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Higher education

Programms in English

Nearly 1 240 programmes at bachelor’s and master’s level are offered in English in Sweden.

Higher education in Sweden comprises mainly public universities and colleges. There are only few private universities.

University or University College?

Two slightly different terms are used in Sweden to describe institutions of higher education:

  • University (Universitet).
  • University College (Högskola).

The main difference is that universities have the right to award doctorates (PhD) while many university colleges don’t.

There is no difference in quality in the bachelor’s or master’s degrees offered by both types of institutions.

Degrees

Swedish universities and university colleges offer degree programmes according to the “Bologna” standards:

  • Bachelor  (180 ECTS).
  • Master (60 to 120 ECTS).
  • PhD (240 ECTS).

Undergraduate programmes

You can study almost any subject in english. But you must be fluent in Swedish to get in the following subjects: medicine, nursing, dentistry, teaching!
A bachelor’s programme taught in Swedish is known as “kandidatprogram” or “utbildning pa grundniva”.

Graduate programmes

There are over 900 masters currently offered in English: advanced coursework followed by a research-based master’s thesis.

PhD 

Research-based programmes = 240 ECTS.

Leading research areas:

  • Environmental technology.
  • Nanotechnology research.

Find your study programme

Visit studyinsweden to search all the programmes offered in English. You can choose up to eight bachelor’s programmes to apply for in each application round.

Application

Admission to all undergraduate programmes is competitive. Every university and university college has its own procedure for selecting candidates.
The majority of bachelors and masters programmes in Sweden begin in the autumn semester.

Criteria applied

  • Secondary school leaving diploma (diplôme de fin d’études secondaires/secondaires techniques).
  • grades obtained, assessment of work samples, interview results, special admission tests and eventually work experience linked to the chosen area of study.
  • good knowledge of English (e.g. Toefl test or IELTS test).
  • good proficiency in mathematics.

Apply online

Applications are processed through the central application portal Universityadmissions.se.

Through this website you can:

  • create a user account.
  • search for courses and programmes.
  • rank your selection!
  • fill out and send in your application.
  • receive and print out your Notification of selection results.
  • reply to any offers of admission.

Tuition fees

There are no tuition fees for students from EU or EEA countries.

Distance learning

Most Swedish universities offer the possibility to study part-time or take evening-time courses. There are also distance courses available at both Master's level and bachelor's level. You can see the courses that are offered by searching directly in the University's course and programme database. 

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