Minor Field Studies (MFS)

To be eligible to apply, you must:

• Be enrolled at a university or university college in Sweden.
• Not have begun studies at doctoral level.
• Have a good command of English.
• Be a Swedish citizen or have been registered in the Swedish population register for at least one year at the time of application. This means that international students at the Swedish Defence University are also eligible to apply.
• Have a contact person in the field who can provide support during your field study.
• The thesis or degree project resulting from your MFS study must be written in English.

There are countries all over the world whose economic, social, political, or knowledge-based development levels lead them to be classified as developing countries by the OECD's Development Assistance Committee.

Sida provides a website Openaid where they have compiled a list of countries eligible for conducting a MFS project.

For safety reasons, MFS projects cannot be carried out in locations listed on the Foreign Ministry's list that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises against.

The MFS scholarship amounts to 35,000 SEK per student. Typically, the scholarship does not cover all expenses related to an MFS project, so you should be prepared to supplement it—for example, with student loans or other sources of funding.

When the MFS scholarships are open for application, a call for proposals is published. In the application guide, you will find step-by-step instructions to follow throughout the process.

Guide for application.

The Swedish Defence University arranges individual insurance (Student UT) for each MFS scholarship recipient through Kammarkollegiet. (Legal, Financial and Administrative Services Agency).

If you plan to extend your stay abroad after completing your field study, you are responsible for arranging your own insurance for the additional period.

Your MFS project must result in a thesis worth 15–30 ECTS credits, contributing to a bachelor’s, one-year master’s, or two-year master’s degree. The thesis must be written in English.

Your thesis will be assessed by your supervisor and examiner at the Swedish Defence University, based on the academic criteria applicable for theses at the corresponding level. Where possible, your field supervisor should also provide feedback on your work.

You are personally responsible for sharing the thesis with relevant stakeholders in the host country.