Checklist for exchange students

You will receive your Notification of Selection Results approximately 1 month after application deadline. You will receive an email from Universityadmissions.se that your results are available to view online. You can download your acceptance as a PDF if your home university requires it.  Once you have been admitted, you are welcome to send us your Erasmus+ Learning Agreement (if applicable).

You will need a residence permit for studies in Sweden if you will study at SLU for more than 3 months and you are not a citizen of an EU/EES country or Switzerland. You will be able to apply for a residence permit from the Swedish Migration Agency, (Migrationsverket) once you have paid your first instalment. Read more and apply on the Swedish Migration Agency's website.

Study in Sweden put together a video presentation together with the Swedish Migration Agency. This presentations will walk you through all the basic information related to applying for a residence permit for studies in Sweden. You can find the videos here.

The application of the resicence permit can take at least 2-3 months. So be sure to apply as soon as possible.

If you are an exchange student, your accommodation application needs to be submitted in time. Note that housing is not guaranteed.

• Apply for SLU student housing

More information about student housing options for each SLU campus can be found on the SLU Housing webpage. After you have received your acceptance letter from SLU, you will receive information about the accommodation you have been assigned, including suggested move in date and how/when to pick up the keys.

During study hours, all students and doctoral students are covered by the personal injury insurance for students via Kammarkollegiet (the Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency).

If you are a foreign student or doctoral student, exchange student, fee-paying student or Erasmus Mundus student, SLU provides various supplementary insurance policies. Your insurance policy will vary based on which category of student you are. Click the links below to read the full terms and conditions for each category:

• Fee-paying and scholarship students: You are covered 24 hours/day by the FAS+ insurance and the Personal Injury Insurance for students.
• Exchange students: You are covered 24 hours/day by the Personal Injury Insurance and the Student IN insurance.
• Free movers and non-fee paying students: You are covered only on university premises and during the journey to/from university by the Insurance for Foreign Visitors (formerly known as GIF insurance) and the Personal Injury Insurance for students. Additional insurance is highly recommended.
• Erasmus Mundus students: You are covered 24 hours/day by the Personal Injury Insurance for students and the Erasmus Mundus insurance.

Note: If you are a citizen of an EU/EEA country or Switzerland, make sure you have a European Health Insurance Card. The national health insurance provider from your country issues this card.

We also suggest that you visit SLU's web page on insurance. Additional information is available at Study in Sweden. 

We recommend you to look over your insurance coverage before you arrive in Sweden. If the insurances above are not sufficient, you should take out your own insurance policy.

If you have a disability, you can receive support for permanent disabilities that affect your studies. Disability means a permanent physical or mental limitation. This includes dyslexia, physical disabilities, mental and neuropsychiatric disorders, visual or hearing impairment as well as chronic illnesses that affect the studies. You can find more information about study support for permanent disabilities at https://student.slu.se/en/study-support/study-support/ability/.

Students without a Swedish personal identity number

With the student IT account, you can log in to student computers, the student web, use the library's resources and log in to your SLU email account.

If someone at SLU would like to contact you or inform you about something, this is the email address they will use. Therefore, make it a habit to read emails sent to your SLU email address.

Take the following steps to get your student login:

• If you have an eduID account you can activate your SLU account with the user account services using your eduID.
• If you do not have an eduID account you will need to visit and IT-Service desk at SLU and show your passport or identification document in order to get your account details.

Note: IT support can't assist on personal computers, since it's not within the support.

Students with a Swedish personal identity number

Once you have received your second admission decision, you can activate your account at SLU. You can do this by mid-August the earliest  for courses starting in the autumn semester. And in January for courses in the spring semester.

Click on New account to activate your user account.

Before you get an account, you should read the regulations that apply to the use of IT resources and accept them by checking the box.

If you encounter any problems, please contact IT support at your campus. Please have your ID documents and admission decision with you.

For questions about your IT account, contact support@slu.se.

Once you are registered in an SLU course, you will receive an email informing you that you can pick up your access card from the service centre. It can take up to two days from registration before you can collect your access card.

Check that you are registered as a student before you visit the service centre. You can check if you are registered at Ladok Student from the Student web start page.

When collecting your card, you will need to bring ID and sign a receipt for your access card. You will be given your personal access card, the terms of use, information about how the card works and the PIN for the card. The PIN is generated automatically by the system and cannot be changed.

You will find more information about receiving the access card on the student web.

You log in to Canvas on student.slu.se/canvas with your SLU account ('How to activate your student account' in the checklist).

Canvas

All SLU students have access to Canvas. However, the course leader in each course determines whether Canvas will be used in the course. Ask your course leader what applies to your course.

The course leader decides when a course should be visible in Canvas. As a rule, you get access to the course room when you are admitted to the course. Before you are registered on the course, you only have read access to the course room, which means that you cannot make submissions, quizzes or write posts. As soon as you have registered for the course, the rights are extended. Keep in mind that the content of each course room may vary depending on the course.

If you have questions about Canvas, contact IT support via support@slu.se or your course leader.

Read more about Canvas.

At the first class, you will receive important information about the course and the requirements in relation to examination and grading. If you are unable to make the first class, contact the department responsible for the course in advance. Registration to the course is required to be able to attend classes, and will activate your insurance and student account.

If you are accepted to a freestanding course

If you are accepted to a freestanding course, you are usually able to register online. Online registration will be open in Ladok one week before the course starts. To be able to register online, you need to activate your student IT account first (See above in checklist).

If you can't register online

If you cannot register online, your teacher can also register you at the first lecture.

As international students at SLU, you are eligible for a Mecenat card, free of charge. The Mecenat card is a student card which offers many student discounts, including for the public transportation and train companies throughout Sweden. This includes SL, UL, Skånetrafiken, SJ and more. In order to purchase bus/train tickets at the discounted student price, you must have a valid student ID from Sweden which shows the SL/UL logo on it. If you do not have the Mecenat card and you purchase the discounted bus/train tickets, you could be subject to a fine if you get caught by the ticket control.

Joining the student union is the easiest way to get the Mecenat card. If you want to join or are already a member of a student union at SLU, contact them for help getting your Mecenat card, as all student union members receive the card automatically. The student unions do not give out the physical cards, instead they use the Mercenatkort mobile app, and they will give you instructions on how to download your card. If you prefer to have a physical card however, you can request one once you have received your digital one. Please see the website of the Student Unions for more information. The digital card is sufficient all over Sweden for discounts, but if you travel abroad, the physical card is often preferred.

• Alnarp: Alnarpsgården, Sundsvägen 6
• Uppsala: Ulls hus, Almas allé 8
• Umeå: Skogishuset,  Skogmarksgränd 17

You can turn to the service centre (see addresses above) at each campus for any questions related to SLU and they will guide you to the right place.

Attendance papers and learning agreement

Get your attendance papers and learning agreement signed.

Syllabus

Get/download your syllabus for all the courses you have studied.

Grades in Ladok

Make sure your grades have been registered in Ladok.

Transcripts

Apply for your transcripts by sending an email to servicecenter@slu.se.

It is good to be prepared for the cost of living in Sweden. Sweden is a relatively expensive country. You’ll need a minimum of SEK 9,450 per month to cover your living costs. Study in Sweden has good information about the cost of living and the average student budget.

If you have moved to Sweden from abroad and are planning to live in Sweden for one year or more, you need to register in the Swedish Population Register. You will then get a Swedish personal identity number from the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket). In order to register in the Swedish Population Register (become ’folkbokförd’), you must personally visit a Tax Agency office.

For more information, including what documents to bring to the tax agency office, please read the information on Skatteverket's website.

You can enter all your personal details in a digital form before your visit to the Tax Agency office. You need to print out the form and bring it to the Tax Agency office.

After receiving your personal identity number

When you have received your personal identity number, please send an email to Ladok@slu.se. This to make sure to update your temporary registration number in the SLU database of student records (Ladok).

In the email, please state:

• Your name
• Your current temporary student registration number listed in Ladok
• Your new 10-digit Swedish personal identity number
• Your study programme

For students staying in Sweden for less than six months, it is easier to make banking arrangements with your home bank than opening a bank account in Sweden. If you are staying in Sweden for one year or longer, you can apply for a Swedish personal identity number, which makes the process easier.

To become a bank customer, you need to be able to identify yourself, and answer questions about why you want to open an account.  The Swedish Bankers Association has more information about what the bank requires from you when you visit a bank branch: Becoming a bank customer

Sweden has four distinct seasons: spring (March to May), summer (June to August), autumn (September to October) and winter (November/December to February/March). Sweden can have winter temperatures around -30 degrees Celsius, even if this is not common in the southern parts of the country. The average temperature during the winter in the southern parts of the country is around +2 degrees. Summer temperatures in Sweden can rise to 30 degrees Celsius, and everything in between.

To have appropriate clothes for every season can be costly. Second-hand shops often offer cheaper alternatives. Mittens, hat, a winter coat/jacket and padded boots are recommended if you are staying for winter. Rain clothes are also very useful even during summertime. Since Sweden is a long country, depending on if you are staying in Umeå, Uppsala or Alnarp, winter temperatures will differ and the spring will arrive later the further north you are.

Swedish weather and nature

Are you eager to learn some Swedish before you arrive? There are many tutorials online or check at Study in Sweden. You may also apply for a Swedish course for immigrants (SFI) from Hermods for free.