Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Study in Norway for free!

OK, I confess that this one really caught me off guard. I am constantly seeking new ways for people to emigrate to other countries and I've found one of the most surprising: study in Norway for free!

Oslo
Oslo, Norway
Photo by Allan Harris
Most Norwegian universities are publicly funded and, as a result, charge no tuition. This includes foreigners! Yes, there's a catch: though many classes are in English, you'll have to learn Norwegian. However, this means that if you can manage to stay in Norway (legally) for three years, you can get permanent residency.

Aside from being accepted at a university, you do have to demonstrate financial self-sufficiency while you are there. At this time, it means demonstrating that you have saved 85,000 NOK (about $15,000 US) per 10 month year of study. Financial aid is available in the form of scholarships and loans.

So if you really want out and you're academically minded, learn to speak Norwegian!

Update: this blog post appears to have great information about emigrating to Norway.
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4 comments:

  1. AnonymousMarch 2, 2011 at 5:58 PM

    Yeah, well...

    Two points.
    You'll also be eligible for our mostly-free health-services, and...

    Unless you enjoy living on spaghetti and soup, 85.000 won't be enough to cover you for 10 months.
    (At least not if you also want a social life.)

    ReplyDelete
  2. CelineMarch 3, 2011 at 7:05 PM

    It's the same in Germany and France :-) (actually there are tuition fees but it's really not so much. It depends on the University but I would say around 300euros every year including Social Security)

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  3. AnonymousJune 29, 2011 at 5:41 AM

    I don't think staying in Norway as a student for 3 years isn't a path to permanent residency. The page you linked from the gov. website says you need to hold non-student type visas during the continuous 3 year period.

    "During these three years, you must have held residence permits that form a basis for permanent residence. This applies to, among others, persons who have been granted asylum or protection, residence for strong humanitarian considerations, most family immigration permits, skilled worker permits or specialist permits."

    My understanding is that student visas don't qualify as "resident permits".

    ReplyDelete
  4. AnonymousJune 15, 2012 at 11:03 AM

    You may not be able to stay in norway after 3 years of studing, if you have don't have a job offer. However if you get your master/ phd degree in a technical field you would most likely get a job offer and be able to stay on as skilled labor. And the fun part is that you have to make more than NOK 500 000 (roughly $ 84 000) to qualify for skilled labor visa.

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