Foreign students are admitted to universities and other institutions of higher education in Norway mainly through international programmes and bilateral agreements with comparable institutions abroad.
The instruction at Buskerud University College is partly in English, mainly in the Norwegian language. To see courses offered in English, please click here . To be eligible for admission into Norwegian taught courses, applicants must satisfy the basic entrance requirements as well as Norwegian and English language requirements. As selection to higher education in Norway is competitive, only the most qualified applicants are considered for admission. Some programmes require specific qualifications within certain fields.
Exchange/study abroad students at partner institutions who are applying to study one or two semesters at Buskerud University College should apply through international office at their home institution. Application form will be available through their international office or upon request through heiditk@hibu.no (for students studying at partner institutions ONLY!). Application deadlines are June 1 (admission to autumn semester) or November 1 (admission to spring semester). Student housing will be pre-booked for exchange/study abroad students as long as they apply before deadlines expire.
Students studying at partner institutions may apply for admission under The Quota scheme. The Norwegian Quota Scheme is a funding scheme offered by the Norwegian Government to students from developing countries, some of the Central/Eastern Europe countries and the former Soviet states for studies at institutions of higher education in Norway.
The Quota Scheme offers funding for Master's Degrees and Ph.D.-programmes. Students who are admitted to the Quota Scheme may receive financial support from the Norwegian State Educational Loan Fund ("Lånekassen") in the form of loans and grants. The loan may be cancelled when the students return to their home countries to take up permanent residence after finishing their education. Students who stay in Norway or take up residence in another country than their home country after finishing their education must repay their loan.
Students may not apply for financial support from Lånekassen before they are admitted to the Quota Scheme and have arrived in Norway. Lånekassen is not involved in the admission process and does not have information about the programmes that are offered. For more information about the scheme, please see Norwegian Centre for International Cooperation in Higher Education or the State Educational Loan Fund.
Applicants for admission under the Quota Scheme must fulfill the following criteria in order to be considered for admission:
Relevant programmes for admission under the Quota Scheme are Master of Human Rights and Multiculturalism (English language), Master of Philosophy in visual science (mainly English, partly Norwegian language) and Master of Science in Business (Norwegian language).
Applications to Buskerud University College are processed by a centralised application processing centre (Samordnet opptak). The application deadline for applicants with foreign educational background (except Nordic) is the 1st of March. Exchange students through our partners are exepted to this rule, and should apply through the international office at their home institution within June 1 for admission to autumn semester and November 1 for admission to spring semester.
Nordic students (i.e. from Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands): Nordic citizens do not need a residence permit to study in Norway. Applicants with Nordic educational background qualifying for entry to higher education in their home country are also qualified for such studies in Norway. Some study programmes may require specific qualifications within certain fields. There are no formal requirements for proficiency in the Norwegian language for Nordic applicants, but with reduced understanding of the Norwegian language they will not profit completely from lessons held in Norwegian.
To be eligible for admission to institutions of higher education in Norway, applicants must satisfy the basic entrance requirements as well as Norwegian and English language requirements. As selection to higher education in Norway is competitive, only the most qualified applicants are considered for admission. Some fields of study require specific qualifications within certain fields.
Applicants from European countries are eligible for admission upon completion of the secondary school leaving certificate that provides the basis for admission to university studies in their home country. Entrance requirements for applicants from non-European countries may include one or two years of university studies in addition to secondary school. Applicants who do not fulfil the entrance requirements can take supplementary examinations in Norwegian upper secondary school.
You can get information concerning a Norwegian test ( Bergens-test ) at: Folkeuniversitetet - Norsk Språktest, Christian Kroghs gate 34, 0186 Oslo, Norway.
Information concerning English tests is available at: International Summer School, University of Oslo, P.o.box 1082 Blindern, 0317 Oslo, Norway ( TOEFL-test ) and Folkeuniversitetet, Torggate 7, P.o.box 496 Sentrum, 0105 Oslo, Norway ( IELTS-test ).
The Norwegian engineering education is a three year professional training. The requirements for admission to studies in engineering are, in addition to the basic requirements, in-depth knowledge within physics and mathematics equivalent to two years of physics and three years of mathematics in the Norwegian upper secondary school.
Applicants must document all their relevant education with officially certified copies of certificates, diplomas, transcripts etc. in the original language and authorised translations if the original documents are not in English or a Scandinavian language. Both upper secondary and higher education must be documented. Applicants must fulfil all requirements before 1. July. Please note that admission to some programmes is highly competitive.
To find out if you are qualified for admission to higher education in Norway, you may contact: Samordna opptak (Universities and Colleges Admission Service), P.o.box 1175 Blindern, 0318 Oslo, Norway, or one of the universities or colleges.
Buskerud University College does not offer scholarships or other special programmes for foreign students at the present time.
Information about The State Educational Loan Fund, Norway, is available on Internet: http://www.lanekassen.no/Toppmeny/Languages/English /. You can also contact their main office in Oslo: Lånekassa, Postboks 195 Økern, 0510 Oslo, Norway.
Please feel free to contact us at:
studieinfo@hibu.no, or by post to Høgskolen i Buskerud, Postboks 235, 3601 Kongsberg, Norway.
You must have been admitted as a student in an officially recognized course of study to get a residence permit. You are not allowed to travel to Norway until you have been granted a residence permit. EU/EEA citizens who can document sufficient financial means, may nevertheless come to Norway for three months without a residence permit, start their studies and apply for a residence permit here if they want to stay after this initial period. The same applies to students in most exchange programmes if they come from countries whose citizens do not need a visa to enter Norway.
If you obtain a place of study as an exchange student through an institution of your own country, the necessary formalities will be arranged. The above mentioned language requirements do not apply to exchange students within ERASMUS (from EU/EEA countries).
You will find information concerning admission to higher education in Norway in general at www.nokut.no or http://info.samordnaopptak.no/english
