MFS is a Sida-funded scholarship program for field studies abroad in a low or middle income country where the Swedish government has active strategies for development cooperation. 

The overarching goal of Swedish development cooperation is to ensure that people living in poverty and oppression have the opportunity to improve their living conditions. Swedish development cooperation and humanitarian aid are governed by government strategies that specify goals and priorities. Sida, which functions as both an administrative authority and an expert authority, is responsible for implementing the strategies together with other authorities and determining how the work is to be carried out.

Through the scholarship, you get the opportunity to travel to an underdeveloped country to gather material for your essay or your degree project. Your field study must last for at least eight consecutive weeks (56 days) and during your field study you need to have a supervisor at your institution and a contact person in the host country.

• You need to be a Swedish citizen or have been registered in Sweden for at least one year at the time of the application.  
• You need to be a registered and active student at the University of Borås. The field study must be part of a course in your programme at undergraduate or advanced level. You need to have a supervisor for your thesis at HB and a contact person in the host country at the time of application. Students who have started postgraduate studies cannot apply for the scholarship.
• The MFS scholarship is a personal scholarship that you apply for and is awarded to an individual student. If you are going to complete your thesis or your degree project with another student, both students apply for their own MFS scholarship.  

Important:  You cannot apply for an MFS scholarship if you have been granted another Sida-financed scholarship for the current field study period. If you apply for another scholarship for the same field study period, this must be stated in your application.

The MFS scholarship is SEK 35,000 and must cover accommodation, travel and other costs such as vaccinations and visas.  The scholarship does not cover the entire cost of the trip but can be supplemented with CSN.

In order for the field study/essay to be approved, it is required that:

• the field study is carried out in a low or middle income country, for a continuous period of 8 weeks
• the essay is of academic quality and is relevant to your course/program
• the field study relates to one or more of the UN's global goals for sustainable development, from Agenda 2030
• the field study is linked to the government's reform agenda for Swedish aid
• is in line with one or more of Sweden's strategies for development work in the host country
• the field study is linked to an ongoing research project at your institution at the University of Borås
• is supported by a contact person in the host country who is connected to the study
• is supervised by an academic supervisor at the University of Borås
• the essay is written in English

Find more information here about: 

• UN's global goals for Sustainable Development
• Sida's bilateral, regional and thematic strategies
• Explore the active strategies of the Swedish government
• Research groups - University of Borås

The MFS scholarship allows students to carry out their field studies in countries where the Swedish government has active strategies for development cooperation. There are two types of strategies that you can choose as a starting point for your field study:

• Geographic strategies: These focus on specific countries or regions.
• Thematic strategies: These address specific issues, such as human rights, democracy or the development of the legal sector.

Important:
MFS cannot be granted to a country or region to which the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises against travel. When preparing your MFS application, you therefore need to inform yourself about the security situation in the area and country you plan to visit. You must compare the list of possible host countries with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' advice when preparing your application.

Links:

• List of countries and regions where Sweden conducts Development Cooperation
• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' list of countries where there is an advisory (in Swedish)

The application period is open 1-31 October 2025. 

A complete application must contain the following:

Application form
You will find the application form under Application form MFS once the current application period opens.

A project description in English (max 6 pages)

The project description should be no more than 6 pages in length (including list of references) and must be written in English. It should include 

Introduction and background. including your choice of country to gather your material for the thesis/essay. The background information must demonstrate a connection to your study programme and should have a grounding in scientific discussions/literature. (around 2-3 pages)

Connection to development issues. Describe the field study's relevance to the Global Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030.  You must demonstrate how the choice of subject relates to the problems faced in the host country and how your study can contribute to the country's development. Here you should also describe how the results will be shared. (around half a page)

Methods. This part should describe your methods (observations, questionnaires, laboratory experiments, interviews etc.), how you will collect the material and make selections, theoretical connections, ethical problems, need for interpreters etc. (between half a page and 1 page)

Time schedule. A rough plan week by week during your field studies. (around half a page)

Budget planning. A description of how you intend to arrange your accommodation and means of living during the field study period. (around half a page)

A risk analysis. A description of what could go wrong or which parts of the field study could be difficult to implement, and report how any potential changes could be managed. (around half a page)

List of references. End your project description with a reference list. 

Documents to attach to the application form and project description:

A preliminary budget plan

Your budget plan should cover:
- The costs of travel to and from the host country
- Living costs 
- Any necessary travel within the host country/region
- Costs of vaccinations or visas
- Any other costs such as costs for equipment etc.

A letter of reference

Your letter of reference should be no longer than 1 page and should be written by a teacher or supervisor. The letter of reference should refer to you as a person, and why you are a suitable candidate for a MFS scholarship. The letter must be signed by the reference person and it must be visible what position the reference person has (full name and title/position). 

A letter from the contact person in the host country

In the letter from the contact person it should state clearly how they can help you and what position they have (full name and title/position). The letter must be personal with your full name in it and signed by the contact person. 

Copy of passport or proof of identity

In your application you must submit a proof of identity that shows your nationality and officially registered place of residence.  If you are not a Swedish citizen, you must include a certificate from the Swedish Tax Agency confirming that you have been registered in Sweden for at least 12 months.  

LADOK printout (transcript)

In your application you must submit a LADOK transcript which shows how many credits you have earned at the time of the application. If any grades are missing from previous semester, you can write a plan outlining how you intend to catch up with your studies before your planned departure. 

To submit your application, you must upload all documents described above (project description, budget plan, letter of reference, proof of identity and LADOK printout) under Application form MFS. 

Please note: Students who intend to write their thesis/essay together must each submit an individual application. 

The application period is open 1-31 October 2025. The field study must take place in the spring semester 2026. Please contact exchange@hb.se if you have any questions about the application.

Download the application form

Applications are evaluated by the university's international coordinators and teachers/researchers with relevant knowledge of the subject and country in question. The purpose of the evaluation is to determine that your application fulfils the requirements, both regarding the academic quality of the study and the methodological and practical feasibility of conducting the study. Particular weight is given to the feasibility of implementation (e.g. data collection, interview arrangements etc) and the conditions that exist for you to be able to complete your thesis/essay on the basis of the field study. 

The applicant's personal qualities, maturity and suitability to conduct a field study in a foreign country will also be assessed. Interviews may need to be conducted. 

When required to make a selection, the university strives to ensure variation regarding both host countries and subject areas for each project period. 

You will be informed whether your application has been granted or not around four weeks after the deadline has passed. 

For general question about the MFS scholarship, please contact: exchange@hb.se 
Please mark the email with the subject "MFS"

For specific academic questions, please contact:

Contact person at the Academy of Textiles, Technology and Economics: jenny.balkow@hb.se 

Contact person at the Academy of Library, Information, Education and IT: veronica.trepagny@hb.se