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‘Lund is defined by our international profile’

Lund has more NFGL scholars than any other university in the country. To learn more about Sweden’s “most international university”, SI News speaks with Lund University Deputy Vice Chancellor Eva Wiberg about her job, her blog, and what defines the university.

Published: 25 August 2016 13:28 CEST
‘Lund is defined by our international profile’
File photo: Kennet Ruona/Lund University

What is your role at the university? 

As Deputy Vice Chancellor, I’m the second in command at the university. I stand in for meetings and decisions when the Vice Chancellor can’t be present, but I also have my own responsibilities, including overseeing all education at all levels of the university, both undergraduate and graduate. That involves quality assurance and enhancements in teaching and learning.

I’m also in charge of the education board at Lund, which includes deans from all different departments as well as student representatives and decides on new masters programmes and other matter. And I also have responsibility for all international matters related to education and research. I’m on Lund’s board for internationalization which was launched last spring that looks at what international networks we should be a part of and what masters programmes are most suitable for international exchanges.

What are Lund University’s defining characteristics?

It’s the second-oldest university in Sweden and the most comprehensive – we have the widest offering of faculties and departments. We’re also very research intensive, and research permeates into our teaching in a very natural way.

We’re also the most international university in Sweden, with the most tuition-paying students. And out of 200 masters programmes we offer, 150 are in English. I think that really defines Lund – our international profile.

How does higher education in Sweden compare to other countries?

One thing that they do very well in the US and in other countries that we could be better at is having a couple of basic liberal arts years at the start of university. Things are a bit compressed here in Sweden, with students immediately starting programmes related to their eventual career directly out of high school. They don’t have a year or two of basics that help them better understand what’s involved with studying at university, and that can be quite helpful.

We’re aware of this and have for now used MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) to help younger students broaden their horizons.

How is the role of the university changing in today’s globalized, digital world?

Well, universities evolve all the time, and so has Lund. We’re not only old, but we’re also new. We just opened one of the most advanced synchrotron facilities in the world – the MAX IV – in June. And next to that construction continues on ESS (European Spallation Source) facilities.

There’s always a lot going on in education and we need to be able to adapt. It’s worth remembering that Lund was established in 1666 by Sweden’s King Charles XI to ‘Swedify’ the area after he captured it back from Denmark. We have the original faculties – law, theology, philosophy, and medicine – but also newer faculties like fine arts, as well as many online courses.

We also bring a lot of modern technology into our teaching and research and that keeps us at the cutting edge of creating new knowledge. We have close collaboration with Ericsson, the telecom company, and Gambro where the artificial kidney was developed. You know Bluetooth technology was also developed in Lund and we continue to have lots of innovation in mobile development here.

Why did you start your international blog?

We have a newsletter in English that covers most of what’s happening in terms of education, and the Vice Chancellor has a blog in Swedish, so that doesn’t really focus on international students. I thought it would be good to have something for our international students and researchers and PhD students – many of whom know English but not much Swedish.

I look at it as our window out to the world – a way to let the international community know what we’re doing, where we’ve travelled, who we’re meeting, etc. I want to inspire students and researchers and highlight our different collaborations and exchanges –like the SI scholarship students we have here at Lund.

It’s also a voice for management where we can communicate to the world. I should probably write something about Brexit – or maybe even the US election.

Why are international students important to Lund?

They are really an asset and great to have in the classroom – it allows everyone to learn a lot from one another. International students can inspire other to think differently and consider new perspectives. They also become ambassadors for the university after they leave.

I really feel the quality of our education is enhanced by all our international students. It allows us to be more of a global platform for learning.

How does Lund help international students get acclimated?

On arrival day we have volunteers who meet the students at the airport in Copenhagen and we arrange transport that brings them right to campus. The volunteers are older students who can help answer questions and show the new international students around to the student unions, the residence halls, and make sure they learn about all the extracurricular actives we offer.

What should international students not miss during their time at Lund?

If they are here for an entire academic year, they should not miss the Lundaspex, which is held on April 30th and May 1st every year. The city just explodes with activities, games, and shows. At the heart is a musical theatre ensemble made up of students and its great fun and something really special for Lund. And you might not be surprised to hear that there’s quite a lot of beer too.

SINEWS

Lagom: The best way to achieve social health?

Ronoh Philip, who is studying for his masters degree in Infectious Disease Control at Södertörn University, explains why he thinks the Swedish concept of 'lagom' is the best way to achieve good social health.

Published: 23 December 2019 10:24 CET
Lagom: The best way to achieve social health?

During my one week orientation program on August 2019 at Södertörn University, we were presented with many aspects of Swedish culture and practices. One of the new aspects that I learnt was the “lagom culture”, As I quote one of the presenters about applying lagom to our studies, he said: ”Lagom will reduce your stressful burdens of hectic lecture schedules and ensure that you spend equal time of working and socializing in the university.”

So being a student with a background in public health and society, I got interested and searched for the deeper meaning of lagom, and how it can  apply to society and health. I found out that it is a Swedish way of life, it is a concept which means not too much and not too little, just enough. I learnt that it came from a Viking tradition laget om which means 'around the group' and was allegedly used to describe just how much mead or soup one should drink when passing the bowl around in the group.

If this concept is applied to achieve social health goals, it would really fit well. So, what is social health at first? Social health is how you interact with other people and adapt in different situations, it deals with how people in society deal with each other. It is important to note that there is a close link between good social health and improvement of the other aspects of human health, this can lead to the achievement of SDG goal of good health and wellbeing. It also leads to self-satisfaction and happiness; no wonder Sweden is ranked as one the happiest countries in the world. It is ranked 7th in 2019, according to world happiness report. I believe lagom has a big role in this achievement.

In the country where I come from, Kenya, one of the greatest challenges we face in our society, is the ability for people of different cultural and ethnic backgrounds to interact and form positive and cohesive relationships with each other. From my perspective, when I finish my studies and return, lagom will be worth implementing in the workplace, the place where I live and the society as whole, as it is the best way of finding simple, attainable solutions to our everyday worries like stress, eating better, having downtime and achieving happiness. It’s a balance of work and life, so everything is in sustainable existence with each other.

My goal during my entire university studies at Södertörn, will be to learn more about the lagom principle and also be able to apply it on our SI NFGL Local Network platform, because it is surely one of the best ways to achieve a good  work-life balance, reaching consensus with my colleagues and adapting a team minded approach in dealing with issues in an organization and the society.