Credits and grades at LiU

Hello all! 😀

Let’s talk today about the grading system at LiU. In the end, you want to know what’s the chance of you passing, right? It may be relevant for those planning to apply in the national admission round because I’ll tell a little about the conversion of grades. However, it will be mostly about how we are graded at LiU.

First and foremost, Sweden is part of the Bologna Process since 2007 and its higher education system is now structured according to the Bologna degrees. It is a series of agreements between European countries aimed to create a standardized higher education system in Europe. This means that Swedish Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees are recognized across Europe, and students can transfer credits and degrees between institutions in other Bologna countries. But don’t worry! Even though the Bologna Process isn’t applied in every country, it is possible to have partnerships and exchange programs with European universities that participate in the Bologna Process, allowing students to study abroad and earn credits that can be transferred back to their home institution. Moreover, your grades and credits from other countries can be transferred to Sweden when applying for full programmes.

Generally, about Swedish higher education though. There are three cycles of education. Undergraduate education, also known as first-cycle education, typically takes three years to complete and leads to a Bachelor’s degree. Graduate education, or second-cycle education, is typically two years and leads to a Master’s degree. It can be one year, as well, but then it’s only 60 credits – it depends on the field whether it is relevant or not. Doctoral education, or third-cycle education, is also offered at universities and can take around four years to complete.

In terms of course structure, Swedish universities use a system called “academic credits” or “higher education credits” (högskolepoäng). One year of full-time study equals 60 credits. Most courses are worth 7.5 or 15 credits but honestly, you can have everything in between. During my bachelor’s, I had all courses worth 6 credits and then 30 credits thesis. But during my master’s I actually have 7.5 credits for each course and then 30 credits for my master’s thesis.

Application

For those of you who are applying for a bachelor’s and don’t know if you are eligible, this is a website that helped me. When you choose your country, it will tell you what level from your country corresponds to the Swedish level. Then you look at the programme entry requirements and it’s ready! You can have an idea about it but remember that you should always ask! Just email the University Admissions to double check because if based on the website you assume you’re eligible but in reality, you’re not because maybe something hasn’t been updated or you misunderstood something then it may be too late to change it. When it comes to master’s studies you need to be thorough with the entry requirements written on the programme website as well. Go through them several times and if you’re unsure email LiU.

Grades

Linköping University uses four grading systems, depending on the course or programme. Sometimes within the same programme, you may have different systems. You can have:

Four grades:
1. 5 (Pass with distinction)
2. 4 (Pass with credit)
3. 3 (Pass)
4. U/I (Fail)
Three grades:
1. Pass with distinction – Väl godkänd – VG
2. Pass – Godkänd – G
3. Fail – Underkänd – U
Two grades:
1. Pass – Godkänd – G
2. Fail – Underkänd – U
ECTS
1. A-E – Pass
2. F, Fx – Fail

Interestingly, the four and three-grade system can be transferred to ECTS grade while the two-grade system cannot. So, if you’re planning to do your bachelor’s here keep that in mind as it may potentially become a problem if you plan to do a master’s someplace else. It’s because your thesis is graded pass or fail and there is no possibility to transfer that into an ECTS grade.

Now, how do these grades relate to your actual passing percentage? There is no easy answer to that, unfortunately. In my bachelor’s and master’s, I had to get 60% to pass no matter what scale it was. Further grades depended on the scale used in the course. But mostly every 10% received, higher grade it was. However, I had a course where I had to get 70% to pass. The most common grade system used was the three-grade system and four-grade system. However, I also had some courses with the Arts and Science Faculty and the scale there was a bit different (I believe it also applies to the Engineering Faculty). For a passing grade i.e. G or 3, I had to get 50%.

The grading described above mostly refers to exams. However, exams aren’t the only part of the course that can be graded. Remember that courses at LiU are taught through a combination of lectures, seminars, group work, and independent study. Therefore, it can be also attendance at the labs, written assignment, exercises or more that can count toward the final grade. It is always listed in the course syllabus. And luckily course syllabus is freely available for every course so you don’t need to wait for it until you sign up for the subject. You need to know the course code and then you can find it via the LiU page. For example, this is a link to the syllabus of the course that I’m starting tomorrow! 😀

I hope this clarified a little about what you can expect at LiU in terms of the grading system 🙂 To me, it is quite clear now but when I came I was a bit confused because in Poland it is different.

And now, in the end… just a little tip. If you’re interested in how many people passed a certain course and with what grade you can always check that in Lisam (for access you need LiU ID so this option is available only after your registration). On the main Lisam page, you can go to the “exam statistics” tab and view statistics from previous exams. Of course, you won’t know who got what grade as it is anonymous but you can get an idea about the course. It looks like in the picture below.

Also, while we are in the university-related subject remember that in Sweden there is a strong emphasis on independent learning, and you are expected to take responsibility for your own learning and time management. Keep that in mind while designing your study plan because you most likely will have several subjects at the same time.

/Alexandra, Experimental and Medical Biosciences

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