Högskolan i Borås

About Högskolan i Borås

The University of Borås is an independent, degree-granting Swedish higher-education institution and government agency. Sweden’s higher-education authority lists Högskolan i Borås among the country’s institutions with degree-awarding powers. It was formed in 1977 through the consolidation of several existing post-secondary vocational institutions. The official Swedish name remains Högskolan i Borås, while University of Borås is used on its English-language website. The institution is organised into four faculties covering textiles, engineering and business; caring science, working life and social welfare; librarianship, information, education and IT; and police work. Its academic identity is particularly visible in the Swedish School of Textiles, the Swedish School of Library and Information Science, and resource-recovery research. Other teaching and research fields include health sciences, teacher education, technology, business administration, social welfare, and working life. The university reports approximately 19,500 students and around 820 employees on its institutional page updated in March 2026. These figures include a broader student body than the population physically present on campus, as the programme catalogue includes both campus-based and distance study. The main campus is in central Borås, and the university also conducts some teaching elsewhere. Applicants should therefore treat delivery format and study location as programme-level decisions rather than assume every course is taught full-time in Borås.

International degree applicants use Universityadmissions.se, Sweden’s national higher-education application service; the University of Borås does not accept direct or paper applications for this route. Applicants submit the online application and supporting records such as identity documentation, prior diplomas, transcripts, and evidence of English proficiency. National admissions staff first assess general eligibility, after which the university evaluates programme-specific requirements. Artistic programmes may have separate portfolio or application procedures, so their individual instructions take precedence. For autumn 2026, the first international admissions round for both bachelor’s and master’s programmes closed on 15 January 2026, with documents and the application fee due on 2 February. The second autumn round closed on 15 April 2026. The university cautions that many English-taught options are unavailable in that later round and that non-EU/EEA applicants needing a residence permit generally will not have enough time. As of 20 August 2026, those autumn deadlines have passed. For spring 2027 master’s entry, the published first-round deadline was 17 August 2026 and the document and application-fee deadline is 1 September 2026. Applicants should verify whether late submission is possible for a specific programme. The standard application fee stated by the university is SEK 900 for applicants who must pay it, subject to exemptions. Exchange applicants do not use this degree-admissions process; they must first be nominated by a partner university.

The University of Borås offers education across all three Swedish cycles: bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral study. Its 2026 programme catalogue identifies first-cycle, second-cycle, and doctoral-level offerings and lets students filter by term, subject, location, and study format. The catalogue shows provision for autumn 2026 and spring 2027, but availability varies substantially by intake. Students should confirm the teaching language, prerequisites, attendance rules, and start term on the individual programme page. Academic fields include textiles and fashion, engineering, business, information technology, library and information science, health sciences, police work, teacher education, social welfare, and working-life studies. The university’s specialised facilities include textile design and technology laboratories, engineering laboratories for areas such as biotechnology, polymers and energy, a clinical training centre for health-related simulations, and laboratories supporting data analysis and digital business. Doctoral education is offered in library and information science, the human perspective in care, resource recovery, textiles and fashion, and artistic textiles and fashion. Research is organised around six prioritised areas: library and information science; business and IT; the human perspective in care; educational work; resource recovery; and textiles and fashion. Collaboration with public organisations, companies, and industry is embedded in the university’s stated approach to education. This can be useful for students seeking applied projects, but the nature of placements, industry work, or professional accreditation must be verified for each programme.

Key Highlights

• Founded in 1977 as a Swedish public higher-education institution
• Organised into four faculties spanning professional, technical, creative, and social fields
• Official March 2026 figures report approximately 19,500 students and 820 employees
• Offers campus-based and distance study formats

Student Life & Environment

Student life is centred on a compact urban campus near central Borås. The campus includes the university library, group-study rooms, restaurants and cafés, a student bookstore, and kitchens where students can heat their own food. The Student Union in Borås is a student-run organisation providing activities, advice, and other services. University support includes study and career guidance, academic writing and study-skills assistance, disability-related support, and access to student health services. International students can use the International Office for practical guidance about arrival, living in Sweden, orientation, mobility, and contact with Swedish authorities. Degree students normally direct academic questions to their programme coordinator, while admissions, tuition, and scholarship questions go to the Admissions Office. Exchange students follow a separate nomination and application process through their home institution. Housing requires early independent planning. The university states that accommodation is not guaranteed and that degree students are responsible for finding their own place to live. Its housing guidance, last updated in March 2024, estimated a regular student room or apartment at approximately SEK 3,000–7,000 per month, depending on size and standard. That dated range should be treated only as a planning reference and checked against current landlord listings. Limited furnished accommodation announced for autumn 2026 was specifically intended for exchange students staying no more than two semesters, not the general degree-student population.

Location & Surroundings

Borås is in southwestern Sweden, approximately 60 kilometres east of Gothenburg. The university’s main campus sits at the end of Allégatan in the city centre, about a ten-minute walk from Borås Resecentrum, the main rail and bus station. Shops, supermarkets, banks, restaurants, and cafés are within walking distance, allowing students to manage many daily needs without a car. The central location also makes regional commuting practical. The university notes that public transport is widely used by students living elsewhere in the surrounding region. Borås combines an urban centre with nearby parks and recreational areas, while its established textile identity is directly relevant to the university’s textile and fashion education and the Swedish Textile Museum located near the campus area. Applicants should check the location attached to each programme rather than assume all teaching occurs at the main campus. The university identifies Borås, Varberg, and Skövde as possible campus locations, and some programmes are offered remotely. Even a distance programme may contain required in-person sessions unless its listing explicitly says that there is no mandatory attendance.

Costs & Career Outcomes

Tuition liability depends primarily on citizenship and residence status, not simply on whether a student is international. Citizens of the EU, EEA, and Switzerland do not pay application or tuition fees. With specified exceptions, applicants from outside those areas pay tuition for bachelor’s and master’s study. Exchange students and doctoral students are exempt. Fee-paying students pay in advance by semester and cannot register if the invoiced instalment is not paid by the stated deadline. Exact tuition is programme-specific and should be checked on the relevant current programme page rather than inferred from a university-wide average. For autumn entry, the university offers a limited number of scholarships to highly qualified, tuition-paying applicants to designated master’s programmes. Its 2026 scholarship page says these awards reduce tuition by approximately 75 percent and do not cover living costs. They are not offered for bachelor’s programmes, artistic programmes, or spring admission. The autumn 2026 competition is closed; the page states that applications for autumn 2027 are expected to reopen in December. Students should budget separately for housing, food, transport, insurance, and study materials. Degree students receive no housing guarantee. Career preparation is mainly programme-specific, but the institution describes close educational collaboration with companies, industry, and public organisations, and students can access study and career counselling. Science Park Borås and Drivhuset provide an entrepreneurship and innovation setting. Applicants seeking a regulated profession, compulsory placement, or a particular career outcome should confirm those details with the programme because the university does not publish a single institution-wide placement or salary figure.