Bachelors from Sweden: Structure, eligibility and application process for UG Courses

Sweden, a Scandinavian country located in the Northern Europe, offers excellent study abroad options for Indian Students. The Top Universities in Sweden rank amongst the top 100 of the world. With a rather substantially lower exchange rate, the cost of studying in Sweden is more economical for Indian Students, in comparison to the more famous European Destinations of France, UK, Ireland, etc.

The article details the structure of the bachelors’ program in the country, the eligibility criteria as applicable to Indian Students for Swedish Universities as well as the Application Process to Under-graduate (UG) courses.

Structure of Bachelors’ Courses in Sweden

There are two types of “Universities” in Sweden – the Universitet and the Högskola (University and University College respectively).  While both are officially translated as University in English, the Universitet are essentially research oriented educational institutions offering degree courses at bachelors’, masters’ and doctorate levels. The Högskolor are specificalized institutions offering courses in applied sciences and have limited rights of offering doctor’s degrees. However, older specialized institutions offering degrees in engineering and medicine also refer to themselves as Högskolor in Swedish.

Universities offer two kinds of courses at bachelor level, namely:

• University Diploma called Högskoleexamen in Swedish which are 2 years - 120 higher education credits courses
• Degree of Bachelor called Kandidatexamen which are 3 years - 180 higher education credits courses

Eligibility for Bachelors Courses for Indian Students for Swedish Universities

Universities in Sweden accept the following Indian high school certificates:

Swedish Universities also accept International Baccalaureate. Students also need to provide English Language Proficiency Proof. All famous SELTs like IELTS, TOEFL and PTE are acceptable. The requirements might vary for different courses and are divided as per English 7, 6 and 5. Most of the courses require English 6. The equivalent for the same for all famous exams are given below.

*TOEFL scores have to be reported directly through ETS. Students cannot upload their TOEFL scores with other documents.  

Application Process for Bachelor Programs in Swedish Universities

Like many European countries, Sweden too has two academic sessions – Autumn Sessions starting in August and Spring Sessions starting in January. While not necessary, but most of the bachelor’s programs have both Autumn and Spring Intakes. The admissions are done over two rounds. The first round application portal opens in October of previous year while the second round opens in the month of March of the same year. International students are advised to apply in the first round itself, to ensure enough time for admission and visa processing before the session starts.

The application process to Swedish Universities is centralized and completely online. Students can apply to a maximum of 4 courses in same/ different university across Sweden. While the documents can be uploaded as well, in case students wish, they can also send the same via regular post. Here is a quick step by step process

1. Finalize the University/ course you wish to apply to.

2. Check your eligibility and scan all relevant academic documents

3. Log on to UniversityAdmissions.se and create an account

4. Upload the documents along with additional documents like statement of purpose, letter of recommendation and resume (as required by individual universities)

Once you have submitted your application, you need to wait for confirmation. On receiving the same, you can start your Student Visas for Sweden. So if you are thinking of your higher education, you might want to check out options to Study in Sweden.