Due to a decision by the Riksdag, we have been aware since 30 June that a new student finance scheme for transition and retraining to promote lifelong learning will be applied at the university. The new scheme will be fully implemented in 2026 and aims to “create the conditions to utilise everyone’s skills, enable everyone to acquire new skills and meet the needs of the labour market”. The government has high expectations for this reform and expects universities, and the restructuring organizations tasked with providing support and assessing whether the education programme in question strengthens the applicant’s position in the labour market, to do everything possible to ensure the success of the new scheme.
Lifelong learning is an important part of what we do at the university and has long been part of our mission as a higher education institution – and Stockholm University offers the country’s largest range of freestanding courses. Of course, we take the transition reform very seriously.
At the same time, it is remarkable, although unfortunately not unusual, that decision-makers would adopt such a high priority reform without setting aside funding. The university is expected to implement all of the changes the reform brings within the framework of our funding cap, which has already been approaching the upper limit in recent years, partly due to the effects of the pandemic. But judging by the country’s demographics, the number of young people graduating from upper secondary school will increase in the next few years – the same time a recession looms in the background. If an economic downturn does become a reality, there will be fierce competition for places, as Gunnar Wetterberg warns in a column in Expressen this summer about “a perfect storm” for the university.
This autumn, we have already received a government assignment to analyse the courses and programmes we offer, both in terms of content and form, to see how we can make our education available to those who have already entered the workforce. We have also been asked to report on how we intend to develop our range of courses and programmes for this population within our existing financial framework. We are also required to consult with other institutions of higher education, and SUHF will offer assistance in this effort. Whatever the outcome, it is clear that going forward, the student finance scheme for transition and retraining and lifelong learning will require commitment at all levels within the university.
This article is written by Astrid Söderbergh Widding, President of Stockholm University. It appears in the section ”Words from the University’s senior management team”, where different members take turns to write about topical issues. The section appears in News for staff which is distributed to the entirety of the University staff.