Sometimes columnists get it wrong! A recent example can be found in Aftonbladet, where Saga Cavallin in her culture article  ”Här är väljargruppen som ingen pratar om” (Here is the voter group nobody talks about) published on 13 September, uses vacuity as an argument to attribute all manner of evils to engineers.

Cavallin writes that “The engineering mindset of the Swedish national character has given us ball bearings, Bluetooth and dynamite. But it has also been blamed for racial biology, forced sterilisation and the global export of soulless arena EDM. Perhaps it is also partly responsible for four years of the most sadistic, inhumane and anti-democratic politics witnessed on this side of the 1930s.”

This argument is based on two unusually flimsy lines of reasoning. The first is a study of around a hundred people active in anti-media online communities, half of whom were found to have an engineering background. The second is the book Engineers of Jihad, which claims that engineers are over-represented among violent Islamist groups. In the study, around 200 people could be linked to a specific educational background, of whom just under 45 per cent had studied engineering subjects.

Even more serious is the conflation of over-representation with the characteristics of the majority. While it may be true that 50 people in a study of hostility towards the media are over-represented in relation to that group’s share of the labour market, to conclude that this characteristic is possessed by the majority of practising engineers is misleading and incorrect.

It is similar to when it has been noted that immigrant men are over-represented among rapists, and this characteristic is then attributed to all immigrant men. Similarly, when it is said that people with certain mental disabilities are over-represented among those convicted of violent crimes, it is assumed that all, or a significant proportion, of people with these disabilities are potential murderers.

Similarly, it seems somewhat odd to claim that an IT consultant in Mörbylånga is likely to have a hostile attitude towards the media and an engineering-oriented mindset based on a study of Islamist groups that advocate violence in another part of the world. This line of argument is reminiscent of a 31 May 2024 editorial in Dagens Nyheter by Gina Gustavsson, who used the same study that Cavallin is now relying on to claim that there is a link between engineers and white supremacy and neo-Nazism.

Drawing the conclusion that an entire profession suffers from a democratic mindset deficit based on a hundred or so hand-picked interviews and a book on terrorism is precisely the sort of reasoning that is usually labelled populism when applied to immigrants or young people, for example. It involves selective sampling, a simplified explanatory model and a dig at a group that rarely gets a chance to defend itself in the culture pages. To label media-critical right-wing movements as populist while constructing an argument based on the same method is, to say the least, both pointless and tendentious.

While it is not unreasonable to suggest that engineering education shapes a way of thinking – as does all education – it is illogical to single out an entire professional group as enemies of the nation. Moving from this observation to singling out an entire professional group as enemies of the nation requires considerably stronger evidence than has been presented. Until then, it is merely a prejudiced game of pick-up sticks dressed up in an unworthy scientific guise.

The induction of new students is in full swing on campus. Senior students are welcoming this year’s freshers to the campus, their chosen degree program, and the student community. This is a clear sign that the new term is about to begin.

The introduction program at KTH is an important part of the fine traditions that define student life here. Starting higher education is, of course, challenging. For many international Master’s students, it also means adapting to a new country and culture. A warm welcome helps students to lay the foundations for academic success and build a rich social network that will support them throughout their studies.

The time spent studying is a defining period in life, during which personality and knowledge develop together. Therefore, it is important that studies are not only about mastering a subject area, but are also characterised by inclusive, equal and democratic values. I firmly believe that our approach also conveys this important added value.

The number of eligible applicants to KTH has risen by 4.4 per cent this year compared with last year, whereas the national increase is just 1.3 per cent. However, we are admitting slightly fewer students this year, meaning that competition for a place at KTH has increased. The merit points required for admission have also increased for most of our degree programs. We are encouraged by the fact that we are an attractive and popular choice for many students, both from Sweden and from other countries.

I would like to extend a warm welcome to all of you who have joined us, and thank you for choosing KTH! Finally, I would like to thank all the students and staff involved in organising the welcome event.