Study in Sweden for International Students

What are the requirements for international students to study in Sweden? What does it cost? How to I apply? The questions are many. Sweden is one of the top destinations for study due to its innovative learning, students’ self-development, diverse society and quality living conditions. Furthermore, international students are eligible to work while they study in Sweden.

Sweden has top ranked universities like the Karolinska Institute, Lund University, University of Uppsala to mention a few. Swedish universities have contributed immensely to knowledge with innovations tilted at improving living conditions. For instance, Lund University invented the medical ultrasound and the Bluetooth. In the same vein, Karolinska Institute is leading the charge with modern innovations in the medical sciences.

In this blog post, I will provide newbies and prospective international students with helpful information on how to apply for the bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes. For the doctoral applications you can read our blog post on Ph.D in Sweden.

How to apply to university in Sweden

Sweden operates a centralized application portal. Hence, applications to all the universities are done on the portal antagning.se (for Swedish applicants) and universityadmissions.se.  Kindly, get familiar with the two websites as information can change from time to time.

The master’s degree application allows applicants to choose four courses in their order of priority. The bachelor’s degree application allows applicant to choose eight courses. Moreover, there is a minimum requirement applicants must meet to qualify for some courses. Therefore, you should read instructions from the school’s website thoroughly before selecting the courses.

There are two application rounds for the autumn and spring semester. The first round of admission is mostly for international students while the second round is for Swedish and EU citizens. Non-EU prospective students should apply during the first round of the autumn admissions because of time needed to apply for the residence permit. Likewise, there are more courses for the autumn round of admission.

• Autumn – The autumn semester starts in August of every year. The first round of admission is between mid October (15th) and mid January (15th). The second round is starts middle of March till May.
• Spring – The spring semester starts in January of every year. The first round of admission starts from 1st June to 1st September. The second round is between 15th September to 9th December.
• In some cases, there are late applications even after the stipulated application dates. You can check courses open for late applications after these dates on the university admission website. Furthermore, there are other key dates to put into consideration and you can check them here.

English Taught Courses

Sweden has good number of courses fully taken in English. There are over 1000 international bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. degree in English. For instance, there is an English course for every discipline. Moreover, some courses are solely in Swedish so you have to check during the process of application to study in Sweden.

Requirements for international students to study in Sweden

The requirements for international students to study in Sweden come in two categories. The requirements for the university to accept your application, which varies between universities. And the ones that are set by the Migration Agency which are the ones we will go into a bit more detail here.

If you are going to study in Sweden for longer than three months, you must have a residence permit. If you are studying for shorter than three months, then you can apply for a visa at a Swedish embassy or consulate that handles migration matters. This applies to students from countries whose citizens need a visa to travel to Sweden. People who do not need a visa to enter Sweden can, if they are going to study for less than three months, stay here during their visa-free period without a visa.

• Proof of acceptance to the university in Sweden, for instance an admission letter from the university.
• Proof you have sufficient funds to support yourself financially during your stay. The Swedish Migration Agency requires around SEK 10.000 per month to cover living expenses.
• Proof of health insurance that covers the entire time you will be in Sweden.
• A valid passport. Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months past your planed stay in Sweden.
• Application for residence permit. Once you’ve been accepted to a program, you must apply for a residence permit as a student at the Swedish Migration Agency. Processing times can vary.
• Proof of English language skills if studying in English (IELTS, TOEFL etc). For programs taught in Swedish, you’ll need to prove your Swedish language proficiency.
• Tuition fees. Many bachelor’s programs in Sweden are tuition-free even for international students but some master’s programs may charge fees. Check with the university.
• Housing. It’s difficult to find housing in major Swedish cities so start looking early via student housing organizations or Facebook groups.

So in summary – admission to a program, proof of finances, valid passport, health insurance, residence permit application, language requirements and securing housing.

Cost of Studying in Sweden

Ph.D students irrespective of nationality do not pay school fees. International students from the European Union (EU), European Economic Area (EEA) and Switzerland are not required to pay school fees for bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes. In addition, there is a comprehensive list of other exemption from school fees on the universityadmission’s website. Nevertheless, if you are not in the category of school fees exemption list, you can still study for a master’s degree at no cost.

Prepare your move to Sweden

Once you have decided to study in Sweden and been accepted to a program – the preparations begin. You will then probably have a long list of to-do’s and an even longer list of questions. Our online course Preparing your move to Sweden will answer a lot ot these questions + give you some very important insights into Sweden and its society.

What you will learn

• Short (and long facts) about Sweden.
• The history and background of Sweden in regards to democracy, religious freedom, gender equality, social security, child welfare and LGBTQIA+.
• The types of visas and residence permits that are available plus the requirements.
• Important Swedish agencies, and trust us, you DO need to know about these ones.
• How to find a place to stay and how to avoid rental fraud.
• How to pack for your move depending on the season.

You can take the course Preparing your move to Sweden from anywhere at any time.

Master’s Scholarship for Non-EU citizens in Sweden

• SI Scholarship for Global Professional  is funded by the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Applicants must show how they can contribute to sustainable development of their home country and region. They must have worked for a more minimum of 3000 hours to qualify for the scholarship. Likewise, applicants must document their leadership qualities and motivate in line with the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.
• The universities in Sweden have scholarships for their prospective master’s students. The scholarships can be 100%, 75% or 50% reduction in tuition fees. The university’s scholarships do not include living cost.

You can read some tips on planning your move to Sweden from Africa on our blog.

Written by Bolaji Daramola, Growth Manager at The Newbie Team

Bolaji is a Swedish Institute scholar, from Nigeria studying Master’s of Science in Media and Communication Studies at Lund University. He is one of the LU student’s ambassadors. He is passionate about helping others and he is our Growth Manager saddled with outreach and collaborations.