This story starts 9 months ago. I had no idea I would now be studying design in Linköping. So what happened?

Until then, I was only looking at design masters in France and had trouble finding what I was looking for.

At that moment, my brain went crazy: why had I not even considered Scandinavia for my master when they excel in design? I think I didn’t sleep that night. I read every page I could find on this master, did research on other design masters in Sweden and Scandinavia: I just had to apply.

Drawing of a computer with a lot of files. My portfolio, my CV and essay were coming together, it took a bit of time to get my transcripts ready and translated.

I was really stressed because it was impossible to find an English test in my region on such short notice of the pandemic. Thankfully, after re-reading the admission criteria, my English grade on the french A-levels (baccalauréat) was enough to prove my English proficiency. (I also applied in 3 other masters)

Now, I just had to wait.

Drawing of a computer with an open email. For the last few days, I was anxiously waiting for the answer, as this was the programme I absolutely wanted to get in.

I had to read the email at least 3 times, and just to be certain, I asked my parents to read it too. That was it! The deciding moment for my next two years.
So now what? It felt strange to not click on a button to confirm that I was coming. I was worrying that I might miss something.

I applied to the beginners’ Swedish course and started looking for accommodation. I had registered in queue since the first night I came to know the programme.
‘It’s hard to find accommodation in Linköping’, written everywhere was not helping.

Drawing of a Facebook chat. I reached out on Facebook and my future landlord contacted me for a room in a shared house with 6 other students.

Pfiou! Accommodation, done. I started planning my trip to Linköping. With the ongoing pandemic, I consulted the travelling news a few times a week to be sure I could enter Sweden. Getting the vaccine definitely made things easier because I wanted to go by train and had to cross a few borders.
Tip: Use bahn.de to find your trains when you cross multiple borders.

Through Facebook and Instagram, I connected with other students that would be in the same program as me. It was really helpful to be able to talk with people going through the same life change.

I worried a few times about not getting any news from the university: Am I correctly enrolled? Did I miss any steps? It felt strange, but there was really no need to worry as I couldn’t do anything more from where I was.

Finally, it was time to go.
Drawing of a person with 2 suitcases and 2 backpacks waiting on the train plateform. To get to Linköping, I had 28.5 hours of train: a bit of time to transition mentally from France to living in Sweden for 2 whole years.

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  1. David says:
    November 11, 2021 at 10:31 pm

    Dear Agathe,

    Trust you are doing well,
    Please, I am in desperate need of your help; I am applying for a master’s degree in design and need someone to guide me through the process; I feel you can help me. I eagerly anticipate your prompt response.
    Thanks

    1. Agathe says:
      November 12, 2021 at 5:31 am

      Are you planning on applying to the Design master in Linköping?

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