In order to deal successfully with the expansion of higher education, eventually reaching 50% of each new age group, Swedish Universities are taking measures in order to recruit students from groups that normally don´t look for higher education. In this article the arrangement and experience of one action research project is discussed. The project focuses on the meeting between self-cultivation and formal education. Students are recruited from five ”folk high schools” to an academic introduction course that is developed as the course goes along. The students are encouraged to take part in the development work. Teachers from both sides participate in the teaching and in the recruitment and curriculum work. Furthermore, teachers and researchers together form a research circle. With the introduction course as a common reference, this group study relevant litterature and reflect on teaching and working conditions. During the project all participants try to articulate what is important in their own learning and teaching experience. In this article the preliminary results are discussed under four headings: working in projects, testing one´s own and others´ understandings and valuations, working with models and images, reflecting on the leasning process.