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The share of women among admitted students has decreased significantly. How do you view this? 

The fact that women with very high grades to a large extent choose not to sit the HP has led to a decrease in the share of women in both of our bachelor programs. We take this very seriously. For the Stockholm School of Economics, gender balance and diversity in each student cohort are matters of quality. 

What explains the decrease in the share of women? 

• Among individuals with very high grades, far fewer women than men do the HP. 
• Among those who do the HP, women with very high grades are more likely than men with very high grades to achieve at least 1.25. Therefore, it’s not that women with very high grades are failing the test, it’s that they choose not to take it.  
• The fact that many highly achieving women choose not to sit the HP has led to a smaller share of women in both of our bachelor programs.  

Couldn’t you have anticipated that the share of women would decrease? 

We did have concerns that we might see fewer women among our applicants and admitted students, but we were surprised by the magnitude of the decrease. We also did not know in advance what the gender balance would look like in the population of individuals who (a) have upper-secondary grades above 21.8, (b) score above 1.25 on the HP (not only the very top scores), and (c) are strongly motivated to study at SSE. 

Isn’t the issue of grade inflation still important? 

SSE has now clearly signaled its concern about grade inflation in upper-secondary school. Our mission is to strengthen Sweden’s competitiveness. We therefore want to attract the very best students regardless of gender or background and cannot risk losing talented candidates. In pursuing that goal, the HP requirement has become an obstacle. We have therefore decided to remove the eligibility requirement of at least 1.25 on the HP as of the fall 2026 intake. We will continue to apply merit points (advanced courses) in the grades quota. With this change, SSE now has the same admissions principles in the national grades quota as other universities and colleges in Sweden. 

Are you not concerned that you will admit students with inflated grades? 

We are, and have always been, very pleased with and proud of our students, who are admitted in fierce competition. We do not see that SSE has had a particular problem with inflated grades. Our intention was to highlight a broader societal issue and send a signal to the school system. 

What does it mean that you are conducting a broader review of the entire admissions model? 

We want to evaluate our admissions model more fundamentally. While we do this, and until a new model is ready, we are removing the HP requirement and aligning it more towards other Swedish higher-education institutions in the national grades quota. When the revised admissions model is ready, we will introduce it in a way that ensures all prospective students know the conditions well in advance. 

Who can I contact if I have questions? 

For questions about admissions to the bachelor programs: 
Camilla Bertilsson, bsc.admissions@hhs.se, +46 73 050 46 90 

Other questions: 
Hanna Flodmark, hanna.flodmark@hhs.se, +46 70 689 90 15