Alain Berset studied political science and economics at the University of Neuchâtel and graduated with a doctorate in 2005. He then worked as a visiting researcher at the Institute for Economic Research in Hamburg before becoming a strategic advisor at the Department of Economic Affairs for the canton of Neuchâtel. In 2006, he founded his own business as an independent strategy and communications consultant. Three years earlier, he was elected to the Council of States for the canton of Fribourg, which he chaired in 2008/2009. From 2005, he also served as the vice president of the Social Democratic group and was a member of numerous parliamentary commissions. He chaired the Council Office, the Political Institutions Committee and the Delegation of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie. Mr Berset has been head of the Federal Department of Home Affairs (FDHA) since 2012 and will be President of the Confederation for the second time in 2023.