Our different degrees

Since 2007, higher education in Sweden has been divided into three different levels: the first, second and third cycles. The first cycle includes courses and programmes offered during the first three years of university studies, and can result in a Higher Education Diploma, a Bachelor’s degree or a professional qualification. Two types of second-cycle degrees are offered: a one-year Master’s degree or a two-year Master’s degree. You can also obtain a professional degree in the second cycle. Third-cycle studies result in licentiate degrees or doctorates.

First-cycle qualifications

Higher Education Diploma

A Higher Education Diploma comprises 120 credits, equivalent to two years of full-time study. At least 60 credits have to be in a main field of study and the other 60 credits are made up by other courses. An independent project of at least 7,5 credits must be included within the main field of study.

Bachelor’s degree

You can be awarded a Bachelor’s degree when you have completed 180 credits, equivalent to three years of full-time study. At least 90 of these credits must be in a main field of study, of which at least 15 credits must be an independent degree project. The remaining credits are electives.

Professional qualification

A professional qualification can be achieved through specialised studies that most often qualify you for a specific profession. The following first-cycle professional qualifications can be obtained at Karlstad University:

• Degree of Bachelor of Science in Nursing (180 credits)
• Degree of Bachelor of Science in Engineering (180 credits)
• Degree of Bachelor of Science in Social Work (210 credits)
• Bachelor of Arts/Science in Early Years Education (210 credits)
• Higher Education Diploma in Vocational Education (90 credits)
• Degree of Bachelor of Science in Dental Hygiene (180 credits)

Second-cycle qualifications

Master’s degree (60 credits)

The first type of second-cycle degree is a Master’s degree of 60 credits. Before embarking on your studies towards a Master’s degree (60 credits), you should first have obtained a Bachelor’s degree or a professional qualification of at least 180 credits. Following your first-cycle degree, you study courses or a programme of 60 credits to achieve a Master’s degree (60 credits), of which 30 credits should be within a main field of study for Master’s degrees (60 credits), as determined by Karlstad University. Those 30 credits must include an independent degree project of at least 15 credits. The remaining 30 credits can be elected from second- and first-cycle courses. 15 of the 60 credits may be from first-cycle courses.

Master’s degree (120 credits)

A Master’s degree (120 credits) is obtained by completing 120 second-cycle credits. This is equivalent to two years full-time second-cycle study, after obtaining a first-cycle degree. 60 of these credits should be within a main field of study for Master’s degrees (120 credits), as determined by Karlstad University, and should include an independent degree project of 30 credits. The degree project may comprise less than 30 credits, however no less than 15 credits, if the student has already completed an independent project in the second cycle for at least 15 credits in the main field of study or the equivalent from a programme of study outside Sweden. The remaining credits should consist of second- and first-cycle courses. A maximum of 30 first-cycle credits can be included in a Master’s degree (120 credits).

Professional qualification

A professional qualification can be achieved through specialised studies that most often lead up to a specific profession. You can obtain the following second-cycle professional qualifications at Karlstad University:

• Master of Science in Engineering (300 credits)
• Master of Science in Business and Economics (240 credits)
• Postgraduate Diploma in Specialist Nursing (60/75 credits)
• Degree of Master of Arts in Primary Education - Pre-School Class and School Years 1-3 (240 credits)
• Degree of Master of Arts in Primary Education - School Years 4-6 (240 credits)
• Degree of Master of Arts in Secondary Education (270 credits)
• Degree of Master of Arts in Upper Secondary Education (300/330 credits)
• Degree of Master of Science in Psychology (300 credits)
• Degree of Master of Laws (270 credits)

Third-cycle qualifications

Third-cycle studies lead to licentiate degrees or doctorates. A doctorate takes approximately four years (240 credits) to complete. After two years of studies towards a doctorate, it is possible to be awarded a licentiate degree (120 credits) within certain fields. In order to meet the requirements for third-cycle studies, you have to first obtain a first-cycle degree of at least 180 credits, as well as a second-cycle degree of at least 60 credits. In addition, you need to fulfil any other stipulated requirements.