Higher Education in Norway

Study Abroad Norway.  All institutions of higher education are subject to the authority of the Ministry of Education, Research and Church Affairs. Higher education in Norway is mainly offered at state institutions, notably universities (four), university colleges (six), state colleges (26) and art colleges (2). They are all covered by the same Act which came into force on January 1, 1996. The degrees and titles that each institution can award and their professional and educational programmes, as well as the duration and specific requirements concerning breadth and depth are all laid down in a Royal Decree of 10 May 1996. A degree candidate may combine studies from universities and colleges, as the courses offered are at the same academic level. Network Norway was set up to promote cooperation and a more rational division of labour between the Norwegian universities and colleges. It benefits the various academic environments by enabling them to cooperate with regard to field of specialization and division of labour. Education with a similar content and degree structure should be viewed as equitable and give students a larger range of options and make it easier to combine studies from different institutions. Transfers between the institutions are encouraged and facilitated by the degree system. Although there are as many as 26 private higher education institutions with recognized study programmes, the overwhelming majority of students (90%) attend state institutions. Private higher education in Norway is regulated by the Act of 11 June 1986 on the recognition of study programmes at private colleges. Some of the study programmes are recognized by Royal Decree as degrees or professional titles of equal standing as those offered by the public institutions. Other study programmes may be recognized by the public institutions as well. n June 2001, the Norwegian Parliament (Storting) passed an extensive reform of higher education. It was drawn up against two comprehensive reports to the Storting. The main points include a new degree structure: Bachelor, of 3 years' duration; Master of 2 years' duration, and PhD of 3 years' duration; ECTS credits will be introduced with 60 credits being equivalent to 1 year's full-time study; the possibility for some types of colleges to become universities; the redefinition of governing bodies and management of the institutions; an increase in student loans/grants; priority will be given to the improvement of teaching and assessment; and the introduction of mutual and formalized agreements between students and institutions.  Priority will be given to participation in international programmes and exchange agreements. Higher education institutions will strive to offer students a period of study abroad as a component of their degree programme. Institutions will be encouraged to cooperate with public institutions in developing countries. More programmes in English will be introduced. Institutions will be given greater autonomy in academic and financial matters. They will bear the main responsibility for quality assurance of their own provisions and will follow up quality development strategies and make use of available resources. A national independent agency will be established to deal with the accreditation and recognition of higher education. The relationship between students and institutions will be strengthened through a variety of measures, e.g. teaching methods with emphasis on counselling, interactive study, better feedback and new forms of assessment. The reform is to be completed by the end of the year 2003. It will be gradually implemented as from the autumn 2002. The necessary legal provisions will be made in the spring of 2002.

Languages of instruction: Norwegian, English