scholarships international students
You may be eligible for these scholarships to study in beautiful Sweden. Source: Shutterstock

Choosing Sweden as a study abroad destination is a great choice for international students, as the country is safe and welcoming, with high-quality academics.

English is also widely spoken, with many universities offering programmes in English, so students won’t need to learn another language to study at Sweden’s universities – although you may need to learn Swedish if you intend to work in the country.

Studying in Sweden also has major career benefits for students as it’s a leader in innovation and environmental sustainability with plenty of job opportunities in exciting sectors for graduates.

Students can work part-time while studying, as there’s no legal limit to the number of hours you can work during their studies, compared to other countries which restrict international students to a certain number of hours they can work per week.

Interested to study in Sweden but can’t afford the tuition fees? There are a number of scholarships (primarily for graduate students) in Sweden, offered by both the government as well as Swedish universities. Here are four scholarships that international students can apply for.

Swedish Institute Scholarships for Global Professionals

The Swedish Institute has recently launched a new scholarship programme called the Swedish Institute Scholarships for Global Professionals (SISGP) that replaces the previous Swedish Institute Study Scholarships (SISS).

It is part of the government’s scheme to develop global leaders who will contribute to the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

These scholarships are offered for Master programmes that begin in Autumn 2020, open for applications between 10-20 February 2020.

The scholarship will cover tuition fees (paid directly to the Swedish university), living expenses, travel grant and membership fees to the SI Network for Future Global Leaders (NFGL) and the SI Alumni Network after the scholarship period.

Find out more at the official website.

Blekinge Institute of Technology (BTH) Scholarship Programme for Prospective and Current students

BTH also offers scholarships to international students. They have two categories, one for prospective students and one for current students.

That means that if you’re already a student at BTH, you can still apply for the scholarship for current students if you’ve demonstrated outstanding academic excellence during your studies.

The programme for prospective students is available for citizens from non-EU/EEA countries who are required to pay tuition fees for Swedish university education.

Students can apply for a BTH scholarship after they have applied for a BTH campus-based programme or single subject course on Universityadmissions.se.

This partial scholarship covers a portion of the tuition fees, typically a 50 percent tuition fee reduction. Please click here to find out more.

LiU International Scholarship


The highly-ranked Linköping University offers scholarships to support international students in completing their Master’s degrees.

The partial scholarship awards students with either a 25, 50 or 75 percent tuition fee reduction, based on their academic potential.

Students can apply for this if they’ve already applied for a Master’s degree programme at the university. For more eligibility criteria, please visit the official website.

Karlstad University Global Scholarship

Aimed at top academic students from outside the EU/EEA, this programme by Karlstad University offers both full and partial scholarships for tuition fees (living expenses will not be covered).

You’ll have a high chance of winning this scholarship is you have demonstrated high academic performance in the past and demonstrate a strong commitment and desire to study at Karlstad University.

Take note that this scholarship programme is not open for students from the following 12 countries: Bangladesh, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Mali, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

The scholarship is only awarded for programmes starting in the fall semester. Please click here for more information.

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