kursbaserade

Kursbaserade is a Swedish term used in education to describe an approach in which learning and degree progress are structured around individual courses (kurser) and their credit value, rather than around a fixed program or degree track. In higher education, kursbaserad utbildning emphasizes completing a set of courses, each with defined learning outcomes and assessment, which together contribute to a degree or qualification.

In practice, kursbaserade structures involve course catalogs with descriptions, prerequisites, and credit values. Students build their study plans by selecting courses that satisfy degree requirements, enabling some flexibility and the possibility of transferring credits between institutions. Degrees are assembled from a total number of credits rather than a rigid sequence of courses, and assessment tends to be modular, tied to each course’s evaluation methods—such as exams, assignments, and projects.

Advantages of kursbaserade systems include increased flexibility for students to tailor their studies, easier credit transfer within and between institutions, and better alignment with international credit frameworks like the European Credit Transfer and Accumulation System (ECTS). Challenges can include the need for strong cross-department coordination to ensure coherence of the degree, potential variability in workload across terms, and ongoing quality assurance of individual courses to maintain overall program standards.

The term is commonly used in Sweden and other Nordic countries and is also encountered in international contexts to describe “course-based” degree formats, contrasted with program-based or thesis-based approaches. Kursbaserade education relies on transparent course descriptions and explicit learning outcomes to maintain alignment with degree goals.