Student accommodation in Borlänge: 2022

Many students who come to Borlänge wonder how the different accommodation options are like and which to choose. I interviewed three of my friends who live in different types of accommodation and let them tell you how it is like to live there. If you are interested in how to apply for accommodation, I recommend checking out www.du.se/accommodation or writing a mail to study@du.se if you want to ask us for more information.

Mångatan, student corridor room, Nikhil

My friend Nikhil lives in Mångatan, it’s a student accommodation area close to the university. Let’s see what he thinks:

View of Nikhil’s room, perfect spot for studying.

“Mångatan is a lot quieter than other student accommodations, it’s more for people who are trying to focus more on their studies. One big advantage is also the size of the rooms which slightly bigger than in Locus. So if you’re a couple sharing and I think it’s also good option for you. [Editor’s note: Mångatan is the only place in Tunabyggen where it is allowed to be two people. More than two is not allowed.]

Another big advantage that you have two kitchens: a large kitchen in the common area and a mini kitchenette in your room. I, for example, do most of my cooking in my room.

But if you want to do invite some guests, the main kitchen is very spacious, hardly ever used and well equipped with fridges, freezers, and an oven. There’s plenty of table-space to sit down and is very rarely ever busy. That kitchen is attached to a very nice balcony which overlooks the magical city of Borlänge.

The shared kitchen, many fridges and shelves for everyone.

The living room with a door to the balcony.

Each floor also has its own laundry machine and dryer which are free of charge. A lot of other stuff is provided for free, for example laundry detergent, and a vacuum cleaner. The place is also close to the university, no more than a 10-minute and there’s a bus stop right outside the building, if you want to go to the town center or Falun. A general observation is that there are more Swedish people in general staying in Mångatan than in other student accommodation areas like Locus.

Living in Mångatan I’d only narrow it down to one disadvantage, which is that it seems to it’s a lot more difficult to be social there. I think given people who stay there, the people want to focus more on that study or maybe they are couples. It tends to be a lot less social and people kind of tend to keep themselves versus some of the other accommodation. There’s no common area for the whole building. As a result, there’s no facilities like a pool table or ping pong table that you have in Locus.

In general, my personal recommendation is: If it’s your first time leaving your country I would recommend Locus since it is easier to get to know people. But if you’re going to be very focused on your studies, like if you’re a Master student or want a bit more peace then Mångatan is for you.”

Kloverstigen, family apartment, Stefanos

My friend Stefanos lives in Kloverstigen with his family. It’s a family apartment with many rooms. Let’s hear him talk about it.

Stefanos, a student living in Kloverstigen

The living room: Very spacious so kids can play a lot.

“Me and my family are really satisfied with our apartment. The apartment is approximately 75 square meters in size. We have a large living room, large kitchen, one bathroom, 2 bedrooms and a little storage room of four or five square meters, where you can put extra stuff like the bike or the stroller. My family consists of four members, me, my wife and two kids I feel that this size and the structure of this apartment we live, it is ideal for a family of that size.

The kitchen, a nice place for the family to have dinner together.

A wonderful thing is that we have a small playground right outside the apartment. You can have small walks outside and the kids can go to play in the swings and do some fun stuff. In general, it is good because in this area there are many families again with children as well. The kids gather, play together, and socialize. In this area besides outside my apartment, there are many, many playgrounds and there is one new one that is large and has many different activities for the kids.

On an individual level, a wonderful thing is that it is just a two minutes’ walk from Locus, which is the student housing. So, one can join the weekly parties or play some ping pong to just socialize with fellow students. So, you can have the family life but also participate in the student life. It is a little bit more far away from the city center but that never been a problem for us since we have a supermarket as a 2 minutes’ walk from the apartment. To conclude, we are extremely satisfied with it.

Application

I was lucky to get this apartment: The moment I received my admission results I got a mail from Michael Oppenheimer. He asked in this email who is interested in in in getting a family apartment. I was the first one to contact him so I made this the renting procedure through him, so I did not have to go through all this stressful experience of trying to find the place online.” [Editor’s note: Micheal can not generally sort this kind of apartment out. Like Stefanos said: he was lucky.]

Kornstigen 23, shared apartment, Gorpudolo

My friend Gorpudolo resides in Kornstigen 23, let’s see what he has to say about his accomodation!

Gorpudolo, a student living in Kornstigen 23

“The advantage of Kornstigen 23 is that I get to have everything to myself, the space, my private time, and it keeps me focused on my studies. I get to meet my deadlines because there is no distraction. The disadvantage is that it’s harder to socialize; it is just me and in my own space.

And theoretically if you want to socialize, the university is close you can reach it in 10-15 minutes. So, I can attend my classes and if I want to come back and have lunch, I can do it and then go back if I want to study from the university. One wonderful thing I have is a balcony with a nice morning view: I am in the middle of the road, so I get to see everyone that passes by.

About the apartment itself:
It’s for two people, there is your own private room, a nice balcony, a living room, the hallway, a bathroom, and a big kitchen. Things are shared but it is big. If you are lucky like me to not have someone move into the next room, then you get to use the whole space which is quite convenient. I could not complain about anything.

The view from the balcony. It’s really nice to relax here.

The living room. Nice place to chill and hang out with friends.

In general, I recommend Kornstigen 23A to three kinds of people:

A person who has a goal to achieve as soon as possible.
A person that wants to be focused on your studies.
A person who does not like parties, who likes it quiet.”

Conclusion

Thanks to Nikhil, Stefanos and Gorpudolo for sharing their experience in their accomodation. As you can see there a lot of different accomodation options, depending on where you want to stay. There is a student corridor room in Mångatan, a family apartment in Kloverstigen and some share apartments in Kornstigen 23. This is obviously not a comprehensive list, since there are a lot of other nice places like Locus.