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Upper secondary vocational education

The Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR) now also assesses upper secondary vocational qualifications for the purpose of finding employment, and not for further studies. Previously, foreign upper secondary qualifications were only assessed if they granted admission to higher education studies.

Change from previous assessment of upper secondary qualifications

Previously, UHR was only assigned the task of assessing foreign upper secondary qualifications that granted admission to higher education studies. Those assessments indicated which Swedish courses the foreign courses were equivalent to, such as History 1 (historia 1), Physics 2 (fysik 2) etc.

In many countries, both theoretical and vocational education programmes qualify the individual for admission to higher education studies; but there are also pure vocational programmes that do not, just like in Sweden. With pure vocational programmes, UHR does not assess any specific courses for their equivalent course in Sweden as that type of programme does not meet the entry requirements for admission to a higher education institution.

Use the statement of recognition when you search for employment

After UHR has assessed the education documents, a statement of recognition for the foreign qualification is issued. The statement indicates that the qualification is equivalent to a Swedish upper secondary qualification, and also what specialisation it has. The recognition statement should be considered a complement to the education documents and CV when seeking employment. This can make it easier for an employer to understand the foreign education and what qualifications the job seeker has. If an employer has questions about the education or recognition statement, they’re more than welcome to contact us at UHR for more information.

Previous applications

If a person has previously applied for an assessment of their upper secondary education, but was denied because the education was a pure vocational education and as such doesn’t meet the admission requirements to higher education, he or she is welcome to apply again. UHR cannot revisit the previous application that was denied; the applicant must submit a new application for a new assessment.

Questions?

Contact us at: utbildningsbedomning@uhr.se or 010-470 03 00

Last updated: 4 December 2019