day before. She does not know where to report it.
Why it happens
General platforms are open to everyone, with no moderation dedicated to students and no payment protection.
What it costs
Lost money, distrust of everyone, and useful exchanges that never happen.
With Valais Connect
A safe, moderated network

Valais Connect protects your account, your exchanges and your money, and a team looks after the community.

See the feature in detail

Today’s tools

Existing tools are good. Just not for this.

Each tool covers part of the need, often very well. None was designed for a regional, trilingual student community with protected exchanges.

Group chatsWhat it does well Instant communication between friends.What is missing Messages get buried, limited to one class, phone number shared, no structure.
General social networksWhat it does well A wide audience and visual content.What is missing Too much noise, nothing local, no link with the canton’s schools.
School websites and intranetsWhat it does well Official, reliable information.What is missing One campus, one language, no exchanges between students.
Notice boards and postersWhat it does well Visible on site, easy to use.What is missing Quickly outdated, invisible from another town.
Classified ad websitesWhat it does well Lots of offers, posted in minutes.What is missing Unknown sellers, upfront payment with no protection, no delivery between students.
Professional networks and job sitesWhat it does well A career profile and plenty of offers.What is missing Poorly suited to student jobs and the local Valais economy.

What is missing is not one more tool. It is the link.

Valais Connect does not replace your apps: it brings everything about your student life in Valais into one shared, safe space made for you.

The benefits

What everyone gains

Connecting students does not only make their lives easier: it helps schools, companies and the whole canton.

  • For you, as a student

    A simpler, richer student life

    • Save timeOne app instead of ten group chats, and only the notifications that matter to you.
    • Meet peopleStudents from every school and region, one message away.
    • Spend less, earn a littleSecond-hand items, giveaways, ride sharing, loans, and courier missions between classes.
    • Exchange with confidenceBuy, sell or help other students without fearing a scam.

  • For schools

    Better integrated students

    • A community for each schoolThe school’s students find each other, talk and organise their events.
    • Projects across schoolsThe canton’s complementary programmes finally meet.
    • A visible student lifeA connected student life makes Valais schools more attractive.

  • For companies

    Direct access to the canton’s talent

    • Offers seen by the right profilesPublished by the Valais Connect team, offers are suggested first to students whose programme and interests match.
    • Hire locallyStudent jobs, internships, apprenticeships and missions for students who already live in Valais.
    • Keep talentA first internship at a Valais company is a reason for talent to stay.

  • For the canton

    A more united, more attractive Valais

    • Bring language regions closerA shared space where French- and German-speaking students meet and work together.
    • Bring every region to lifeEvents and associations visible in every town, all the way into the side valleys.
    • Encourage solidarityMutual help, ride sharing and reuse: lower costs for students, stronger ties.

Fewer group chats, more connections.

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