Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
2015 – 2016
Report 1
faculty/college
level
name study programme
Humanities
bachelor’s
master’s
PhD
History
PREPARATION
exchange application process
Started researching the application process almost a year in advance, but was pretty late filling in all the required
paperwork, limiting my options. I Eventually went to Linköping because it had an open spot. So take that into
consideration when you want to apply.
counselling & support at Utrecht University
All questions I had were answered pretty quickly and never took longer then a few days. The International
Office was also helpful in getting my minor aproved.
academic preparation
Since I wanted to do my minor in Sweden I had to ask permission from the Examcommision which took some
time. Furthermore I started learning some Swedish with the help of online courses, but since my courses would
be in English this wasn't mandatory.
language preparation
As stated above, I learned some Swedish and enrolled in a Swedish intensive course in Linköping to get around
more easily. Learning Swedish isn't really necessary, because most Swedes know and don’t mind talking English.
I also took the EU language test and scored a C2 for my English, so I had a fairly good grasp of the language.
finances
I had saved some money and built up a buffer for my exchange, however it wasn't enough. Say you think you
can manage with €2000 reserved for your exhange in Sweden, multiply that by 2 and you get closer to the real
ammount you need. The Nordic countries are insanely expansive, and as an exchange student you don't get the
government grant the Swedish students do. Also you'd want to do some trips, which will also cost you some
money.
STUDY ABROAD PERIOD
study programme (content and organisational issues)
I can highly recommend doing the Swedish intensive course followed by a study programme consisting of 4
courses.
academic quality of education activities
The level of education in Sweden is comparable to that of the Netherlands. The main difference however is that
the intensity is much lower. I only had one course at a time, which consisted of 6-8 lectures and 2 seminars
followed by a take home exam. So every course would take about a month.
counselling & support at receiving university abroad
The International Office in Linköping is really welcoming and will help you with anything. Since Linköping has
many exchange students they have become quite proficcient in the welcoming process. Everything was very
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
well explained and I didn't really struggle with ay questions.
transfer of credits
Because I did my minor in Linköping, I had to ask permission from the Examcommission. I did this before my
exchange so don't foresee any problems with my credit transfer. The grading system is different though, but are
easily converted.
STUDENT LIFE
welcome & orientation programme
Linköping has a bustling International community and a lot of international orginisations that welcome new
students. You have ESN and ISA that host many events throughout the year and at the start. As my Intensive
Swedish course started before the welcome period, I was able to settle down a bit before and lean into it. Don't
be worreid that you are not gonna meet new people, you will and there will be a lot. So I do recommend you
visit the events.
accommodation
The corridor rooms in the studentcampus of Ryd are perfect. The rooms are spacious, with their own bathroom
and shower. They are even renovating the buildings now so the shared kitchens and livingrooms are up to date.
Apartments outside of the student campus can be quite expansive on the otherhand and the hostels in
Linköping aren't the best for long stays. Oh and the internet is really fast aswell. If you need furniture or stuff
for you room, you should look for the facebook groups where they sell stuff. Or go to IKEA, it is Sweden afterall.
leisure & culture
Hope you like coffee, cause you are gonna drink a lot of it. Also almost every week there is a party hosted by
one of the faculties on the uni campus. Most of these are quite fun. During the winter you might wan't to stay
indoors, but as soon as it gets above 10 degrees everybody is outside. There are BBQ places everywhere,
volleyball fields, tennis fields, parks where you can chill and saunas you can book.
suggestions/tips
Travel a lot and do a roadtrip or two with other international friends. You have to go to Lapland during winter,
the Norwegian fjords during summer and go on a boattrip to the Baltic or Finland during Spring or Autumn. Get
some contacts with Swedish students, so you don't have to que for tickets to any of the parties. Get a bike as
quickly as possible. Check the facebook groups for stuff you need for furnishing your room or anything, btw
they also sell bikes on there. Buy your alcohol on one of the boat cruises where it is really cheap.
CONCLUSIONS
would you recommend this university/destination abroad to others? please explain
I would really recommend Linköping. The city itself isn't that special, but it makes up for it with a very active
student life. The city is quite central in Sweden, so taking trips to Stockholm, Göthenburg, Copenhagen or
Malmo is easy. The biggest sellingpoint for Linköping is its strong international community however. Trust me
you will have a great time.
do you have any additional advice or comments?
Make the most out of it! Go on trips and go to parties, the courses aren't as intense as back home so make use
of that.
Report 2
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
faculty/college
level
name study programme
History & Art History
bachelor’s
master’s
PhD
History
PREPARATION
exchange application process
The application process requires some administration, but the site is quite clear on what to hand in before what
time, so it's not very difficult. The only problem I had was that I didn't fill out a form correctly (missed one minor
box) and noticed this only after it got signed by my receiving university , and therefore it wasn't accepted the
first time. I could fix this by filling out a second version of the form (without a signature) and handing this in with
the first one, but make sure you fill out everything.
counselling & support at Utrecht University
As I said the site was quite clear so I didn't need a lot of counselling, but when it was needed it was helpful.
academic preparation
In Linkoping I did a minor in Political Science, which differs a bit from my bachelor in Utrecht namely History.
Therefore the LiU did want to check if I finished a sufficient amount of courses related to political science, but
since they decided this was the case there was no extra academic preparation needed.
language preparation
Utrecht University could give me a certificate of B2 level English, as being enrolled as a bachelor student. This
proofed to be enough for LiU to accept me.
finances
The finances for me proofed to be quite easy to manage. At the beginning of my stay I received a significant
part of my total Erasmus grant (Around 70% I think) and you keep your Dutch student grant plus you can stop
your OV-card in the Netherlands and get around 100 euros per month instead of it. Although Sweden is quite
an expensive country, it is doable to get fair-priced groceries, and compared to Utrecht my room was quite
cheap as well (around 300 euros/month). I have to admit I also got some support from my parents which made
me not having to be very careful with money.
STUDY ABROAD PERIOD
study programme (content and organisational issues)
As I said I did a minor in Political Science. It were four related courses spanning about a month each, and you
followed one course at a time. Common denominator was that the amount of classes was low (around 4-6
hours per week on average I would say) and that a lot of the papers were written in groups opposed to alone. If
there was a general exam at the end of the course it was always a take-home exam. These were bigger than I
was used to in Utrecht though, two asked for around 4000 words and the last one around 6000.
academic quality of education activities
The academic quality I would say was good, the classes were informative and the literature we read met good
academic standards. I also thought the teachers were very involved and supportive.
counselling & support at receiving university abroad
I didn't need a lot of counselling and support, but on the few occasions I did it was very effective and helpful.
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
transfer of credits
Apart from that the grading took quite a long time, I experienced no major problems in this regard.
STUDENT LIFE
welcome & orientation programme
The welcome programme consisted of different activities organised by the two student associations for
international students, ISA and ESN. They were mainly activities that took a part of a day and involved getting to
know the city and university, or an aspect of swedish culture. I think they were essential in getting to know
people: apart from the classes I met most of my friends during these activities.
accommodation
Most of the students get a room via the university, which is a corridor room in the neighbourhoud Ryd near the
LiU campus, where almost all of the students live. I got one via KOMBO though, a site where landlords can post
a room directly and you can contact them to apply for it. I feel I was very lucky, since I subscribed way too late
on the main site for room rental in Linkoping, which is Studentbostader. Therefore I didn't have enough points
and thus couldn't get a room there. So the tip: subscribe to Studentbostader immediately when you know
you're going to Linkoping.
leisure & culture
To be honest: Linkoping as a city doesn't have a lot to offer, surely less than Utrecht has. Also mainly because it
is quite a small city (around 100 000 inhabitants). The student life mainly revolves around the mentioned
student neighbourhood Ryd and the campus. These are also the places where most parties are if there is one.
In the city there is some basic leisure like a cinema, but no theater for example nor is it a very beautiful city. So
yes you can have a good student life since the student community is quite tight-knit, but the city itself for me
wouldn't be a reason to go there.
suggestions/tips
I think I gave all my tips in the boxes above
CONCLUSIONS
would you recommend this university/destination abroad to others? please explain
If you are looking for a place where you have a great opportunity to mingle with a lot of students in a small city
that accomodates student life, Linkoping would be a good choice for you. However if you want to experience a
vibrant city life with also lots of non student-oriented activities, it wouldn't be the ideal place to go.
do you have any additional advice or comments?
No, this is it!
2014-2015
Report 1
PREPARATION
exchange application process
I originally was supposed to go to the University of Stockholm. However, during the application process the
International Office contacted me about the difficulties of completing the contract for me. They recommended
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
me to choose my second or third option, which was either the University of Lund or Linköping. After a long
waiting process and this initial problem, the remaining part of the application went quite smoothly and my
contract was completed to go to the University of Linköping.
counselling & support at Utrecht University
Next to the information meetings, I emailed and visited the International Office multiple times. I always
received quick answers to my questions.
academic preparation
I did not prepare myself academically. I read reports of other students of Utrecht University that studied in
Sweden and found out that I could expect a similar level of education in Sweden as in the Netherlands.
language preparation
In high school I obtained an Anglia Certificate in English, Masters (C2) level and I used this certificate for my
application. Therefore, I did not prepare myself further in this area. However, I did study some Swedish phrases
before leaving.
finances
Next to my Erasmus grant I had some additional savings. Some things in Sweden are quite expensive, so having
some savings is definitely recommended.
STUDY ABROAD PERIOD
study programme (content and organisational issues)
At Linköping University, I was not part of a particular study programme. I took part in one course in
documentary-filmmaking and was enrolled in two courses from the Applied Ethics department. Also, I took a
course in Swedish for beginners. I was very satisfied with the content and teaching of the courses, but the time
frame of the courses seemed a bit strange to me. One course continued throughout the whole semester, while
my other courses only lasted for four weeks, which I thought was a bit too short.
academic quality of education activities
The course in documentary-filmmaking was a practice-based course and therefore very different from any
other course I have ever taken at university. I learned a lot of new skills and it was very interesting, but I was
not challenged academically. The level of the courses in ethics were more similar to the education level I was
used to. However, I think Swedish universities are more practice-based in general, and might therefore be less
challenging academically in some aspects.
counselling & support at receiving university abroad
Everything was very well taken care of at Linköping's University. It was always very clear to me where to find
the right help. The International Coordinators were very helpful, friendly and always quick to help in any case of
a problem.
transfer of credits
I am still in the process of getting my credits transferred. After completing my courses in Linköping, I had to
wait for a few weeks before obtaining all my grades. After the transcript was completed, the International
Coordinator of the International Office in Linköping sent an official copy of this Transcript of Records to my
home adress and I sent it to the Examination Board for the final approval and transferring of my grades.
STUDENT LIFE
welcome & orientation programme
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
The welcome period and orientation programme were very well organised in Linköping. All the exchange
students were expected at an information meeting. Many different people from the university spoke that day
and gave the new students all the information they needed. After this, there was an information market where
all the different student associations introduced themselves. Arrival day itself was also greatly taken care of.
The International Office knew what time to expect which students, handed out housing contract and keys, a lot
of information and even SIM-cards. They also brought all the students to their accodomation by car. ESN
Linköping had many different introduction activities the whole semester and especially the first few weeks.
They also hosted a big welcome dinner. All in all, the welcome period was very great!
accommodation
I was very lucky with my accomodation. Linköping's University is notorious for its housing problems with
students. Especially in the first semester of the year, the amount of international students is way more than the
university can actually house. In my semester there, they started with a new experiment by housing
international students in double rooms to create more places. I was placed in a double room with another
Dutch girl. Initially I was not too excited about this, as it is very unusual in the Netherlands to share a room with
another student. It ended up being better than I thought; my roommate was very nice and we both realised we
had been quite lucky getting a room from the university, as there were many exchange students in emergency
accomodation. Also, the great thing about this university is that all students live mixed together in the corridors.
My corridor consisted of 9 people, of which were 5 Swedish and 4 exchange students. I had a very good time in
this corridor and became really good friends with the people I was living with. However, near the end of the
exchange period I did notice that I was very much looking forward to having my own room again, and so this is
my only critique for this university, as I think double rooms are not always the best idea.
leisure & culture
Even though Linköping is not a very big town, there is enough things to do! University and student life are very
closely related in Linköping, so you will find many acitivities organised on the campus by different student
organisations. There are several student organisations for international students (the biggest is ESN) that
organise many different things from sports, tasting Swedish food, movie nights, trips all around Scandinavia,
dinners, parties and the famous International Night on Tuesdays in HG, the student pub in Ryd, on the campus
where most students live. This area is also famous for many corridorparties so there is always something fun to
do around Linköping.
suggestions/tips
Participate actively in all the activities organised for international students, they are very fun and it is the best
way to meet new people. Also, get an overall! It might seem a bit strange at first, but this is one of the most
important student traditions in Linköping and I enjoyed the Kravalls (the parties you go to wearing this overall)
very much!
CONCLUSIONS
would you recommend this university/destination abroad to others? please explain
Yes, I would definitely recommend this university to others! I enjoyed all aspects of my exchange period there. I
enjoyed living in Linköping's student area Ryd with both Swedes and other international students, the courses
at university, the atmosphere and student life, the nature and all the trips around Sweden and the rest of
Scandinavia and Sweden as a country in general.
do you have any additional advice or comments?
-
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
Report 2
PREPARATION
exchange application process
Filling in all the forms has been a lot of work. For me the application process was quite hard, as I wanted to go
abroad in the first semester of my second year which is usually not allowed. Fortunately, in the end the staff was
quite flexible and different things were possible.
counselling & support at Utrecht University
Personally the meetings and service from the International office did not help me much to prepare for the
exchange. The information about all the bureaucratic work was handy, and I did not need much more.
However, there were a lot of thing (housing, courses) one has to find out themselves when going on exchange,
and I would have loved a form like this with experience from previous LiU'ers.
academic preparation
As the courses were relatively easy to the courses at the UU, I did not have to prepare much. During the courses
I follow the LiU was very good at giving all the information you need to succeed in following the courses, so
most of the preparing can be done after arriving and the introduction.
language preparation
At first I was not sure if my English would be good enough, as I was not very comfortable with speaking and
writing English and I did not know any Swedish, but fortunately this was no problem. Basically everybody in
Sweden speaks English (so Swedish is nice, but you'll absolutely survive without it - even: people love speaking
English, so once they find out you are not Swedish they like speaking English), and compared to other
international students (especially from France and Spain) in my courses my English was fine.
finances
Make sure you fill in all the files correctly, as you do not want to miss the extra money! I traveled by train to
Norrköping (less than 100 euros) as you can bring as much stuff as you can carry. My living expenses over there
were about 100 euro higher every month compared to the Netherlands, mainly food is more expensive.
However, if you like to travel a lot and drink a lot of alcohol then these costs will be much higher.
STUDY ABROAD PERIOD
study programme (content and organisational issues)
At first I followed four educational sciences courses in a row (Making a world of difference, Children and
families in a world of education, etc.). The courses are very broad and as I only had 2-4 contact hours a week
and not that much to do at home, it was very very easy compared to (Philosophy) courses I followed at the UU.
The courses are with only international students, which was very nice, as there is a lot of opportunity to discuss
and talk about your experiences with education in your home country and comaring this to your host and
other's home countries.
As I had plenty of time left I decided to take an extra course: English literature and cultural studies. This is a 15
ECTS course with mainly Swedish students, devided in four parts: (1) English and (2) American culture, and (3)
English and (4) American literature. The lectures and seminars about the culture I found very conservative - a
lot of fact learning and not a lot of discussing and actually getting insight in the culture of nowadays - not very
academic. However, the literature seminars were very nice. In 5 months I read about 6 books, and every
seminar we discussed one book with about 8 students and a teacher.
academic quality of education activities
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
I thought the courses were not very 'academic', compared to the UU courses I followed before. Often we did
not read academic texts, but information was transfered mainly via 'wikipedia'-like books. There was not a lot
of room for critically discussing the texts and content of the courses. They also often did not demand the use of
academic literature when writing a paper. However, maybe this is only the case with the educational courses I
did.
At LiU every study area has its own students organisation (just like at UU). LIKES, the international student
association for educational sciences students organized a lot of activities where one could discover Swedish
culture and their schools. These activities (e.g. visiting a Swedish school) really added something to the 'raw
information' sometimes received during the lectures.
counselling & support at receiving university abroad
The staff of the international office at LiU was amazing! They organized a lot of fun and informative activities
and they were always very helpful! Especially in Norrköping where I lived the international office staff (Helena
Balogh) knew every international student personally and were always very enthousiastic when talking about
whatever came to mind.
The university had a lot of services next to the international office - nurses, ict, student associations, very
welcoming and helpful librarians, etc. - and most of them I did not even know. However, when I had a problem I
always e-mailed the international office or just stopped by during their opening hours and they always knew
what to do in case of a problem (e.g. with the dentist, files)
transfer of credits
What is meant by this?
STUDENT LIFE
welcome & orientation programme
Amazing! There are hundreds of activities, especially during the first weeks, that give you all the information
you need, give you the possibility to meet other international students, and that make you feel comfy in your
new environment. The university has two campuses, in Norrköping and Linköping, about 50 minutes by (free)
campusbus from eachother, and in both cities are welcome activities. I had most of my courses in Norrköping,
so I decided to live there as well. Norrköping is smaller and definately much prettier and nicer that Linköping in
my experience. However, most international students decide to live in Linköping (especially in the area of Ryd,
which is a neighbourhood with flats full of students close to the Linköping campus) even though they have most
of their courses in Norrköping. I absolutely prefered Norrköping, as I thought that I lived more 'in Sweden', with
Swedish people - students living in Ryd were usually only friends with other international students, and they did
not much interact with the rest of the city/ies or Sweden. However, I do strongly advice to attend all the
welcome activities in Norrköping, as there are not a lot of international students and this is a nice way to meet
others (and become a 'group' with these students, next to meeting Swedish students).
accommodation
The LiU has rooms available in Ryd, Linköping, but I decided to live in Norrköping, as all my courses took place
over there. Getting a room there has been very easy (maybe because I apllied very early). Even though they had
a point-queueing-system at Studentbo, the housing company, I could choose from a lot of different rooms.
There are different buildings with student and social housing appartments and room all over Norrköping, and
most of them had a very different character. The pictures at the website of Studentbo are definately not
comparable to how the buildings look in real life, and one cannot find a lot of information about the rooms,
building and e.g. furniture or shared rooms. Of course you are welcome to contact me with questions, but very
short (and stereotyping): Bollen and Marylund are old and ugly flats outside the city centre, but also very cheap
and most parties happen there - I lived in Fenix which is very quit and a relatively new building (and as far as I
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
know the only one with big kitchens (and ovens!) and very new furniture in shared and your own room(s)), it is
very close to campus and the city centre, it has corridor rooms from about 10 students with a shared kitchen
and four bathrooms and a 'living room' (which is too small for 10 people) - Skolgatan is also an older building
with more appartmentlike rooms where you have your own kitchen or share everything with only one person
(with the disadvantage that you barely get in contact with other housemates), so it's more private and you have
more room. It is very close to the city centre, and a but further away from campus (though everything is within
a 10 minutes walk, so actually everything is close) - Vattentornet, the watertower, is absolutely the nicest (and
also most expensive) building, as it looks very pretty and has a very 'living room' like student pub at the ground
floor.
leisure & culture
In Norrköping is a student sport association (NAFFI) which you can join for about 30 euros and which gives you
the opportunity to join different sports every evening. It is not very competitive, but more friends playing sports
together - very welcoming, you can easily join, often they are used to speaking English as well although it is also
very nice to play with the Sweeds 'in their natural habitat'. As I did not follow a language course (which almost
all other students did do) I picked most of my Swedish up during the volleybal classes. As most Swedish
students join NAFFI, you meet a lot of active Swedish students (which is also nice when you go out at Träppan,
the student club, on Saturday). Also really really nice is PAFF, the outdoor association, which organised activities
like hiking (in the dark), canoing, climbing, skiing, swimming (and sitting in the sauna)! This is a very small
association (I only discovered them when there was only one activity left), but about half of the members is
international, so they speak English and do awesome stuff!
A very new phenomenon for me was 'fika' - drinking coffee and eating something sweet (like a kanelbulle, a
cinnamon roll) at some time during the day. Swedish people do this A LOT - this is the time the socialize and
relax.
There are also (next to the student associations with your study) international students associations. The big
one is ENS in Linköping which organizes mainly big parties, and in Norrköping ISN also organizes smaller
berbecues and picknicks, etc. They both organize several trips (which most people join) to e.g. Norway, Lapland,
Russia (which is awesome, because you do not need a VISA - though you do need a passport and not only your
ID card) and the Baltic sea. I did not join these trips as I prefered traveling on my own and the trips of ESN
mainly exist of partying, but everybody who did join surely enjoyed themselves.
Also new to me are the Kravallen - parties where people party (which is only from 11pm-3am usually) in an
overal with the colour of their study (international overall is blue). If you want to get tickets for these party you
always have to queue - a ridiculous phenomenon - for at least 5 hours! Queueing really is a part of the Swedish
culture. The overall has the function that you can really party - do crazy stuff - and do not care about what you
look like. Also, people collect patches of every party they have been to and sew them on their overall, together
with other stuff, which makes every overall personal.
suggestions/tips
PAFF, NAFFI, all the welcome activities. And: the right to camp and enjoy nature wherever you want to. I spend
a lot of weekends camping, picking and eating mushrooms, swimming in lakes, outside rockclimbing, hiking ... If
you live in Norrköping I advise the lake Ägelsjön, north of Norrköping. If you like rock climbing, you can meet
people at Hangaren (climbing hall in Linköping) and go there as often as you want to.
CONCLUSIONS
would you recommend this university/destination abroad to others? please explain
Definately! Even though I did expect the courses to be more academic and challenging, I really enjoyed the
Swedish culture, the people and the whole experience of living abroad and meeting people from all over the
world.
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
do you have any additional advice or comments?
2013-2014
Report 1
preparation
exchange/placement application process
I had to choose a host university on my own and it was easier to choose from a list of
partners from the UU. It was not really clear how it would work if i would choose any other
Univeristy besides that the UU told me it would be very difficult. Because of this my choice
was limited. The application process was easy and the amount of papers i had to fill in was
not that much.
counselling/support at home university
There are instructions about what you have to do but for the rest you are on your own.
This is not a problem because it is not very difficult.
academic preparation
I did not need any academica preparation to come here.
language preparation
I did not take a Swedish course at home but i could have done it with a private
organisation if i would wanted to. Maybe it would be nice if the UU had more preparation
language courses for exchange students.
finances
I had savings and with my Erasmus scholarship and the money from DUO i could pay my
loan and groceries. The things i wanted to do for fun i had to pay my self but this is no
more than normal.
study/placement abroad period
study programme/work plan (concerning content and organisational issues)
I did not had many courses at my host university where i could choose from but the 4
courses that were available fitted in my program from home. It was a pitty that they are
probably not third year courses.
academic quality of education/placement activities
Because the courses were for second year students and primary for international students
there were a lot of people from different backgrounds. This made the level of the classes
a little bit lower because not everybody was on the same level.
counselling/support at host institution/organisation
There was enough counseling possible but i did not need it.
transfer of credits
I do not know about this for sure yet but my credits here are in ECTS so i do not foresee
any problems.
student life
Exchange Experiences
International Office
Sweden – Linköping University
welcome/orientation programme
It was organised by the University and by the student organisation ESN. It was very well
done and there were many activities in the first two months to get to know other
international students.
accommodation
I got an accommodation from the University of Linkoping from Studentbostader. The
housing here is very nice since all students live on a campus 5 minutes from university.
Everything was included in the price, even the laundry and the cleaning of the corridors. I
liked it very much and it was very very good living there.
leisure/culture
The Culture of Sweden is not very different and so it was no culture shock coming here. It
felt immediately like home and Sweden is very beautiful to travel. There is enough to do
in leisure time and Stockholm is 2 hours away.
suggestions/tips
conclusions
would you recommend this host organisation/destination to others? please explain
I would definitly recommend this university to others but i think it is a better university
for technical or engineer students since the university is very technical. But Sweden is
very beautiful and everybody should come here.
do you have any additional advice or comments?
Please read the blogs of the international students on the Linkoping University website. I
also kept one during the 5 months i was there and before i came it is very nice to read
about life in Linkoping and how people live here.