Study administration

Application, admission and registration (link to the SciTech web)
Examinations and examination halls (link to the UU central web)
Getting your examination back
Academic calendar with re-exam dates
Study break, study leave, absense (link to the SciTech web)
Studies outside Sweden
Degree project
Degree (link to the UU central web)
Practical information for studying in Uppsala
Social issues (civic registration/personal identification number, ID, visa, earning money)
Rules for studying in Sweden (Link to the Swedish Migration Agency)
Uppsala University international site for students

Support and guidance

You can turn to our study counselors with questions regarding study choices, problems with your studies, or your study or career situation.

Find contact information and more

Course information and schedules

You can find all programme and course schedules in Studium. All programmes and courses have web pages where updated course information can be found: schedule, syllabus, details about excursions, seminar papers, links, pictures, power-point presentations etc.

For most courses you have to attend the registration at the first scheduled activity of the course, even if you have pre-registered in Ladok. If you for some reason cannot attend, you must notify the course leader or the IBG course administration (info@ibg.uu.se) in advance, otherwise another student may be admitted to the course in your place.

Exam hand out

From October 2016 all exams, written in examination halls, at the Biology Education Centre will be scanned by the Student service Ångström.

As soon as the result is published in Ladok you should be able to have access electronically to your corrected exam at https://mintentateknat.kvk.uu.se/myexam/. You can see all your archived exams and download them to your computer. You will not be able to retrieve the original exam papers. They may however be rescanned within two months if there has been a scanning error. Your exams will be saved on the Uppsala University server for 2 years from the date of your grade. After that the exam will be removed from the server.

Exams coordinated by the teachers themselves will be returned by the teachers.

Information to students regarding scanning

Starting in 2017, all exams within the Faculty of Science and Technology are scanned. It applies to all exams to which you have signed up on the student portal and where the exam is written on paper size A4. Other paper formats cannot be scanned.

This means that your exam will be returned to you in a digital format, which you can download onto your own hard drive. You can access your exam by logging in with your CAS login on a server. The exam is saved on the server for two years, then erased, according to the current archive rules for examination.

Remember to log in and check your exam as soon as possible in order to verify that everything is in order. After two months, it is not possible to rescan the exam.

Log in and get your exams

REVIEWING

Grades cannot be appealed. However, grades can be reviewed. This is regulated in the Higher Education Ordinance Chapter 6. It states:

Section 24: If an examiner finds that a decision on a grade is obviously incorrect owing to new circumstances or for some other reason, he or she shall change the decision if this can be done quickly and easily and if it does not mean lowering the grade. Ordinance (2006:1053). 

This means in practice:

  • Since the grade cannot be appealed, no new instance can evaluate the exam or any other basis of assessment, such as assignments.
  • A review of the grade is done by the examiner if requested by the student.
  • A review means a quick look for obvious errors in the marking. Typical examples are incorrect adding up of results or forgetting to mark a question.

Therefore: a review takes place due to “new circumstances” or if the grade is “blatantly false” and if the change “can be made quickly and easily”. It is not about “re-marking” or “reassessing” already evaluated answers, but to correct obvious errors. Form for review (95 kB)(only in Swedish)

How to write – The Language Workshop

At all courses you will be asked to present scientific results in writing. You will need to express yourself clearly and write according to scientific standards, whether the task is to produce scientific and popular articles, posters or reports on laboratory or field experiments. You can find guidelines and advice to help you in an excellent guide called “Presenting Science”.

If you need help with your writing (structure, language etc.) you can make an appointment with one of the advisors at the Language Workshop. The Language Workshop offers help with oral or written presentations, and is available for all students at Uppsala University. This appointment is free of charge and help is available in both Swedish and English.

Visit the Language Workshop

Student exercise and sports

The Student Health Centre is a team of specialists: psychologists, counsellors, therapists, a nurse and doctors, all with the focus on student related health issues. So, if life is tough, you have started missing exams or just need someone to talk to, they are here for you. The Student Health Centre also offers workshops on issues such as how to handle stress as a student. Read more on their website.

Campus 1477 offers a variety of sports at Blåsenhus (close to EBC) and Science Park (close to Ångström, BMC and Polacksbacken). Students are entitled to a discount on most of the activities. There is aerobics, “gympa” (gymnastics to music), cycling, water classes, climbing, and ball sports. The Centre also offers massage, sauna, swimming pool, solarium and courses in for example dance or yoga. For more information and schedules, see campus1477.se/en.

In addition, there are several private options for sports and exercise. The largest is Friskis&Svettis, located at Ekeby bruk, Ultuna, Fyrishov and Väderkvarnsgatan. Friskis&Svettis has aerobics, “gympa”, spinning, water classes and gym. They offer discounts for students.

Swimming pools for exercise can be found at Fyrishov, Actic Uppsala (Centralbadet) and Gottsundabadet.

Some student nations also arrange sport activities, mostly ball sports: football (soccer), floorball, bandy, etc.

The organisation Friluftsfrämjandet organises different outdoor activities and courses like ice skating (on frozen lakes in winter), kayaking, climbing, walking, skiing, etc. For more information see www.friluftsframjandet.se (only in Swedish).

Workload and teaching

Full-time studies are meant to require at least 40 hours of work per week. Biology courses are often taken one at a time, but some programmes have courses that are studied in parallel. Most courses comprise a mix of lectures, laboratory work, excursions, independent project work and seminars. You are strongly recommended to take part in all course activities. Lectures aim to give an overview, present theories, and supplement the course literature. Participation in lectures is in general optional, but strongly recommended. Practical parts, such as laboratory experiments, seminars and excursions, are normally compulsory. For more information about specific courses please see the course syllabi and detailed course schedules.

Do not be afraid to ask questions to the teachers, it is part of their job to help you. The Swedish academic environment may strike international students as being very informal. Professors and staff members interact with students in an informal manner, for example using first names instead of titles and last names.

Reference management

When writing scientific texts, it is always important to write where you have taken the information from. This will give your arguments and claims merit from scientifically presented facts. It is important to always cite your sources. This also avoids any plagiarism suspicions. To make it easier to manage your references there are specifically designed software. IBG has published a style format for Zotero, Mendeley and Papers, according to the format presented in the folder Presenting Science. Please also read the information on referencing literature and avoiding plagiarism in our handbook Avoiding plagiarism.

Read more about reference management at IBG.

Rules and student rights

At Uppsala University there are guidelines for student working conditions that list the demands you can make on for example the physical and psychosocial work environment, syllabuses and schedules, student influence and teaching. At the Faculty of Science and Technology there is an equal treatment plan and other documents and regulations that link to the rules and rights.

Learn more about your rights at the University Central pages

Study premises and access card

The main parts of IBG’s premises are located at the Evolutionary Biology Centre (EBC) complex, with a smaller part at the Uppsala Biomedical Centre (BMC). In a few courses some of the teaching is located at the Ångström laboratory or the Information Technology Center (ITC). Computer rooms, seminar rooms, laboratories, lecture halls and kitchens for students are found at all campuses. The kitchens are equipped with refrigerators and microwave ovens. All campuses also have restaurants where you can buy coffee, sandwiches and lunch.

The IBG premises are open Mon–Fri 8 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. Entry at other times, including weekends, requires an access card. For the access card, also called the campus card, you need a current registration at the University and you need to have your user account activated to be able to receive an e-mail with the instructions. The same card can be used at all campus areas and will be activated automatically in the campus area where you are registered on a course. Read more about the campus card at https://www2.uu.se/en/students/your-rights/campus-card.

IBG has access to three field stations for research and education: Klubban, a marine biology research station located on the west coast of Sweden, Norr Malma (Erken), a limnology field station by lake Erken (60 km from Uppsala), and Ar at Campus Gotland. Some of the biology courses include a stay at a field station for some period.

See maps

Computer services

At the university common page "IT for students" you will find information about computer networks, the student portal, wireless networks, e-mail, printing and fee software.

Computer rooms for biology students are located at both EBC (Evolutionary Biology Centre) and BMC (Biomedical Centre). All computers are connected to the Internet and printers. The computers may be booked for courses, please check the booking schedules on the doors.

To log in on the IBG computers press Ctrl+Alt+Del. Use your UpUnet-S identity (password A, domain user.uu.se). Do not forget to log out once you have finished your session.

In order to use the IBG computers, you need a student account and a registration on an IBG course. As a student you will get a student e-mail address for your mail to which important information from the University is sent. If you choose not to use this address, you will have to forward all incoming e-mail to your chosen adress. 

Connected to your student account is a file area of 200 MB. You can log on to your file area at https://studentportalen.uu.se or from any of IBG’s computers. When you log on to one of IBG’s computers your file area is located under disk X:. Do not save files on the computer desktop because they will be automatically erased.

For printing, use the eduPrint system

Library services

The Uppsala University library is located at several different campus areas, and the main focus of respective library corresponds to the research and education at the campus. The main library building is Carolina rediviva found at the top of Drottninggatan in Uppsala. All library services (books, databases, journals etc.) can be found on www.ub.uu.se.

The Biology Library, situated at the EBC, entrance 18B, is open for students, teachers and the public. The library has biological literature and journals, and also provides access to electronic journals. The Biomedical Library, situated at BMC (Husarg. 3, entrance A8, floor 2) has literature and journals within biomedicine, molecular biology, immunology, etc.

In addition to the University libraries, there is a public library in the city centre of Uppsala, at the north end of the pedestrian street.

Biology Library

We provide library services for researchers, teachers and students within the field of Biology at Uppsala University. Our librarians teach students how to evaluate, search, and find academic literature during workshops. We offer text books, floras, Linnésamlingen (- a unique collection of books on and by Carl von Linné.), study places and more. Need a group working area? Please visit the Earth Sciences Library. You will also be allowed entrance to the Earth Sciences Library’s quiet reading room with a university access card 7-days a week.

  • Zoological Record – our collection holds the world´s oldest database of animal biology, founded in 1864 by the Zoological Society of London. Access the material electronically from 1978- through the reference database. Vol. 1(1864)-114(1977) is in print.
  • Subject guides - Find literature within the field of biology, botany, conservation and toxicology.

Course literature and compendiums

The course literature for most courses includes compendiums and other copied material that are provided at a certain cost. Some of this material, e.g. laboratory instructions, is compulsory. The material may change from year to year; therefore you cannot count on borrowing the material from previous course participants.

The course literature is listed in the course syllabus, but note that sometimes it can be changed at a late stage just before the course starts. Check the latest course schedule for updated information. As a student at the course, you are expected to have access to the literature required for the course. Either you can buy it, or borrow it from the library. However, the library only has a few copies of each book, not enough for all students in a course. The biology library also has some reference copies which cannot be borrowed, but can be read in the library. Second-hand books can be found through notice boards in the corridors of EBC. The two largest book shops in Uppsala are Akademibokhandeln (LundeQ) and Studentbokhandeln.

IBG has some course literature in laboratory rooms, seminar rooms and field stations, for use during the education. These books cannot be borrowed.

Apart from printed literature, the course literature often also includes scientific articles, compendiums and other copied material. Your course leader will provide you with this material, normally for a fee paid at the beginning of the course, alternatively, the material can be downloaded from the course page.

The fee for compendiums and copied material is paid to IBG at course start. The amount varies between courses, based on the amount of copied pages. The cost for each course is presented in the information that you receive when you are admitted to the course. You can also contact IBG for this information.

Costs for transportation during courses

IBG has a charge-free policy stating that all transport and accommodation connected with compulsory excursions or field trips within biology courses are free of charge. However, if you choose other means of transport than the ones organised by the course, you must pay for that yourself. You also have to pay for meals that are served at some field stations. However, there is a fee for some courses, e.g. Biodiversity and ecology in Yunnan that include journeys abroad.

Charges for field trips abroad usually have to be paid for before starting the course. Check with the course leader if you need a visa for the country/countries that are visited. It is your own responsibility to arrange for the visa.

Lab coats

Work in the laboratory always requires that you wear a lab coat. Lab coats can be bought from the IBG for a small cost. To purchase a lab coat, contact the IBG laboratory assistants at the EBC or the BMC.

If you change address

It is important that you notify us as soon as possible when you change your address. Report your new address by logging on to https://studentportalen.uu.se, or contact IBG by e-mail to info@ibg.uu.se. If you have a Swedish civic registration number you must also change your address at the tax office. You can do this on the Internet; see www.adressandring.se (only in Swedish, please ask a Swedish friend to help you). Also remember to change your address in studentportalen.se and to notify your student nation about your new address.

Last modified: 2023-05-09