Sweden from Re.ViCa

Sweden in a nutshell

Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Area-wise, it is one of the largest countries in Europe. Its population is around 9 million or on average 20 inhabitants per square kilometer. The population is very unevenly distributed: some 84 % live in urban areas, and about one third in the 3 major cities of Stockholm, Gothenburg and Malmö.

Sweden is a constitutional monarchy (parliamentary democracy). It has been a member of the European Union since 1995, but it has not joined the European Monetary Union. The capital and largest city is Stockholm, with a population of around 800,000 and metropolitan area of 2 million. The official language is Swedish.

Swedish education policy

Sweden has a strong social-democratic tradition which stresses the redistributive role of state, social inclusion and equality, underpinned by high levels of taxation and public spending. The education system is an integral component of the Swedish concept of the welfare state, and the Swedish spending on education is, indeed, amongst the highest in the world.

Swedish education system

The Swedish education system consists of a compulsory comprehensive nine-year school, a three-year upper-secondary school with pre-academic as well as vocational programs, and a unitary higher education sector that includes academic, professional and vocational programs. There is also a specific sector, the folk high schools, that provides adult education at all levels, ranging from basic school qualifications to vocational programs, some of which can be described as offering an alternative to higher education.

Additionally, municipal adult education offers education at compulsory and upper-secondary school level for those lacking these qualifications as well as vocational training for adults. Advanced Vocational Education is a form of vocational post-secondary education designed and carried out in close co-operation between enterprises and course providers (higher education, upper-secondary schools, municipal adult education and companies).

Equal access to education has long been one of the pillars of the Swedish welfare state. Education from primary school to higher education is mainly tax financed and free of charge to the student. The main distinguishing feature of HE from other forms of education is that HE is based on science or art and on tested experience.

Higher education in Sweden

Swedish tertiary education is provided mainly in the higher education sector, which comprises universities and university colleges. Today, there are 14 state universities, 22 state university colleges, 3 private institutions with undergraduate as well as postgraduate education, and a number of smaller private institutions. The HEIs range from large multi-faculty institutions to specialized institutions of different sizes.

In 1977, the Swedish system was transformed from a binary system of higher education to a formally unitary one comprising academic, vocational and longer and shorter professional programs. In the later part of the 20th and early 21st century higher education has expanded significantly and new institutions have been founded throughout Sweden. The last 15 years have seen a large increase in the number of students as well.

In academic year 2007 – 2008, the Swedish HEIs adopted a new degree structure that conforms to the Bologna Process. The new degree structure creates three levels of higher education – a first level, second level, and third level – each with minimum requirements for entry (see picture 4). Degrees awarded at each level are defined in terms of the expected results and abilities of students. Sweden has also introduced a new credit system, which is compatible with the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS). Under the new system, one academic year of full-time studies is equivalent to 60 higher education credits.

First level At the first level of study, there are two degree options: the University Diploma, achievable after two years of study (120 ECTS), and the Bachelor's Degree, achievable after three years (180 ECTS). One prerequisite for starting higher education studies at the first level is the successful completion of an upper secondary school education.

Second level At the second level of study, there are also two degree options:

• There is a new two-year master’s degree - Degree of Master (Two Years) (120 ECTS). Authorization to award the Degree of Master is given to state universities and other higher education institutions that are approved for research in one or more disciplinary domains, and to private education providers that are authorized to award doctorates and licentiates in a disciplinary domain. Other higher education institutions have to apply to the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education (state education providers) or the Government (private education providers) for authorization to award the degree.
• The Degree of Master (One Year) (60 ECTS) is limited to one-year study programs only.

A prerequisite for studying at the second level is the completion of at least three years at first level at a Swedish higher education institution, or the international equivalent – such as a three-year bachelor’s degree (180 higher education credits). Specialized knowledge may also suffice.

Third level At the third level of study, students are eligible for a Licentiate Degree after two years of research (120 ECTS), and a Doctoral Degree (PhD) after fours years of research (240 ECTS). A prerequisite for studies at the third level is possession of a second-level degree – a Degree of Master (Two Years) or a Degree of Master (One Year) – or the completion of four years of full-time studies – three at the first level and at least one year at the second level. Comparable international degrees are also admissible, and specialized knowledge may suffice as well.

Sweden has seen an impressive growth in tertiary qualification over the past generations. Among the younger population (25-34 -year-olds), 37 % hold a university degree in comparison with 25 % among the 55-64 -year-olds. Graduation from traditional universities stands at 37.7 %. Sweden is also one of the European countries, of which graduation rate from advanced research programs (PhD or equivalent) exceeds 2.0 % (Sweden: 2.2%).

The share of international education market is relatively modest for Sweden which receives 1.4 % of all foreign students enrolled in tertiary education. However, Sweden still places itself well ahead of its Nordic neighbors. In 2005, international students comprised 4.4 % of all tertiary enrolment (76 %) in Sweden.

Higher education reform

The Bologna Process

In academic year 2007 – 2008, the Swedish HEI’s adopted a new degree structure that conforms to the Bologna Process. The new structure applies to all study programs and courses started in July 2007 or later. In the new structure, higher education in Sweden is divided into three cycles: undergraduate level, graduate level and postgraduate level. A new degree, the Degree of Master (Two Years), and a new credit system were also introduced.

Administration and finance

Like all other public administration sectors in Sweden, also higher education is subject to management by objectives and results. State higher education institutions in Sweden are formally Government agencies, subject to the same general body of legislation as other agencies, but with a complementary set of sector-specific laws and regulations designed, among other things, to safeguard academic freedom.

Decision making in HE is decentralized, with a relatively high degree of powers and responsibilities having been delegated to the institutions. The Government decides on objectives and specifies the required results, while it is the responsibility of the institutions to ensure that the activities are carried out in the best possible way. There is a substantial amount of freedom for the institutions to decide on the use of their resources and organization of their activities as well as their educational profile. The institutions are required to report back to the Government in various ways.

Higher education and research in Sweden, as a whole, is financed predominantly by public funds, mainly via direct allocations from the state to the institutions. However, the proportion allocated directly in relation to other funding sources differs for undergraduate and graduate studies on the one hand and for research and doctoral studies on the other. In total, over 85% of the revenues for higher education, excluding research and doctoral studies, consist of direct state allocations. The proportion of funding received by the HEI’s for research and doctoral studies from direct state allocations is substantially lower.

Quality assurance

The Swedish National Agency for Higher Education is responsible for the quality evaluation. All programs and major subjects have been evaluated during the six-year period of 2001 – 2007. The Swedish National Agency for Higher Education has also completed two rounds of quality audits of higher education institutions.

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