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If you are under 20 while studying, your education is free and the costs will be covered by your municipality. Even at this level the schools are not allowed to ask students to pay fees, even for school excursions. Saying that it is however not unheard of and some schools find a way to get around the problem.

You can also return to gymnasium level study later as a mature student – normally through komvux (see below). In this case, you are entitled to a government grant to help cover your costs and should contact CSN (see university funding) for more details.

When a teenager has completed their compulsory education, they are entitled to continue into gymnasium if they have passed their core subjects of Swedish, Maths and English. Virtually all pupils who apply are accepted meaning nearly 95% continues to this level. Gymnasium courses vary enormously from vocational courses such as agriculture and forestry to academic ones leading through to university study. All are three year courses.

The size of gymnasiums varies – the smallest have around 300 pupils, the largest up to 1500. Most courses are organised by the kommun (the municipality) but some courses are arranged by the landsting (the regional authority) and some – for example, physical education – are arranged at national level. This means every gymnasium is different – a different size, different range of courses, run by different authorise. In Stockholm alone, you can find gymnasiums specialising in IT, international studies, music, handicrafts, ballet, art, technical skills, transport – the list goes on – as well as numerous generalist gymnasium.

As with compulsory education, pupils may specialise but they still have to devote some time to general education. Swedish, Maths and English are all studied for more than 100 hours over the three year programme with other subjects also in the mix. In vocationally orientated courses, 15% of a pupil’s time will be spent ‘on the job’ in a place of work.

Find an initial list of your local gymnasium from Gulasidorna by searching ‘Gymnasium’ (on-line) or skolor (in the paper version but you will have to trawl through all different schools). If you live in an area where there are a variety of gymnasium to choose between, you will probably find they hold open days for pupils in year 9 of grundskolan. This is the perfect opportunity to find out more about the school and the courses they run. Some have their own websites (in Swedish) which can help narrow down the search. For Stockholmers, there is also a fair (www.gymnasiemassan.nu) held annually at which most of the local schools will represent themselves to help in cutting to the chase. 

Schools For The Deaf
Children who are deaf or have severe hearing difficulties and have sign language as their first language go to special schools. There are 10 years of education available and it should be as close to the general curriculum as possible.

Sami School
Sami school is equivalent to the first six years of education and is especially for Sami children.

Special Education Schools
There are two parallel school forms, Grundsärskolan (Elementary School) and Träningsskolan and students have a right to 10 years of education in either of these forms.
The former is for children with slight learning difficulties and the latter is for children unable to attend Grundsärskolan. Brochures in other languages are available on Skolverket’s website outlining the school how it differs from standard education, how to apply and which children have a right to go to this school.

Private/Independent Schools
Private schools are monitored by the Education department so they have to meet certain standards but may not follow the same curriculum as the Swedish schools. If operating outside the Swedish curriculum (Baclaural etc) they are allowed to charge fees and may start formal education earlier. Many operate because they are following a different education philosophy (Montessori, Waldorf), a different linguistic or ethnic education (and possibly also following the national curriculum from a certain country) or have a different religious character. Many operate exactly as a Swedish public school and are governed by the same terms and conditions, but are privately owned.

The state is also responsible for providing childcare outside of school hours for children up the age of 12 whose parents work or study for longer than school hours and during the holidays. Over 70% of six to nine year olds are enrolled in an out-of-school childcare option of some description. This childcare can take one of several forms:

Leisure-time centres (fritidshem) are often associated with the school but are open year round. Their open hours are adapted to meet the needs of the parents and children.

Family daycare (familjedaghem) is run from the childminder’s home. It may be a childminder who takes pre-school children during the day or somebody who specialises in minding school children.

Open leisure-time activities (öppna fritidsverksamheten) require no enrolment and are for older children only – ages ten to twelve. They can be used in conjunction with the other options above but there is less supervision of children, which is why they’re unsuitable for younger children.

All these places are responsible for supporting the school curriculum and promoting learning, even outside of school time. However, this does not mean they will be teaching academic subjects – just supporting a learning environment.

There are fees for childcare but they are governed in a similar way to pre-school childcare with a recommended maximum charge per month - currently 760kr for the first child and 380kr per month for the second and third children.