Qualifications rules

There are national qualifications rules as well as local qualifications rules for the University of Gothenburg. The University of Gothenburg has a Qualifications Ordinance covering both of these sets of rules.

• National and local qualifications rules
• Old qualifications rules

National and local qualifications rules

The Government of Sweden determines which qualifications may be awarded by Sweden’s universities and university colleges. This is regulated in the Higher Education Ordinance. Each university and university college may then decide on local regulations, for example, concerning which main fields of study they offer and what each qualification is to be called.

Main field of study

This means that the requirements for qualifications may differ between universities and university colleges, but there is always a common core of rules that are applicable to all. The University of Gothenburg Qualifications Ordinance contains both national and local qualifications rules.

General qualifications, qualifications in the fine, applied and performing arts, and professional qualifications

A general qualification can be obtained by successfully studying either courses or study programmes. The general qualifications are Higher Education Diploma, Degree of Bachelor, Degree of Master (60 credits), Degree of Master (120 credits), Degree of Licentiate and Degree of Doctor.

A qualification in the fine, applied and performing arts is obtained by successfully studying a qualification in the fine, applied or performing arts at a university or university college. The qualifications in the fine, applied and performing arts in the Swedish education system are Higher Education Diploma, Degree of Bachelor of Fine Arts, Degree of Master of Fine Arts (60 credits), Degree of Master of Fine Arts (120 credits), Degree of Licentiate and Degree of Doctor.

A professional qualification is a degree within a defined professional specialisation. A study programme must be followed to obtain a professional qualification. There are professional qualifications at first- and second-cycle levels. In many cases, a student who satisfies the requirements for a professional qualification may also be awarded a general qualification.

Old qualifications rules

As a result of the Bologna Process, a new education and qualification structure was introduced in Sweden on 1 July 2007. Qualifications rules prior to the Bologna Process are known as the old rules.

Since 1 July 2015, we no longer award qualifications under the old rules but only under the new rules (Swedish Higher Education Act, SFS 2006:173).

In order to obtain a qualification under the current rules, the student must fulfil the following criteria:

• At least one course result reported in Ladok after 1 July 2007.
• Meets the requirements for the qualification in accordance with the latest version of the qualification descriptor, or the programme syllabus for professional qualifications or qualifications in the fine, applied and performing arts.

If the student only has course results from before 1 July 2007 and fulfils the requirements for the qualification under the old rules, we can issue a certificate stating that the student has fulfilled the requirements that applied previously for the qualification.

Applications for teaching qualifications under the old rules are possible up to 30 June 2023.