Choosing education or training

Lacking upper secondary skills?

For most jobs, you need an upper secondary education. Having an upper secondary education also increases your chances of getting a job, even if this is not a requirement of the job you apply for.

If you are an adult in need of a full upper secondary education you can take municipal adult education or go to folk high school.

Municipal adult education

Folk high school

Upper secondary education

Study for an occupation

If you are interested in a specific occupation, you need to find out what the requirements are for education and training in that industry. Here are some tips to get you started.

• In Find an occupation (in Swedish) (use the Google Translate-function for translation) there are links to vocational college courses and other education and training paths.
• Contact a workplace where you want to work in the future. What requirements do they have for education and training?
• There are many websites where you can find training and education, both in Sweden and abroad. Use a search engine to search for “find education and training in Sweden” for example.
• A labour market training programme can make you more attractive in the current labour market. The education and training is often customised with a specific employer. This applies to people who are registered as jobseekers.

Remember that these days there are often many paths that lead to the same occupation.

Uncertain about what to study?

You don’t need to have decided on a specific occupation to start to study. Having a wide-ranging education is becoming more and more valuable on the labour market. You may also change tracks many times during your working life.

For those who want to go to university or university college, a freestanding course could be an option. You build up your knowledge bit by bit, while taking the chance to familiarise yourself with life at university and think a bit more about what you want to be.

Studies after upper secondary

If you have an upper secondary education, university, university college, vocational college or folk high school are the usual alternatives if you want to study further.

Studies at university and university college are often theoretical and you can specialise in different subjects.

At a vocational college, you can train for an occupation after upper secondary. The courses are designed to meet the needs of the labour market. This increases the chances of finding a job after training.

At folk high school, the courses are designed to suit the circumstances of the participants. Learning is often in groups by sharing experiences with each other. The study environment is a little calmer and is normally residential. The folk high schools are not subject to central control, each one deciding its courses for itself.