Written by Redwan
30 Oct 2015
Quite a lot of the students have asked me about using ‘agents’ to get admission to Sweden. The way this goes is, usually private agents or institutions assist students throughout the whole process of admission and visa application in exchange for a fee. Though this is definitely not bad but I would like to point out few issues related to this subject. Given the application period is now open, this post is mainly for prospective students who are applying and among whom such trend is quite high.
Sweden has a very simple application process. All you have to do is make an account at www.universityadmission.se and follow the detailed instructions given. Prior to that, you can also check www.studyinsweden.se to find all the information regarding fees to scholarships to visa. Therefore the material is very comprehensive. In my humble opinion, anyone with a computer and internet connection can do it without any sort of hassle. However, the problem arises when prospective students are not willing to do it themselves. Reasons can be lack of confidence, information or simply because they are uninterested. This is when they end up going to agents, who they trust to help them go through the whole process. But in majority of the cases, they cannot deliver what they promise.
First of all, students must be conduct prior research to see if these agents are authorized to conduct such activities. Moreover, they also have to check the respective universities they want to apply to check if they have any sort of partnership with the agents. If they do and can produce valid documentations for it, it can be safe. But usually that is not the case. Additionally, these agents often do not have the right information or aren’t aware of the whole application and visa process but they claim to. Thus in a way, it is a method of making money out of prospective students by promising them to get their work done. Moreover, the process might take way longer than expected and students can be charged extra for that.
On the contrary, if you do the whole process yourself by just following the guidelines yourself, this will save you a lot of money, time and effort. Moreover, this will also install confidence in you based on the fact that you will also be able to take care of yourself when you are abroad. So why not give it a shot from now?! Usually, agents charge a lot of money for doing something that you can literally do for free from your home. The only two major costs you have to bear is the application fee which is 900 Swedish Krona and the parcel cost which is needed to send your admission documents to Sweden. Therefore, it is way convenient for students and will also release you of worries regarding financial difficulties.
So I would strongly suggest giving some dedicated time to research about the application process. The internet is the largest repository of data and information and everything you need to know is out there. All you have to do it spend some effort into it. Applying to Sweden is not rocket science and Swedish authorities have made is the process as easier as possible, keeping the wide range of international audience in mind. Above that, we at the Digital Ambassador and Study in Sweden team is always there to help. So don’t think you have do it all by yourself!
Good luck and I wish to a pleasant experience with your applications to Sweden!
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Image taken from internet
