Swedish for Working Life (4 cr)

Evaluation scale

0-5

Objective

After completing the course, you are able to mainly communicate understandably in speech and writing in simple and routine work tasks and other situations.

After completing the course, you can tell about yourself and your skills when, for example, applying for a job. You are able to perform in Swedish in the communication and interaction situations of working life and in your central field-specific work duties, such as appointments, guidance, field-specific emails, and customer service situations. You are able to assess your language skills in Swedish and have motivation to further your skills based on the principles of life-long learning. You act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Communication and Team-working: You are able to function in a national and international context and you are able to cooperate with specialists in your own field as well as with other groups of professionals.

Content

During the course, you will study the following contents:
• studies and applying for a job
• oral and written communication situations in working life, for example appointments, small talk, customer service, telephone conversations, emails, and opinions
• producing formal written Swedish, such as reports, instructions, or summaries
• central field-specific terminology
• a field-specific, advanced part carried out as a workshop, a project, a portfolio, a report, or familiarization with working life

Location and time

Study takes place in ZOOM meetings and the Moodle environment, guided and scheduled.

The course includes 7 ZOOM meetings where different topics are covered and oral communication is practiced in small groups. Teacher guidance is available during the ZOOM sessions. Participation in at least 5 sessions is required.

Schedule:

ZOOM Mon 1.9. at 14:15-15:45

ZOOM Mon 8.9. at 14:15-15:45

ZOOM Mon 15.9. at 17:00-18:30

ZOOM Mon 22.9. at 14:15-15:45

ZOOM Mon 29.9. at 17:30-19:00

ZOOM Mon 6.10. at 15:00-16:30

(Mon 13.10. no ZOOM teaching, autumn break week)

ZOOM Mon 20.10. at 12:15-13:45

ZOOM Mon 27.10. at 14:15-15:45

(Wed 5.11. no ZOOM teaching, Innoflash week)

EXAMS:

WRITTEN EXAM

EXAM exam period 10.11.-30.11.2025

Personal computer exam is not possible.

If the EXAM exam is new to you, read:

Jamk's Exam: https://help.jamk.fi/exam/fi/
Exam visit: https://help.jamk.fi/exam/fi/opiskelijalle/exam-tenttivierailu-toisessa-korkeakoulussa/
Retakes:

Possible EXAM retakes are agreed separately. Wait until you receive an email about it. Exam retakes must be completed by Mon 8.12.

ORAL EXAM

Mon 10.11. at 10-13 or Mon 10.11. at 16-20 or Mon 24.11. at 11-13 or Mon 24.11. at 16:30-20:00

The oral exam is conducted in groups of 3-4 people and lasts about 20 minutes per group (registration link can be found in Moodle -> Oral exam: registration)

Possible retakes are agreed separately.

Self-assessment DL Sun 14.12.

Materials

The study material is available on Moodle.

Teaching methods

ONLINE IMPLEMENTATION (WEEKLY ZOOM MEETINGS 8 times between September-November)

TEACHING IS IN FINNISH!

This is a scheduled online implementation with weekly ZOOM meetings ZZ00CD01-3082 from 1.9.-19.12.2025

Course duration: 1.9.-19.12.2025

Introductory information as a video recording on our Moodle course. Watch the recording before the course starts on Mon 1.9. from 14:15-15:45.

Watching the introductory video is mandatory and part of the course completion. The introductory information will start your studies well and you will know how to proceed with this implementation.

WHAT, HOW, AND FOR WHOM?

This implementation is excellent for you if you need more guidance and immediate feedback in your studies. Make sure you have time in your calendar to participate in the weekly ZOOM meetings. Meetings are not held every week. At other times, you will study independently. Nothing prevents you from studying together with another participant. Peer learning is highly recommended and effective. Otherwise, the study in this implementation is guided and scheduled.

In the ZOOM meetings, I will explain the topic of the week and we will do exercises in small groups/pairs in Breakout rooms. Teacher guidance and assistance are available throughout the ZOOM session if you wish. At other times, you will study independently and perhaps prepare in advance by familiarizing yourself with the upcoming topic in Moodle. This way (using the flipped classroom method), you will get more out of our ZOOM meetings. This advance preparation is not mandatory but useful and enhances your learning when you know what to expect.

Familiarize yourself with the schedule (below) in advance and participate in this implementation if the schedules (Zoom meetings and exams) suit you.

This implementation is suitable for students from different fields.

PREREQUISITE SKILLS?

European framework skill level A2 or B1 in Swedish. This means that:

You can communicate understandably orally and in writing in familiar and ordinary situations at the beginning of the course.
You understand clear speech and text concerning familiar topics, such as introducing a person, discussing studies, and talking about work.
You mainly master the basic structures of Swedish, such as the use of personal pronouns, the inflection and use of nouns and adjectives, verb tenses, and the word order of main and subordinate clauses.
Your vocabulary is sufficient to cope with everyday life situations.
Your pronunciation level is sufficient for conveying the message.
If there are deficiencies in the above areas, I recommend completing the Swedish support studies course before this course.

WHERE AND HOW TO STUDY?

We will study in ZOOM meetings and the Moodle learning environment. Studying in the online implementation requires you to schedule your own work, take initiative, and take responsibility for your own studies. The teacher will guide and assist you in this. The course consists of different sections, which are studied according to the given schedule and instructions. This helps you study at a suitable pace. Therefore, follow the schedule to make your studies smoother.

TOOLS NEEDED FOR THE COURSE

Using a webcam is required for video tasks and the oral exam.

You must be able to create, save, and share video files. For recording screen capture videos, Zoom or Teams work well. JAMK also offers the Panopto application for creating and sharing videos.

The recommended word processing program is Word, as you will submit written tasks in docx or rtf format.

Exam schedules

EXAMS:

WRITTEN EXAM

EXAM exam period 10.11.-30.11.2025

Personal computer exam is not possible.

If the EXAM exam is new to you, read:

Jamk's Exam: https://help.jamk.fi/exam/fi/
Exam visit: https://help.jamk.fi/exam/fi/opiskelijalle/exam-tenttivierailu-toisessa-korkeakoulussa/
Retakes:

Possible EXAM retakes are agreed separately. Wait until you receive an email about it. Exam retakes must be completed by Mon 8.12.

ORAL EXAM

Mon 10.11. at 10-13 or Mon 10.11. at 16-20 or Mon 24.11. at 11-13 or Mon 24.11. at 16:30-20:00

The oral exam is conducted in groups of 3-4 people and lasts about 20 minutes per group (registration link can be found in Moodle -> Oral exam: registration)

Possible retakes are agreed separately.

Self-assessment DL Sun 14.12.

Completion alternatives

There are no alternative completion methods.

Student workload

The workload for the course is 108 hours, which corresponds to approximately 6 hours of study per week during the course duration. Individual differences, such as language skills, can affect the course workload.

More detailed time management recommendations can be found on our Moodle course.

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

1 - You can mainly communicate understandably in speech and writing in simple and routine work tasks and other situations although your language use is at times slow and incoherent. You understand the central content of clear speech and text dealing with familiar topics. You have a sufficient command of the basic structures and vocabulary for the delivery of the message. The level of your pronunciation is sufficient for the delivery of the main content of your message. You act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

2 - You are able to communicate understandably in speech and writing in familiar and routine work tasks and situations although your language use is at times slow and incoherent. You understand clear speech and text dealing with familiar topics. You have an adequate command of the basic structures of the language. Your vocabulary is sufficient for everyday situations and reasonably adequate for basic field-specific situations. The level of your pronunciation is sufficient for the delivery of the content of your message. You act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Assessment criteria, good (3)

3 - You can manage well in speech and writing in your work tasks and other everyday situations. You are able to write a text with coherent content. You understand speech with a normal tempo but unusual topics and speech deviating from standard use cause difficulties. You can understand even demanding written content related to your field although some details may remain unclear. You can use the grammatical structures of the language in a versatile way, and their mistakes do not hinder communication. Your command of the vocabulary of the language is sufficient for communicating the central content in different work tasks and situations. Your pronunciation is understandable. You act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

4 - You are able to communicate fluently in different situations and produce clear and fluent language with adequate style. You have no difficulty in understanding and producing speech and writing needed in working life although expressions deviating from the standard use of the language cause problems to some extent. You have a good command of the language and its use, but occasional problems may arise. You act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

5 - You are able to communicate with great fluency and active participation in demanding working life situations. You also portray versatility and an appropriate sense of style in your ability to apply the learning content of the course to demanding working life situations. You have no difficulties in understanding different kinds of language users although fine nuances and speech deviating significantly from standard language can sometimes be challenging. You can understand and produce demanding content in both speech and writing. Your language use is practically flawless. You act responsibly and abide by established agreements.

Qualifications

Level A2 or B1 in the European Framework of Reference.

This means that you are able to communicate understandably in speech and writing in familiar and routine situations when the course starts. You also understand clear speech and text dealing with familiar topics, such as introducing yourself and others and discussing studies and work. You have a sufficient command of the basic structures of Swedish, such as the use of personal pronouns, the use and inflection of nouns and adjectives, the verbs tenses, and the word order of main and subordinate clauses. Your vocabulary is sufficient for everyday situations. The level of your pronunciation is sufficient for the delivery of the content.

Further information

ASSESSMENT

The main focus is on the written and oral exams.
The course assessment is influenced by the following performances: written exam and oral exam, grading scale 0-5, and the student must achieve at least a grade level 1 in both the written and oral exams.
Requirements for a passing grade: all learning tasks completed, most exercises (about 80%) as well as exams and self-assessment must be completed satisfactorily.
Grade formation: separate grades for the written exam and the oral exam.
Assessment criteria can be found on Moodle.