Studying in Sweden

[briancloughley]

I took part in a exchange programes last semester (Autumn 2006) in Lund, in the south of Sweden. Lund is one of the two most prestigious universities in Sweden, and I really enjoyed my studies there. I studied three modules; Swedish Politics, Politics of the Environment, and Intersecting Identities & Collective Action. The latter two modules in particular were very rewarding. Teaching styles in Sweden are a little bit different from those in the UK. Firstly, there is a greater emphasis put on debates, discussions and role plays. For instance, in the module on Environmental Politics we had a role play in class based on post-Kyoto climate change negotiations. I had my reservations abou this sort of thing beforehand, I thought it would be kind of purile and cheesy, but it was actually really good. Most people got really involved in it, and you had to do a fair bit of research in order to argue for your actor's interests with any conviction. I think the main learning outcome was supposed to be that we would better understand the difficulties and compromises involved in reaching multilateral consensus. However for me the most valuable thing was that it helped energise our discussion and provided motivation to research and to get involved.

There was definitely a higher expectation for students to get involved in class discussions. I think its a cultural thing really, Swedish students aren't as passive as those in UK universities, and if they disagree with their lecturers or professors they generally aren't shy to put their point across. A definite improvement on UK tutorials is the quality and passion of classroom debates. Part of this comes from the relationship between staff and pupils. It is more informal in Sweden, lecturers tend to be very approachable and open to input from students about how courses should be run. There is also more emphasis on student input in the assessment of each other's work. For most essays that I wrote you were required to take part in a seminar where you would critically assess the work of others and defend your own.

Although Swedish universities aren't really regarded as academic powerehouses, I'd really recommend studying there. It's sometimes been a source of frustration for me that tuturials in UK universiites can be a bit stale, with an apathetic atmosphere. Studying over there was different, my tutors and and professors were mostly really adept at generating enthusiasm and helping students engage with their studies.