Mobility and Selection on the “Free” Upper Secondary School Market in Sweden

Abstract

For this article, the changes in admission to upper secondary school during recent decades are analyzed in relation to specific school reforms. The reforms are viewed as articulated through ideas on differentiation in Swedish policy. Information on upper secondary admission was analyzed in accordance with parents’ educational background and students’ GPA. The main results illustrate that the entry-reform of 1994, when both academic and vocational programs met general entry requirements for higher education, had consequences for the mobility of youths from higher education backgrounds. In addition, the admission pattern to independent schools has differed considerably from municipal schools. These results are challenging how upper secondary educational alternatives are to be perceived in further research.