Adult education

If you are too old to attend compulsory or upper secondary school, you can instead study on municipal adult education programmes or at a folk high school, for example. At the basic level you study subjects that correspond to those taught in compulsory school. At the upper secondary level you take courses that correspond to those taught in upper secondary school.

Municipal adult education is usually called Komvux (short for kommunal vuxenutbildning) in Sweden.

Before you begin your studies, your knowledge will be assessed so that you can begin at the right level. You can study one or several courses in Komvux, and you can study full-time or part-time.

In Komvux, you can also study Swedish for immigrants, SFI.

Swedish for Immigrants (SFI) is a programme that teaches basic Swedish to those who do not have Swedish as their native language. During the programme, you will learn to speak, read and write basic Swedish. You will also learn about Swedish society. The programme is free of charge.

You are entitled to study SFI from the 1 July of the year you turn 16 if you:

• lack basic knowledge of the Swedish language; and
• are or will be registered in the Swedish Population Register.

You can study full-time or part-time

You can study SFI full-time or part-time. If you study part-time, you can combine SFI with a job, work experience or some other form of education, such as upper-secondary school or another municipal adult education programme at Komvux. You can also study SFI part-time if you are on part-time parental leave.

You will have three years to complete the programme from the date in which you are registered in an SFI programme.

Contact your municipality for more information

SFI programmes are arranged by the municipality in which you are registered in the Swedish Population Register. In certain cases, you may also be able to study SFI in another municipality. You can also study SFI at certain folk high schools.

Contact your municipality for more information about SFI. If you are registered with the Swedish Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen), contact your employment officer at Arbetsförmedlingen.

Komvux as special education is intended for anyone who has an intellectual impairment or has had a brain injury.

In Komvux as special education, you can:

• study at the secondary or upper secondary level,
• choose between different courses,
• study Swedish for immigrants in parallel,
• attend an occupational training programme,
  
• study for an exam that corresponds to special needs upper secondary school,
  
• have previous knowledge validated.

If you were trained for a profession in another country, or have worked in a profession in another country, you may need to attend supplementary training in order to be able to work in that profession in Sweden.

Supplementary training programmes are offered at universities and university colleges. They include programmes for:

• economists
• engineers
• nurses
• social workers
• information systems engineers
• doctors
• teachers

The training programmes are between 1 and 2 years long. You are eligible for financial aid from the Swedish Board of Student Finance, CSN, while you attend a supplementary training programme.

A vocational training programme provides training in a specific profession. You can attend a vocational training programme in Komvux or special needs education for adults. You can also attend a vocational training programme at one of the vocational training colleges.

You will have a lot of contact with companies during the training programme. You will be doing apprenticeships or internships, for example. This will increase your chances of getting a job after you complete the training.

Contact the study and occupational guidance counsellors in your municipality if you have questions about occupational training programmes.

Apprenticeships are a form of occupational training available in Komvux. You can do an apprenticeship in order to get basic occupational training as well as more professional experience. A large part of an apprenticeship is done in a workplace, where you have a supervisor who helps you to learn the profession.

A folk high school is a school for adult students where you can take courses at the basic and upper secondary levels. It is possible to board at many folk high schools while you study there.

Folk high schools offer general as well as specialised courses. You can take general courses instead of upper secondary school and sometimes instead of compulsory school. You can also take specialised courses that focus on a particular subject such as music or art, for example. You can also learn a specific profession.

Each folk high school determines who can study at the school. Folk high schools have their own grading system, but studying there can help you meet general entry requirements for universities and university colleges. Meeting general entry requirements means that you possess the knowledge you need in order to begin higher education studies.

Labour market training programmes focus on professions in which there is a great shortage of adequately trained staff. What programmes are available depends on what the labour market looks like at the time.

There is no guarantee that you will get a job if you attend a labour market training programme, but by doing so you increase your chances of getting a job, and you make yourself more attractive in the labour market.

Another way to study is through distance learning. Distance learning means that you don’t go to a school or university to study, instead you can choose where you are going to study. For example, you can study at home or in a public library.

On some distance learning programmes you only use the internet. Other programmes include meeting teachers and other students on a few occasions each year. Between these meetings you keep in contact via the internet, email or phone.

There are many different types of education you can do through distance learning. You can do short courses as well as longer programmes, and distance learning can be full time or part time.

If you have completed an upper secondary education you can continues studying at the post-upper secondary level, at a university, a university college or in higher vocational education, for example.

If you want to pursue higher education you can study on individual courses or on programmes at university colleges or universities. There is a large selection of courses and programmes to choose from, but they have different admission requirements. The various university colleges and universities offer different programmes and courses. In order to find out what courses and programmes are offered at the different institutions and what admission requirements each course or programme has, visit the following websites: