Moving to another country for a year after school? Help?

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VISA: Where you live is not important; your nationality is. If you are a British citizen you do need any visa for Sweden. You are legally entitled to enter Sweden, just by presenting a valid passport and you do not need any work permit. If staying for more than three months you must register your right of residence with the Migration Board – Migrationsverket. This is a relatively simple procedure to be done sometime during your first three months in Sweden. You should also register with the Tax Agency – Skatteverket. If you are not a British citizen you may need a residence permit, to be applied for in advance at a Swedish consulate.

HOUSING: May be a problem especially in Stockholm, but with enough time and planning you should be able to find a place to live in any town. There are public and private companies renting out flats. There are also special student housing in many places. Exactly where to look would depend on where you would like to live.

JOB: The market for English tutors is not good in Sweden, as you have understood. Just like in the UK, which jobs you can get, would depend on your education and your skills. Looking for relatively unqualified jobs after graduating from university would make little sense. If you look for a job within your field of study, your chances of getting a job would increase, you would like earn more and it would look better on your resumé. You should consider going to university in Sweden. If you like it and want to stay on you would have time to learn how things work in Sweden before looking for work. If you want to go back to the UK you would still have had your Swedish adventure and learnt a new language. If you are a British citizen you are exempt from application and tuition fees at Swedish universities. For most university programmes and courses you must have certified knowledge of Swedish before enrollment, but you can study Swedish in Sweden, without cost if you are a British citizen.

FRIENDS: This will of course depend on your interest and personality. Generally it would be easy to make friends among fellow students or coworkers.