The number of international students in Sweden has increased over the last 10 years, with Germany topping the list. “I feel like Germans are everywhere”, says Amélie Fischer, a German student in Gothenburg. China and Finland complete the podium.
Every year, around 40,000 foreign students come to Sweden for their higher education. Data from Statistics Sweden (SCB) shows that over the last 10 academic years, Germany is on average the most represented country, accounting for approximately 10% of all the international students.
“Maybe we idealize Sweden a lot as Germans. I feel that it has a lot of similarities, but at the same time it is very different.” says Amélie Fischer, a German student in European Studies at the University of Gothenburg
In the meantime, the Swedish educational system plays a big role. Anna-Malin Sorg, who moved from Germany to study at Chalmers University of Technology, in Gothenburg, emphasizes that “the Swedish system is a lot more relaxed compared to the German one that is very strict. Many other Germans have told me that too”. Amélie adds that “in Sweden it is more progressive”.
Populous countries within the EU, such as France and Italy, along with international superpowers like China, the USA and India, round off the top 10.
More students from Finland than from Norway, Denmark and Iceland combined
When it comes to Sweden’s Nordic neighbors, Finland is the most represented country with on average more than 2,000 students following courses or a degree in a higher education Swedish institute each year. This is more than all the other Nordic countries altogether.
The geographic proximity and the fact that some people in Finland speak Swedish, make it attractive for many Finns to study in Sweden. Mette Brännbacka was one of them and studied at the University of Umeå, in Northern Sweden.
“First of all, I applied in Finland to become a preschool teacher, but did not get into the training.” As the requirements in Sweden were not as high as in Finland, she applied at the University of Umeå. “It was much easier. I only needed to send in my grade from high school”, says Mette. “Swedish is my mother tongue so the language wasn’t an issue at all.”
Nigeria first African country on the list
Every year, close to 400 students from Singapore and Australia study in Sweden. Nigeria is the African country with the most students in the Swedish higher education system, around 250 a year, while the amount of Russian and British students have decreased in recent years.
