Merck is a leading science and technology company in healthcare, life science and performance materials. Around 50,000 employees work to further develop technologies that improve and enhance life – from biopharmaceutical therapies to treat cancer or multiple sclerosis, cutting-edge systems for scientific research and production, to liquid crystals for smartphones and LCD televisions. In 2014, Merck generated sales of € 11.3 billion in 66 countries. Founded in 1668, Merck is the world's oldest pharmaceutical and chemical company. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed corporate group. Merck, Darmstadt, Germany holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the company operates as EMD Serono, EMD Millipore and EMD Performance Materials. Merck is organized in three business sectors: Healthcare (comprising the Biopharma, Consumer Health, Allergopharma, Biosimilars businesses), Life Science (business: Life Science) and Performance Materials (business: Performance Materials).Healthcare – focusing on peopleOur healthcare business sector stands for innovative therapies focusing on people. Healthcare consists of the Biopharma, Consumer Health, Allergopharma and Biosimilars businesses. Our prescription medicines – comprising mainly biopharmaceuticals – are used in neurodegenerative diseases, oncology, fertility, endocrinology, cardiometabolic diseases and general medicine. Our consumer health range comprises over-the-counter pharmaceuticals to address mobility, women’s and children’s health, cough and cold, as well as everyday health protection. The Allergopharma portfolio comprises products for diagnostic testing and treatment of allergies. The Biosimilars business focuses on the development of biosimilars.Life Science - cutting-edge systemsWith a catalog of more than 300,000 products, our Life Science business delivers many of the most highly-respected brands in the industry, such as Millipore, Milli-Q, SAFC and BioReliance. Our offering covers every step of the biotech production chain, creating a complete end-to-end workflow with enhanced customer service, a simplified interface and a leading distribution platform. Our innovative portfolio, well-balanced geographic reach, and industry leading capabilities, uniquely positions us to anticipate and deliver on customer needs. Our Life Science business brings together the legacy expertise of Merck’s life science portfolio and Sigma-Aldrich, which was acquired by Merck in 2015.Performance Materials – High-tech chemicalsThe Performance Materials business offers specialty chemicals that are used in a variety of end products.The full product portfolio of Performance Materials encompasses a wide range of highly innovative materials for future technologies and high-tech chemicals for sophisticated applications serving a broad customer base. For many years now, we are the market leader in liquid crystals for LCD televisions as well as effect pigments.Merck has currently over 500 apprentices at Merck in Darmstadt in 21 different professions. Merck has participated in the Leonardo da Vinci Mobility Project since 2002. During the assingment our trainees receive a project to work on or support the employees in their daily work. The project is coordinated and monitored during the whole time by the responsible person in Darmstadt. Having organised the project for so many years established a great and trustful network between the partners and the project leader in Darmstadt. Our partners are either subsidiarys of our company or universities.The main reason for running short term assignments for apprentices is besides enriching their language skills, building up an international network at a very early stage and also getting to know different ways of working and also develop intercultural skills. By offering these assignments Merck develops very young employees and the results are: more self-confidence and open minded employees, higher ability to work in international teams, increased identification with company, high flexibility and higher willingness to perform.With this project, 51 apprentices will receive the possibilty of a short-term assignment of 3 to 6 months duration within the following countries: Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. Additionally, we schedule 3 trainer assignments abroad. This has already been carried out in the past, but this time initially within our project application.We have a new partner organisation (university) in Sweden involved and are in discussions with a further partner organisation (Merck company/subsidiary) in the Netherlands as well.Merck will apply again for the mobility charta offered by the EU in 2016.