The proportion of high school students who have their study allowance withdrawn due to invalid absence is the highest ever. Student representatives are worried about the development, which can have far-reaching consequences.
It may mean that other benefits are also withdrawn, says Peter Engberg, an analyst at CSN.
In total, 38,100 students, or 10.6 percent, lost their allowance due to invalid absence during the last academic year. This is 3,500 more than the previous academic year, according to the Central Student Finance Committee (CSN).
This is a long-term trend. With the exception of the pandemic years, the proportion of high school students with withdrawn study allowances has increased over the past 15 years, says Peter Engberg.
"In the interest of society"
Embla Persson, chair of the Swedish Student Union, believes that schools must now "ensure that there are systems in place to catch up with students".
"One in four high school students does not take their exam today, and it should be in the interest of society to ensure attendance and inclusion in school for all students", she says in a written comment.
Vidar Ekman, acting chair of the National Student Federation, shares the concern.
"The causes of this development are complex and vary from individual to individual. Possible factors include increased mental illness, socio-economic challenges, and lack of support within the school", he writes in a text message.
"It is crucial that collaboration between the school and other relevant actors increases to establish the cause of the absence, and based on that, offer the student the support they need."
Four hours
It is high school students with more than four hours of repeated absence per month who risk being reported by the school to CSN and losing their study allowance.
CSN does not know what the increased absence is due to, but one explanation may be stricter routines.
More and more schools are switching to digital monitoring of student absence, which can simplify administration. This is a possible explanation for the development, but likely not the whole, says Peter Engberg.
Besides the student becoming liable for repayment, benefits from, for example, the Social Insurance Agency may be affected, says Engberg.
If the student is over 18 years old, these benefits are linked to the student receiving a study allowance. If the student skips school, it can have the effect that housing allowance and maintenance support for the family are withdrawn.
During the 2023/2024 academic year, the study allowance was withdrawn for 10.6 percent of high school students, which is the highest level ever.
The withdrawal of the study allowance is more common in private schools than in municipal upper secondary schools. In private schools, the figure was 12.1 percent, and in municipal upper secondary schools, it was 10.1 percent.
12.2 percent of boys and 9.0 percent of girls had their study allowance withdrawn.
The differences between municipalities are relatively large. In some municipalities, the proportion of students with withdrawn study allowances is 3 percent or lower, while in others it is over 20 percent.
The increase applies to almost the entire country. The exceptions are Blekinge and Västerbotten counties, where the proportion of withdrawn allowances decreases.
Worst is Södermanland county, where 14.5 percent of students had their study allowance withdrawn. Best is Halland county with 6.7 percent.
Source: CSN
