As a student, you have several statutory rights.

The University of Gothenburg also offers a range of benefits for those who study here. But it can be difficult to keep track of all the different regulations and information is often scarce.

Therefore, Göta student union has compiled some of the most central laws and regulations that are good to keep an eye on to give you as a student a clearer overview of your rights.

Statutory law and regulations

There are a number of laws that are of importance to students. A few examples are:

• The Swedish Higher Education Act
• The Higher Education Ordinance
• The Discrimination Act

In addition to legislation, there are also other legal sources of importance, such as The Swedish Council for Higher Education (UHR) Constitutional Collection. Of the aforementioned, the Higher Education Act is the most central piece of legislation. It primarily regulates the universities' operations and forms.

To this, the Higher Education Ordinance is an important supplement with more detailed provisions on essentially the same issues.

Student insurance

As a student, you are insured by the university. The insurance covers damages that have occurred in connection with your education. (Higher Education Ordinance ch. 1, § 11 a).

This includes injuries during journeys to and from school. For example, the insurance can be used to cover healthcare costs and loss of income due to the injury.

The insurance is provided by the state administrative authority Kammarkollegiet (Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency). If you have an accident or suffer other personal injury, you must make a claim report to the Kammarkollegiet via their website in order to be entitled to the insurance. There you will also find more detailed information about the insurance and how to file a claim.

Incident report in IA

If you have injured yourself, or feel that the university is lacking in its procedures regarding work environment, safety or the environment in general, you should make a so-called incident report.

This is done in Gothenburg University's system IA to report deviations and incidents, as well as improvement proposals regarding the work environment, safety and sustainable development. Do you need to report a problem with your studies? Click here.

Student health at GU

The University of Gothenburg also offers support and help to you who are a student and who have problems with ill health caused by your studies. Through student health, you can get call support and other tools to deal with your problem, among other things.

More information about student health and how to contact them can be found on the Student Portal.

Student affairs

Have you encountered problems related to your course or program? Do you need help and support from the union?

Use the case management system for student cases. There you enter your contact details and describe your problem in a secure environment so that only authorized people have access to the information.

Student representation

Student representatives are appointed by the student union. Which bodies should have representatives is decided jointly by the university and the union.

Students are represented in both permanent and temporary groups, e.g. work environment groups, management groups and investigations. A student representative has the same rights and obligations as other members. It is the chairman of the body in question who is responsible for ensuring that the student representative receives sufficient information and documentation to be able to carry out the work and prepare for meetings.

Most student representative assignments are remunerated, and all assignments entitle you to a written certificate from the university upon completion of the assignment.

Course evaluations

For all universities and colleges, there is a statutory requirement to carry out a course evaluation after completing the course. As a student, you then have the opportunity to give feedback on the course. It is also the university's responsibility to present the results of the previous course evaluation, and any measures that have been taken before your course. (Higher Education Ordinance ch. 1, § 14)

Disciplinary matters

When a disciplinary case is initiated against a student, he has certain rights and obligations according to law (primarily university regulation ch. 10). Disciplinary proceedings may only be initiated in certain specific situations:

• Cheating
• Disruption of teaching
• Disruption of operations
• Harassment

If more than two years have passed since the incident, a disciplinary case may not be initiated either (Chapter 10, Section 1).

When a disciplinary case has been initiated, it must be investigated by the headmaster, who can choose to either leave the case, give a warning or refer the case to the disciplinary board (chapter 10, section 9). If the vice-chancellor decides to issue a warning, the student concerned has the right to submit the decision for review in the disciplinary committee, which the university has an obligation to inform the student about (Chapter 10, Section 10).

The disciplinary committee consists of a chairman (principal or pro-principal), a member with a legal background, a teacher representative, and student representatives. The disciplinary committee shall (chapter 10, section 11):

• Investigate the matter thoroughly
• Give the student the opportunity to express himself
• Give the student the opportunity to be present when others speak before the committee

More detailed information about disciplinary matters can be found on the university's website and in the higher education regulation.

Swedish Higher Education Authority

If you as a student believe that the University of Gothenburg has broken any law, you can report this directly to the Swedish Higher Education Authority (UKÄ).

UKÄ is a government authority that reviews the quality of education at universities and colleges in Sweden, among other things through legal supervision where students' ability to report problems themselves has a significant role. UKÄ also publishes many reports and analyzes of various trends, patterns and problems at the colleges and universities. More information is available on UKÄ's website.

Tutoring in academic language and writing

As a student at the University of Gothenburg, you have access to tutoring in academic language and writing. It is a resource offered by the university to all students to develop their written and oral ability to articulate themselves in academic contexts. According to the University Library's website, you can, for example:

• • Get advice on how to develop your reading and writing strategies.
• • Discuss a written assignment or oral presentation you are working on.
• • Ask a question about academic language and writing at the drop-in.
• • Practice language and grammar in workshops and quizzes.
• • Discuss language and writing with other students in a writing café.

Study guidance

The university has a legal obligation to offer students access to study guidance and career guidance. On the University of Gothenburg's website, there is information and contact information for the study advisor on your particular program. The study advisor is available to answer all possible questions and concerns about your education and the working life that follows.