Master's Programme in Physics, 120 ECTS credits
Presentation film about UmU
In less than fifty years Umeå University (UmU) has managed to become one of the largest and leading universities in Sweden. The university was recently ranked first in Sweden in respect to overall satisfaction by our international students and UmU has become well-known world-wide for excellent quality in research and teaching. The Department of Physics is a good example and we have for example received extra financial support for several young and promising researchers. The study atmosphere at the department is very international and interested students have good opportunities to locate some part of the programme studies to another country.
Programme code: TAFYM (not to be confused with the application code, which usually changes from one semester to another).
Programme sundries: The Master's Programme in Physics is a two-year study programme offered in English. Each student is offered individual study councelling and has freedom to choose courses and specialization according to his/her own interests and ambitions. The programme is structured according to the European Bologna system and is finished off with an (at least) one-semester Master´s thesis. The thesis work is usually done in one of our reseach groups, but it is also possible to do it in a company or at another university, even abroad. The latter alternatives usually have to be arranged by the students themselves.
The programme starts in August/September every year (fall semester), but it is possible to join in in the middle of January as well (spring semester).
Main study paths: You have a large freedom to put together an individual study path leading to the Master´s degree. All physics courses offered in English are found here.
You can read about some recommended study paths and their prerequisites here:
Computational PhysicsNanotechnology/Condensed Matter PhysicsQuantum PhysicsPhotonics and advanced materialsSpace PhysicsTheoretical Physics
Eligibility: The programme is open for students holding at least a three-year Bachelor´s degree in calculus-based physics or engineering physics. Good English proficiency (see here for requirements and exemptions from English proficiency tests) and at least 60 ECTS credits in physics are other requirements. Degrees below second class and courses below 50% are not considered.
It is possible to apply already during the last semester of Bachelor studies and get a conditional admission to the programme. Proof of the remaining study programme must be added to the application.
Umeå University: The university, having almost 37,000 students and 4,000 employees, is one of the larger universities in Sweden. It is built after the American campus model and is well-known for excellent quality in education and research. In fact, international students rank Umeå University among the very top universities in the world, read more at the bottom right.
Tuition fees: SEK 2250 per ECTS credit, that is, SEK 67500 per semester (half academic year) for full-time studies. (Here you find a currency converter.)
All EU/EEA citizens are exempted from tuition fees. Also students form outside EU/EEA studying in Sweden under an official bilateral student exchange agreement are exempted.
In order to issue a visa the Swedish Migration Board requires a guaranteed financing for living costs etc. of SEK 146,000 for the two years of studying. However, it is not necessary to spend all this money.
Scholarships: UmU offers a few scholarships (tuition fee reductions) to Master´s programme students, but the competition is keen. Students from countries getting development aid from Sweden can get scholarships from The Swedish Institute. Read more about these and other scholarships here.
Accommodation: The International Housing Office at Umeå University guarantees accommodation to all full-time students with exchange agreements and to all full-degree students from outside EU/EEA and Switzerland.
Accreditation and quality: Umeå University is a state university and the quality of the education is regularly scrutinized by the Swedish National Agency for Higher Education. Institutions not fulfilling the national standards are denied the right to offer questioned programmes.
To keep a high research and teaching quality, all course lecturers of the MSc Programme in Physics hold at least an associate professor/senior lecturer position and most are full professors. The laboratory supervisors are at least PhD students and many are professors.
Further, every course at the Department of Physics is evaluated by the students with respect to content and teaching skills, and the quality of the courses and the teaching is continuously improved in line with these student opinions.
For international student evaluations of studies at the Department of Physics please check the link under Student opinions in the column on the right.
Application: The application is done on-line, but all supporting paper documents like transcripts and degree certificates must be sent by post. A good advice is to prepare all necessary documents well in advance!
For studies starting in August/September (autumn semester), the application can be made between either
December 1 - January 15 (for international students), or
March 15 - April 15 (for Swedish students, as the application form is in Swedish!).
For studies starting in mid-January (spring semester) the application dates are either
June 1 - August 15 (for international students), or
September 15 - October 15 (for Swedish students, as the application form is in Swedish!)
It is usually possible to make a so called late application even after a deadline has passed, but note that it may take up to three months for the Swedish Migration Board to process a visa application, thus apply in time! You can make a late application as long as the link "Add" is available at the application website.
If you want to apply to single courses offered on campus, but not to the whole programme, you must use the Swedish application websites, with the later application periods as described above. Please contact the study counsellor Lars-Erik Svensson if you need help with making an application in Swedish. All courses offered in English at UmU are found here.
General eligibility and application informationApplying to the programme
