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Ten jobs for internationals in Sweden you may not have thought of

Finding work in Sweden can be tough if you don't know where to look. But even if you don't speak a word of Swedish or are having a hard time learning, there is still hope...

Published: 18 May 2018 12:28 CEST
Ten jobs for internationals in Sweden you may not have thought of
Stockholm's Sthlm Tech Fest. Photo: Magnus Hjalmarson Neideman/SvD/TT

This article is available to Members of The Local. Read more Membership Exclusives here.

There are some basic things worth knowing about working life in Sweden. First are two golden words you may have heard if you've ever spoken to anyone who works here: “fast anställd” or full-time employee.

In Sweden that means you'll get a minimum of five weeks paid vacation and paid parental leave, among other things. But even if you're not a full-time employee, workers have very strong rights compared to many other countries.

When it comes to moving here for work, coming from an EU or EEA country is a major advantage. Speaking the language definitely is too, but it's not impossible to find work where the native tongue may not be required. Here are some examples to get you started.

The tech industry

According to a recent study high demand has created a shortage of programmers in Sweden. By 2022 the estimated amount of programmers needed will be around 70,000.

Sweden has a reputation for being a front runner when it comes to tech companies. If you have experience or qualification in programming, computer science or any other skill used within the tech industry then it could be an option for you. Many of the companies use English as their main office language, and workplaces often consist of a mixture of internationals and Swedish natives. Music streaming giant Spotify, payment services provider Klarna and podcast provider Acast are some of the big tech names started and based in Sweden.

FOR MEMBERS: How you can turn your startup into the next Spotify


Photo: Richard Drew/AP

Fashion and design

Swedish fashion and design are internationally renowned. Like tech companies, big brands use English to some extent. From developing new furniture models to working with the import of textiles for the next season's trendiest trousers, there are many different jobs in these industries. Designing, importing and sales are a few.

Though most of the big Swedish fashion brands like H&M and Acne are based in Stockholm, furniture giant IKEA has its headquarters in the small southern town Älmhult. So if the combination of calm rural Sweden and designing tricky-to-assemble wardrobes is your dream, they're likely for you.

READ ALSO: Why talking wardrobes could help save the planet


Photo: Tomas Onebrog/SvD/TT

Freelance writing and proofreading

When it comes to full-time English journalism in Sweden, you're looking at it. So the prospect of permanent work in that field is difficult (though The Local does hire from time to time and it's worth keeping an eye open).

The good thing with being a writer however is that you don't necessarily have to work on location, be employed by a Swedish company or be employed at all. Registering as a freelancer in Sweden is relatively simple, and if you're struggling, we went to great lengths to detail the process.

FOR MEMBERS: How to register as a freelancer in Sweden

Proofreading could also be an option.  Even if Swedes in general have good English skills, you're a native speaker and they're not, so spelling and grammar errors do occur. While full-time jobs doing proofreading are rare, it can be a good and relatively easy way to earn some extra money, or a stepping stone to other jobs. One way to get this kind of work is to put an advert for yourself on freelancing or classified sites.


Photo: Caleb Jones/AP

Embassies

A potential place to work that may slip your mind is at embassies. Most English-speaking nations have an embassy in Stockholm, and jobs can vary from working as a clerk at the visa desk to accounting. Some of the jobs might require you to know some Swedish but that will be specified in the ads.

Ads are posted on the individual websites of embassies, and will state the rules and regulations followed. Swedish regulations may still apply, so paid parental leave and other benefits could be on offer.  Some of the bigger English-speaking embassies include the USA, Canada, Australia and the UK.


Photo: Fredrik Sandberg/TT

Teaching

If you want to work as a teacher in Sweden's public school system you need a bachelor's degree in education and a certificate from the National Agency for Education (Skolverket). As a foreigner you can apply for one if you have the right degree but you have to be able to speak and understand Swedish.

FOR MEMBERS: How to work as a teacher in Sweden

Non state schools work differently. The likes of Internationella Engelska Skolan and IB do most of their teaching in English. For positions there you will likely also need a bachelor's degree, experience in teaching and most likely, to be certified to teach in your native country.

Due to a shortage in the profession getting temp (vikarie) work teaching in Sweden is fairly straightforward. You don't need any qualifications to work as a temp, but you won't get a long term contract and hours may vary from month to month. To find temp jobs as a teacher check Vikariepoolen, Pedagogpoolen and Skoljobb where ads are posted regularly.

If you are certified to teach English as a second language you can take a look at British Institute and Folkuniversitet . Both teach courses in English as a second language which don't require a formal education.


Photo: Lars Pehrson/SvD/TT

The service industry

Most basic restaurants or pubs will not require you to speak Swedish fluently, and the little you may need for pouring a pint can probably be picked up in a matter of weeks. Swedes generally don't go knocking on doors to apply for work but this is an exception. Just ask at a pub or restaurant if they need any staff. In summer when the tourists pour in it will likely be easier to find jobs in this field.

Restaurants put up ads when they want staff, and if you have experience as a chef or a waiter it can be a huge advantage. A further alternative is food deliveries. If you're willing to bike around and deliver food you can apply at various services like Foodora. It's hard work and pay is generally not great, but at least you get a good workout.

Photo: Jonas Ekströmer/TT

Guided tours

This is one way to make that Scandinavian history class you took at university (or any history knowledge at all) pay off.

To be an authorized guide in Sweden you need to complete a minimum of 200 hours of training with an instructor and then take an exam. You can however work as a guide without the qualification. Guide work isn't a well paid job and in some cases only based on tips from the people you take on the tour. Passion will help.

Special interest tours are also very popular, so if you have a deep interest in the Millennium trilogy or knowledge of the assassination of Swedish prime minister Olof Palme you could be in luck. Check sites like Like a local if you want to do a tour of your own.

READ ALSO: How this international became an expert guide in Sweden

Photo: Niklas Larsson/TT

Game development

In the gaming and games development world Sweden is a big deal, going back to the 1990s but exploding to prominence above all in the last decade. Major titles like Minecraft were developed by Mojang, and Battlefield developed by EA DICE, with both having their head offices here. And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

New studios are popping up everywhere and you can find anything from award winning indie developers to top level titles being produced. Ads for work in gaming are usually posted on the developer's site.

MORE FROM THE LOCAL ON GAMING IN SWEDEN:


A Way Out, byt Josef Fares' Hazelight studio. Photo: Hazelight

Jobs can include anything from marketing to visual effects. As with fashion and tech, English is often the office language of choice, and the bigger the company the more likely you are to not need any Swedish at all. Many studios are based in Stockholm but some, like the indie-horror studio Frictional Games, is based in the southern town of Helsingborg.

Adventure tourism

Are mountain trekking, off-piste skiing or paragliding your passion? Sweden definitely has the natural environment for it, and working in those fields can be a good way to combine your hobby and time in the wilderness with earning money in your native language.

Particularly in the north of Sweden there are a lot of national parks, ski slopes and mountains. Some like Sarek are cut off from the rest of the country and are considered true wilderness. A guide is required to get around these places, so if you have experience and training there could be work to do.

Skiing in particular is very popular and if you have experience in the more extreme, off the beaten path kind that could be a good niche for English speaking crowds. The large ski resorts employ a lot of instructors and other staff, (Skistar is one of the biggest firms and posts ads here), so why not try contacting them?

A different approach is to set up a company of your own and offer private tours as a freelancer.

Photo: Henrik Holmberg/TT

NGOs

Working at NGOs often require Swedish but occasionally positions for non Swedish speakers are available. In general the organizations look for people interested in human rights with degrees within fields like political science and law.

Civil Right defenders is one NGO based and founded in Stockholm. Its main focus is monitoring governments that commit crimes against humanity and seeking justice for those affected. They also train and support people who fight to defend human rights around the world. Not all positions require you to speak swedish, and they regularly post ads on their site. Other NGOs worth looking into are Amnesty, Swedish Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders.

Photo: Anders Wiklund/TT

Other useful places to look:

The Swedish Public Employment Service (Arbetsförmedlingen) has virtually all the information you will need regarding working in Sweden, including on tax and permits. The official Sweden site also has good information for internationals.

Unions are important players in Sweden, the biggest of which include The Swedish Trade Union Confederation (LO), The Swedish Confederation of Employees /TCO), and The Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations (SACO).

They can help with matters like negotiating a salary, settling conflicts with your employer and more. A complete list of unions be found in Swedish here.

Each union also has an unemployment fund that you can join. If you find yourself unemployed and have been a member for the stipulated period you can receive unemployment benefits from them, more information about which can be found here.

Browse thousands of English-language jobs in Sweden

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READER INSIGHTS

How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who’ve been there, done that

The Swedish job market poses unique challenges for newcomers. The Local's readers share their best tips for cracking the career code.

Published: 10 April 2024 11:32 CEST
Updated: 13 April 2024 15:50 CEST
How to find a job in Sweden: Five tips from those who've been there, done that

Network, network, network!

A statistic that often gets tossed around is that seven out of ten jobs in Sweden are obtained through personal connections, and there’s no doubt that a good network is crucial to your job hunt, making the labour market extra challenging for newcomers to the country.

In fact, networking was the main tip mentioned by The Local’s readers.

“The job market is quite hot in Sweden, and talent is in short supply. People hiring do not have a lot of time to find the right talent, and tips from friends, colleagues and former colleagues are the way to first, find out organisations are hiring, and secondly, get your CV on the short list,” said Kyle, a Canadian reader who works in innovation management in Gothenburg.

“If you are going for a major employer like Volvo, network gets you in the door, as HR does not have much to do with hiring… the hiring managers do all of it and have no time, due to the insane number of consensus meetings. If you are looking for smaller organisations, they have even less time to find people, and networking is their primary way to find talent,” he added.

NETWORKING IN SWEDEN:

Some of the networking tips readers mentioned were going to job fairs, getting an internship to help you establish connections in your preferred field, joining clubs (this could be anything from your local gardening association to meetups for coders, but focus on clubs that may be popular among people working in your chosen field), and drawing on your organic network of friends, neighbours and others.

Don’t neglect the groundwork

The saying “dress for the job you want, not the job you have” is getting worn out (and people may look at you funny if you turn up to interviews in a Batman suit), but there’s truth to the notion of making sure you know what you want – and preparing for it.

In other words, don’t wait for a job ad to appear before you start to customise your CV and figure out what skill set you need. Create your CV now so that you’re ready to tweak it to your dream job – you could even have a general look at job ads in your field to see what requirements are needed. And don’t forget to spruce up your LinkedIn profile so that it fits with your career goals.

“I believe that several factors contribute to successfully landing a desirable job in Sweden. It’s essential to prepare to meet the requirements beyond just having a university degree. Many individuals realise these requirements only after completing their studies when they start searching for a job, which can be too late,” said Adnan Aslam from Pakistan, who works as a food inspector.

“I recommend identifying the job advertisements for positions you aspire to hold in the future and then preparing for those requirements during your studies. For me, acquiring a basic level of proficiency in the Swedish language and obtaining a Swedish driving licence were crucial. I pursued these goals during my studies and was able to secure a desirable job before graduating,” he added.

READ ALSO:

Felipe Cabral even has a GPT assistant trained on his own CVs and old cover letters, and said the set-up only takes ten minutes if you already have your documents. “With that in place, you can give instructions like: Read this job description and create a tailored version of my CV and letter for it. (…) Remember to always review and ask it not to create data aside from your documents.”

Be flexible and ready to adapt

Moving to a new place inevitably means having to learn not just the practicalities such as how to write a CV or which websites to use to look for job openings, but also learning how to navigate a new culture with all its unspoken expectations.

Swedish workplaces are generally less hierarchical than many other countries, but that doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want whenever you want without anyone raising an eyebrow. Swedes are usually direct, but be careful of being too abrasive or boastful: raising your voice, even during a spirited argument, or banging your own drum to show off your skills may not go down well.

“Talk, deliberate, complain like a Swede and you’ll come across like you know what the job entails, so your trustworthiness increases,” said an Indian data analyst who preferred to remain anonymous.

“Office politics are just as strong in Sweden as anywhere else. The flat hierarchy is deceiving as social hierarchy is enforced quite a bit in that lack of formal hierarchy. Take your time in learning these dynamics wherever you work before revealing your talent and capabilities. Expect those internal politics to happen, and they won’t hurt so much when they do,” said Kyle, the Canadian reader in Gothenburg.

This article about Swedish office politics may be useful.

Stay true to yourself

Adapting to your surroundings is one thing. Completely changing who you are is another.

For one thing, your happiness is as important as your career progression, and for another, your foreignness need not be an impediment: it’s also a skill that sets you apart from the rest. It means you have unique experience, and also, in the right setting, provides an opportunity to sometimes violate those social rules we mentioned above, because people assume you will, anyway.

“Trust is key. Build trust in your network, work with integrity. It’s OK to violate jantelagen if you are maintaining integrity. Sometimes your outsider and more honest/open opinion will burn bridges, especially those that may feel threatened by talent. But it will build trust with other colleagues who see it as brave and more trustworthy to work with,” said Kyle from Canada.

Hunker down for the long haul

We don’t want to scare you, because there are plenty of examples of people who quickly find their dream job in Sweden and settle into their new workplace, enjoying perks such as long summer holidays, generous parental leave and the famous work-life balance.

But if you do find it tougher than you expected: know that you’re not alone.

Several readers who responded to the survey said they were still trying to find a job in Sweden.

“I found jobs all over Europe but not here. They say they have a lack of experienced senior engineers but the don’t seem to be doing much to solve this,” said a Brazilian in Gothenburg.

A reader from Bangladesh said she was “at a loss” as to how to make a career change from her current AI role in Stockholm, despite many years of experience as an IT project manager.

“Over the past 18 months, I’ve submitted over 600 applications to various organisations. Unfortunately, despite being overqualified for some positions, I’ve faced rejections at every turn, from both large and small companies. The job market here, especially for foreign-born women, feels overwhelmingly challenging,” she said, adding that the struggle had impacted her mental health.

The Local has on several occasions reported on foreign residents’ struggle to get a foot on the Swedish job ladder, with many facing hurdles such as employers’ unfamiliarity with international degrees, discrimination, or a lack of network that can provide paths into a company.

So during the job hunt, don’t forget to care for yourself. Share your concerns with fellow job-seekers, ask for help and join networking groups – this is good not just for creating new contacts, but also in terms of your social well-being and meeting people who are in a similar situation.

And finally, as one British reader in Stockholm advised, keep looking: “Be open-minded with the opportunities that present themselves. It isn’t an easy market to enter and doesn’t feel inclusive.” But he added, “don’t give up”.

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