Working as an International Student in Sweden

Participating in various webinars and online interviews as an ambassador, one question I’ve noticed come up quite a lot is “Are you able to work as a student in Sweden?”, and the answer is yes! I will say; however, that if you have the means of supporting yourself without needing to work, ABSOLUTELY DO THIS. 🙂 The demands of student life are quite intense, and you will do way better and get more out of your studies if you are focused completely on understanding your course material, reading course literature thoroughly, and participating in student life.

For many of us though, this is not entirely an option, myself included. In my Bachelor’s studies at Ohio State, I worked throuhout all four years of my studies in a variety of jobs – a dishwasher at a hotel, a research assistant, a teaching assistant, and primarily as a server at a restaurant. As such, when I came to study in Sweden I was immediately on the lookout for some way to get cash in my pocket while studying at the same time. Since coming to study at LiU back in August of 2019, I have worked as a Student Ambassdor with the university, a MATLAB Student Ambassador with MathWorks, a Marketing Assitant with Vagon, and now currently a Research Assistant with a professor at the university.

In this post, I am going to go through some things you can expect when looking for a part-time job as a student and give some ideas for potential options.

Image by Scott Graham on Unsplash 

Restaurants, Retail, Hospitality

This is an area that I have worked in back in the US, but since coming to Sweden have not had experience in! In general, I do not recommend this for an international student for a few reasons:

1. COVID-19 – At the moment these sectors are open in the Swedish economy, but you do run a high risk of exposing yourself to the virus and at the same time many employers are not hiring because the economy has slowed
2. Swedish language – Unless you are up to at least a B2 level in Swedish prior to arriving, you have a much lower chance of getting hired. Although the majority of Swedes speak English, it is still a general expectation in society that services are delivered in the Swedish language
3. Hourly Shifts – Jobs contained within these sectors often require you to report and work at a specific place at a specific time, which can conflict with your course schedule during the weekdays as well as your study and personal time on the weekends. Additionally, many restuarants for example will require you to work shifts that don’t finish until the late evening hours conflicting with your sleep schedule

If you choose to take the two free Swedish courses offered to international students in your first year, and study the language extensively during this time and through the summer, it is possible to reach a B2 level by the time you start your second year and then apply for one of these jobs. This is also something to consider.

Image by Tyler Nix on Unsplash

Student Ambassadors

As a Student Amabassador for the university and MATLAB Student Ambassador for MathWorks, I have found that this type of employment is ideal for your schedule as a student. Often pertaining more towards specific tasks/services and less towards shift-based work (i.e. showing up to work at a specific place and time), these types of jobs are easier to adapt your work schedule to fit your study schedule. I have managed to do many of my tasks for both of these jobs either before or after class, in the evening hours, or on the weekends.

If you are interested specifically in either of these positions be sure to:

• Check out the Linköping University vacancies page at the start of the Autumn semester for the Interational Student Ambassador position with the university (a handful of ambassadors are hired)
• Get in contact with me regarding the MATLAB Student Ambassador position (must have competence in MATLAB and/or Simulink), as I will be finishing my job with them at the end of this spring semester and they are looking to hire another ambassador for the next academic year

There may also be other similar opportunities that I am not aware of so always be sure to keep an eye out for online job postings!

Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

Internships

Internships are commonplace in the US, so the idea of sitting back and actually enjoying my summer was out of the question 😉 Internships generally are not as common in Sweden as they are in many other countries, as most people leave for their stuga (cottage) in the summer when the weather is nice. This process of finding an internship generally consists of hardcore job searching on LinkedIn and other online forums and applying to at least 50 positions. The more places you apply, with the best quality of application for each, the higher your chances of actually finding a position!

After searching for 2 months and applying to many job postings, I found a part-time internship as a Marketing Assistant with Vagon for the summer that then continued into my second year. The work that I do here again is largely task/service based and not shift-based, making it easy to fit in with the other aspects of my schedule.

Image by Magnetme from Pexels

Research/Teaching Assistants

If you are more interested in working as Research or Teaching Assistant, this is also an option. My best advice here is to form good relationships with professors to see if there are projects that they need help with! Also you can check the vacancies page and apply for positions here as well. If you plan on applying for a Teaching Assistant position, it is often required to know Swedish, so this is also something to consider.

Image by Chokniti Khongchum from Pexels

Conclusion

Your student residence permit does give you the option to work while you are studying if you so choose. It is highly recommended that you avoid working during your studies if you are financially able to do so. In the event this is not the case, be sure to carefully look for a job that fits the abilities you have, your availability, and your study schedule. Studying is the number one reason for coming to Sweden, so don’t lose track of what is really important while you are here!

Long term investment in studying for a better career >>>>> any part-time job 

Best of luck in your studies and potential job search! – Adam

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