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hi,
your wife will be fine in sweden, there is some danish working in sweden especially in that region, but most of the cases swedish people and some danish (who lives in Malmo bacause it's sheaper on swedish side) taking the train daily for work in Copenhagen, takes approximate 20 min with Öresundståget (train between Malmo-Copenhagen).

To be an American is not more special than being an European citizen, english as your native language can be seen as advantage, but most companies like there employees to speak swedish.

You can probebly find a couple of american companies in copenhagen and maybe some in malmo - helsinborg region, easiest must be to google on it. What is your profesion?

/katja

Thanks Katja, I didnt figure that being an American was anything special... I look at it more like a handicap. When I was stationed in Denmark back in 1994, the Danes I met liked Americans. I was wondering what the Swedes think about Americans and what they think of the ones living in Sweden. Immigration can be a touchy subject no matter where you go, especially when there arent enough jobs to go around for the Swedes who already live there. Although I am not quite sure of the status of the job market there. Sounds like priority #1, is to learn Swedish... Thanks for the reply!

I work for a large real estate company here in the US, as a manager-caretaker for a medical office building. I have been doing it for the last 7 years or so. I spent the 10 years prior to that working for Harley Davidson dealerships up and down the US east coast. I have contacted some Harley dealerships there in Sweden to find out if they would hire an American.

If you can get a job offer before coming here would be the best and without knowing the language. But if you seriously thinking of moving here then my best recomendation is to start with swedish lessons as fast as possible. Without the langueage it's tough. I have a friend right now looking for a job in Stockholm and she speaks, french, english and german but without Swedish she don't get any positions, and even if the rolls she is looking at can easily be done without knowing swedish the companies still want her to be able to communicate in the local language.

I believe that most Swedish is openmined when it comes to people from abroad but ofcourse you can meet a jork now and then but it's not like you need to hang out with these kind of people.

Hi Gunar!

I'm here 6 weeks now from the States. The Swedes have been great with me. They want to ask questions about the US, tell me their opinion of the US (you'll hear it all) and ask about their english.  Which I take it's more on how they come across.

On the negative side, I have run into people who know english and don't want to speak to me in english, just swedish. The Sweds say that's a personality thing .. not a Swedish thing!

I agree with Katja that English is a plus but knowing Swedish is the base knowledge for work.   

All the best!
Michael