One of the most unique things about Uppsala University (as well as, as it so happens, Lund University) is the student nation system. Traditionally, students from a given part of Sweden would join that region’s respective ‘nation’, as a way to split up the student body in order to promote various aspects of student life in a more organized manner. The idea comes originally from the medieval University of Paris. Nowadays, however, any student can join any nation and it is no longer a requirement to join any at all. All of the current 13 student nations in Uppsala have their roots in the early to mid 1600’s.

But what really is a student nation? Quoted directly from the Uppsala Student Union’s homepage: “A nation is a bit like a pub, a bit like a café, a bit like a student club, a bit like a college, even something like a fraternity or sorority… but not really!” Well, that’s a great way to sum it up – not even! It’s basically a place for students to meet, take a drink or coffee, party all night or even just sit and study. Some nations even have theatre groups and choirs. And if you’re a member of one nation, you have access to all of them – that one pink card is universal! Some features are, however, exclusive to the nation you’re registered with: for example, you can’t apply for a student room/apartment through any nation other than the one you are enrolled in. This is both a measure to make it easier for students of any particular nation to take advantage of his/her nation’s benefits as well as to distribute students among the many nations more equally.

Oh, I could write on forever, but there are no words to describe the actual feeling of pure student life in Uppsala. If you’re studying at an institution of higher education and are considering a semester abroad, I can recommend without hesitation Uppsala University!