The Ministry of Education and Research is responsible for the Government’s education, research and youth policy. The Ministry works on issues including school performance, conditions for teachers, study financing and living conditions for young people.

The council (UHR) is a public agency in the field of higher education responsible i.a. for admissions to higher education, information about study programmes, mobility and recognition of foreign qualifications.

UKÄ evaluates the quality of higher education and research, analyses the development, is responsible for official statistics about higher education and monitors compliance with laws and regulations among universities and university colleges.

is responsible for all publicly funded courses in vocational higher education throughout the country, coordinates and supports a national network for validation, serves as the national coordinator for EQF.

is the central administrative authority for the Swedish public school system for children, young people and adults, as well as for preschool activities and child care for school children.

Skolverket - The National Agency for Education

is the central administrative authority for the public school system, publicly organised preschooling, school-age childcare and for adult education.

Learn about Sweden and discover Sweden´s higher education institutions.

Search for courses in all Swedish higher education institutions.

Introduction to Higher Education, Study levels and degrees, Application process, What´s it like to study in Sweden, Information for asylum seekers etc.

Diagram of the Swedish Higher Education system, types of HE institutions and upper secondary qualifications.

In the online version of the 2019 status report, issued by Swedish Higher Education Authority (UKÄ) you can easily search for specific data, copy texts and figures and print pages or create your own pdf.

Swedish Higher Education Authority (UKÄ) evaluate the quality of higher education and research. It is vital for students, employers and society at large that all Swedish higher education and research are of high quality. Four separate evaluations form a national system for quality assurance.

The Swedish National Agency for Higher Vocational Education is a governmental agency located in Västerås and Hässleholm. It administrates government grants and supervises all Higher Vocational Education in Sweden.

This page from UHR contains a list of higher education institutions that participate in quality assurance reviews, have been granted degree-awarding powers and are officially recognised.

This page contains a list of education providers in Sweden lacking degree-awarding powers. The qualifications offered by these institutions neither correspond to any qualifications within the Swedish education system nor comply with the Act Concerning Authority to Award Certain Qualifications (Swedish Code of Statues No 1993:792).

The Swedish Council for Higher Education (Enic-Naric Sweden) evaluates foreign qualifications in order to provide support for people looking for work in Sweden, people who wish to continue studying, or for employers who wish to employ someone with foreign qualifications.

This portal is for everyone who is new to Sweden and wants to find information about Swedish society quickly and easily.

The Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR) evaluates foreign qualifications in order to provide support for people looking for work in Sweden, people who wish to continue studying. The credential evaluation carried out by UHR aims to describe the foreign qualification in a recognition statement that can be used for these purposes. Here you can find everything you need to know about applying for an evaluation of your foreign qualification. Information is available in Arabic, Farsi and other languages.

If you do not have any documents of all or part of your foreign higher education, (academic or post-secondary vocational education) there is a possibility that UHR can write you a background paper instead of a recognition statement.

International Database on Higher Education Entry Qualifications - Sweden, with the list of the final upper secondary school qualifications and with the qualifications that give access to Higher Education in Sweden.

Current structure:

The current structure of the upper secondary school was introduced on 1 July 2011. There are 6 national programmes leading to the Higher education preparatory diploma (Högskoleförberedande examen) and 12 national programmes leading to Vocational diploma (Yrkesexamen). All programmes are three years in duration. Secondary education is based on the 9-year compulsory school.

Specific requirements for access to Higher education preparatory programmes are passing grades in Swedish or Swedish as a second language, English, Mathematics and 9 other compulsory school subjects (the required combination of subjects vary according to programme).

Specific requirements for access to vocational programmes are passing grades in Swedish or Swedish as a second language, English, Mathematics and 5 other compulsory school subjects.

Requirements for awarding the Higher education preparatory diploma are a total of 2 500 credits, of which passing grades provide 2 250 credits (90%). The following courses are required (with passing grade): Swedish or Swedish as a second language 1, 2 and 3, English 5 and 6, Mathematics 1b or 1c, a pass in the diploma project. The Higher education preparatory diploma from municipal adult education consists of 2400 credits.The Higher education preparatory diploma gives general access to higher education.

Requirements for awarding the Vocational diploma are a total of 2 500 credits, of which passing grades provide 2 250 credits (90%). The following courses are required (with passing grade): Swedish or Swedish as a second language 1, English 5, Mathematics 1a, foundation courses of 400 credits, a pass in the diploma project. The Vocational diploma from municipal adult education consists of 2400 credits. The Vocational diploma gives general access to higher education only if supplemented with passing grades in the following courses:  Swedish, or Swedish as a second language 2 and 3, and English 6. These courses are not compulsory within the vocational programmes, but students can choose to take the required courses within the framework of the programme or expanded programme. It is also possible to take the required courses after completing a vocational programme.

Folkhögskola (Folk High School) is an alternative form of adult education. Intyg för behörighet till högskolestudier (Certificate Eligibility for Higher Education) can give general access to higher education if certain requirements are met.

Former structure:

Secondary education in the former structure led to Slutbetyg/School leaving certificate. General requirements for access to higher education for holders of Slutbetyg issued 2010 onwards is a total of 2 500 credits, of which passing grades provide 2 250 credits (90%). The following courses are always required (with passing grade): Swedish or Swedish as a second language A and B, English A and Mathematics A. Slutbetyg/School leaving certificate from municipal adult education consists of 2350 credits.

Upper secondary qualifications giving access to higher education.

Any individual or organisation that wants to verify the authenticity of Swedish credentials should turn to the awarding institution. This service does not require a letter of consent from the student and is free of charge.

Institutions may be contacted by email, postal mail or fax. They can also be contacted by phone during working hours. Correspondence in English is generally accepted. The ability to correspondent in other foreign languages (e.g. French and German) may vary depending on the institution. Contact information for verification is in some cases printed on the credentials.