Questions and answers

Here you will find the answers to some of the most frequent questions about Learning Centres in the whole of Sweden and what it is like to be a distance student.

What is a Learning Centre?

In many Swedish municipalities today there is a Learning Centre. It may also be called a Study Centre or a Competence Centre - the term may vary. The local Learning Centre serves as a study environment and meeting place for adult students. The Learning Centre provides service, support and help before and during the studies.

Where is there a Learning Centre?

You can look for a Learning Centre close to you. Go to the menu.

Why are there Learning Centres?

Learning Centres play an important role for increased accessibility to adult education in general and higher education in particular. Learning Centres can provide various forms of support and service for distance students.

Will I have to go to the the university or college?

This may vary among courses and among providers of education. Sometimes you will have to allow for travelling to the university or college on one/some occasions during the course. Contact the provider of the course you are interested in for more information.

What does it mean to be a distance student?

Being a distance student means that you have more freedom to decide yourself where and when to study. You do your own studying and solve your assignments between the meetings with your teacher and your course mates. These meetings will take place either at the study place that the educational course is allocated to or the university/college. In some cases physical meetings will be sandwiched with video conferences. Bear in mind that it will be taken for granted that you can go to these meetings, even if they do not take place at the place where you live. This could be the case if the meetings are held by means of a video conference, and they also may take place elsewhere. As you realize distance education requires you to be able to earmark certain days for meetings, and that these meetings make it necessary for you to go to the place where they are held.

What does it cost to study at a Learning Centre?

Learning Centres can be used free of charge, and there are no fees for higher education in Sweden. However, you will have to pay for literature, students' union fees, travels and accommodation, if any, etc. The costs of course material depend on what sort of course it is.

Am I entitled to study loans and study grants?

Education within Nätuniversitetet (the Net University) qualifies for the same right to loans and grants as any other academic education. You must meet the demands that the CSN (the Central Students Grants Committee) Du måste uppfylla de krav som CSN (Centrala Studiestödsnämnden) calls for you as a student in order to be granted financial aid, i.e. loans and grants.

Which university can offer most distance courses?

The five seats of learning that had the highest number of courses in 2003 were the University of Gävle (159 courses), Mid Sweden University (159 courses), Karlstad University (134 courses), Uppsala University (129 courses) and Lund University (125 courses). Other colleges and universities work actively towards an increase of their offerings.

If I wish to take a course - can I start whenever I like?

Courses that can offer individual rates of study may sometimes have so-called running admission, and there may be several startiing times per year. You will find information on course starts if you have a look at the web pages of the various courses.

How do I find information on the course I would like to take?

When you have found the course in e.g the database of studera.nu or any other database, you go on to the web page for the course in question. It is the provider of education that you turn to for further information, guidance and application forms for your choice of course or programme.

What are General entry requirements?

The general entry requirements form the joint basis for all higher education in Sweden and will be met by either

- a successful completion of upper secondary education from a national programme or specially designed programme and having passed courses that are equal to 90 % of the number of credit points that are required for a full programme

- a successful completion of adult upper secondary education and having passed courses that are equal to 90 % of the number of credit points that are required for a school-leaving certificate

or

- a transcript of final grades from adult upper secondary education or grades 1-5 of graded courses that are equal to 90 % of the requirements for a school-leaving certificate from adult upper secondary education (at least 1 773 upper secondary school credit points, of which at least 373 core subject credit points).

- a school-leaving cerificate from a full at leat two-year course/two-year special course - in substance built up as a two-year course - from upper secondary school or a school-leaving certificate 2 or 3 from adult education (or similar)

and having knowledge of Swedish and English equal to at least two school years from an upper secondary school course or adult education, level 2. This knowledge can also be proved by a successful completion of Swedish B and English A

or

- meeting the requirements for a so-called 25:4, i.e. having at laest one's 25th birthday no later than during the calendar year of the start of the education and having practised a profession on at least half-time for at least four years before the calendar half-year of the start of the education and being able to prove eligibility of:

- Successful completion of Swedish, course B, or two scool years of a two-year or three-year upper secondary course or level 2
- Successful completion of English, course A, or two scool years of a two-year or three-year upper secondary course or level 2

or

- a completed foreign upper secondary education

or

- completed folk high school education with a certificate of general entry requirements and certified eligibility of all the core subjects.

General entry requirements can also be achieved by folk high school education that has been completed before July 1, 1998 and proved with a certificate of general entry requirements. Certain older education does no longer qualify for the general entry requirements and an allocation to the grade selection. Applicants with such education who can certify the general entry requirements for Swedish and English will be granted exemption from the age demands and professional practice requirements for the 25:4s. Those who meet the requirements without belonging to the grade selection must take the national university aptitude test in order to receive a merit to compete with. Applicants who neither belong to the grade nor the test selection can very seldom be granted a place.

What are specific entry requirements?

For many study programmes there are demands for specific entry requirements. These requirements may vary depending on whether the study programme is aimed at university beginners or not and what kind of education it is. The specific entry requirements are often worded as demands for knowledge from certain courses or subjects from upper secondary school or upper secondary adult education.

Demands for work experience or other relevant previous knowledge may also be called for. The specific entry requirements for study programmes that are aimed at beginners are stated in so-called requirements standards. For courses/subjects that are part of the specific requirements the grades must be at least Three or Pass. Also those who are qualified in accordance with the 25:4 rule have to meet the specific entry requirements. The specific entry requirements for study programmes that are not aimed at university beginners are worded as demands for one or several higher education courses.

What if I do not meet with the entry requirements?

If you do not meet with the general or specific entry requirements, you can supplement your education at upper secondary school, adult education or folk high school. In some cases it may be enough to be examined on your knowledge (a so-called special individual examination).

Can I be exempt?

If you do not meet the formal demands for general/specific entry requirements but have other actual knowledge or experiences that can be deemed as equally valuable, you may be judged as qualified. In an application for exemption - or exemption from demands for entry requirements as it is really called - it is important that you prove your information with certificates or similar.

What is real competence?

If you do not meet the formal entry requirements, universities and colleges may now take all your important knowledge and experiences into consideration, not only your academic knowledge. The purpose is in this way to assess whether your full competence will enable you to cope with the study programme you apply for. In such an overall assessment universities and colleges take knowledge and experiences from work, associations, longer stays abroad, fulfilled personnel education and/or other courses into account. This means a broader view of previous knowledge. To be deemed as qualified is often just the first step towards being admitted to a study programme. Normally you will also have to compete for an entry. Therefore we recommend those who do not have school-leaving certificates to take the national university aptitude test.

Should I take the national university aptitude test?

Bear in mind that the national university aptitude test is an alternative to grade selection. Those who meet the general entry requirements only as 25:4s must take the national university aptitude test to receive a merit to compete with. Applicants who neither belong to the grade nor test selection can very seldom be granted admission. Those who are dyslectic or are visually handicapped or partially-sighted may be given adapted university aptitude tests. However, you will have to contact the universities/colleges or the National Agency for Higher Education, www.hsv.se, for a special inpayment form and information on certificates etc.

Further information is available at http://www.studera.nu Here you will also find earlier tests with keys.

What is distance education?

Distance education is commonly used for all education which is not located to a campus. This may sometimes cause misunderstandings about how the education/course is organized. The following classifications are used within the educational system in order to clarify what is meant.

Net-based distance education: Education is to a large extent carried out with the help of information and communication technology (ICT), and therefore you will have to have access to a computer. You will have great freedom to pursue your studies whenever you like.

Distance education with meetings: Courses that are based on teacher-controlled tuition with meetings, often a maximum of 1-3 days per month. These may be allocated to the campus or to the local study centre/learning centre. Between the meetings comunication may take place via a computer and/or video conferences.

Decentralized (relocated) education: Education is located to a local learning centre with teacher-controlled tuition. It may be the case that certain meetings will have to take place at the campus, e.g. laboratory lessons. Between the meetings you pursue your studies on your own and/or together with your study group. Information and communication may also take place via a computer between teacher and student and student and student.

You can read about the study form (how the education is organized) in the education catalogue of the university/college in question or on their websites.

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