I wish to study Norwegian. How do I apply?
The Norwegian Courses for International Students (NORINT) at the Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies are only available for international students with admission to a program at the University of Oslo(UiO), or who are exchange students on an exchange agreement from a university outside of Norway.
If you are an international student at UiO you can apply through StudentWeb. See the instructions on our web page under "How to sign up for courses".
If you wish to take Norwegian courses even if you are not an international student at UiO you should consider the courses at the International Summer School at UiO. Please contact them here if you have questions regarding their courses. They have courses all year, not only during the summer.
For all questions about application and admission to the UiO, please contact the International Student Reception:
I want to learn Norwegian but I don`t know what level 1 course I should sign up for.
What`s the difference between our level 1 courses?
We have several different Norwegian courses on level 1/for beginners.
- NORINT0105m and NORINT0106m: These are mostly self-study courses with the online course as an aid, so you won´t get the same interaction with a teacher, or other students, or the same level of feedback from a teacher. These courses award 5 credits each and can be taken separately.
- NORINT0114: This is a Norwegian course mostly for students who intend to stay in Oslo for one semester. It has seminar groups twice a week, each seminar last for 3 hours, over ten weeks. The only difference between our full level 1 course (NORINT0110) and NORINT0114 is that the latter has four weeks less teaching and only has a written exam at the end of the course. This course award 10 credits.
- NORINT0110: This is our full level 1 course. It has seminar groups twice a week, each seminar last for 3 hours, over fourteen weeks. At the end there is a written and oral exam. NORINT0110 is meant to be taken before students proceed to level 2 and level 3 later on (a passed level 3 meets the basic requirement for entry to Norwegian universities and university colleges). In order to proceed to level 2/NORINT0120 you need to pass the exam with the grade D or better in both the oral and written exams. This course award 15 credits.
NORINT0105m, NORINT0106m and NORINT0114 won´t qualify students for level 2. But if you study a lot and get to a higher level of Norwegian with the NORINT0105m, NORINT0106 and NORINT0114 courses, you can take the placement test for the next level. If you get placed on level 2 with the test, you can apply for NORINT0120/level 2.
- NORINT0190: This is a phonetics course that is usually taken with another Norwegian course to focus on Norwegian pronunciation. This course award 5 credits.
So there are many options to start learning Norwegian, so it`s wise to decide on a course depending on what you want to achieve with the course, and how much time you have for a Norwegian course.
I did not get admission to NORINTxxxx, do you have a waiting list? If you do, what place do I have on the waiting list?
Unfortunately, we do not have the capacity to grant admission to all applicants. The admission is done in accordance with the Priority list that you can see on our webpage.
We do not have an official waiting list, but if a spot opens up in a class and we are able to offer you a place you will receive an email within the first weeks of classes. You don`t need to contact us.
I am not able to attend the class I was placed in. Can I change?
Please use our web form to apply for a class change. Form is open only after admission deadline and for a week.
"You are not registered as having fulfilled the formal requirements for the course NORINT0130"
I have previously taken a Norwegian course at my home university and submitted the documents to you that I am qualified for NORINT0130. I got accepted to the course, but when I log into Studentweb the following message pops up "You are not registered as having fulfilled the formal requirements for the course NORINT0130 "Norwegian for International Students, level 3". Does this mean that I cannot take the exam at NORINT0130? We have several NORINT-courses that have prerequisites (NORINT0120, NORINT0130, NORINT0141 and NORINT0142), this means that you need to have passed the previous level to get admission to the next level. However, we qualify many students "manually" for our courses. For example, if one has submitted documentation on previous Norwegian courses or has taken the placement test. Our systems are unable to fully "understand" that we have qualified a student manually, and therefore this message appears and does not disappear. If this message appears after you've been admitted to a course, you can ignore it.
I passed NORINT0110 but got an E on the oral and written exam. Can I apply for NORINT0120?
You cannot proceed to the next level with an E on the oral or written exams.
You need a D or better on both the oral and written exams to be able to proceed to the next level. This means you need a D or better on both exams on NORINT0110 to get accepted to NORINT0120, and a D or better on both exams in NORINT0120 to get accepted to NORINT0130.
I got an E on the oral exam. Does this mean that I can`t take the written exam?
You can take the written exam with an E on the oral exam. At UiO, E is the lowest pass grade and F is fail. If you pass both the oral and written exam, you will pass the course and get the credits for the course. However, if you want to proceed to the next level, you will have to resit both exams, and get a D or better in both the oral and written exam.
I got an E on the written exam and a D on the oral exam, which means that I can`t proceed to the next level. However, can I take the placement test to get into the next level?
Our placement test is only for students who haven`t taken any NORINT courses but have previous knowledge in the Norwegian language. Therefore, you cannot use the placement test to improve your grade.
Since NORINT0114 does not qualify for NORINT0120, does that mean that I need to take NORINT0110 before I can proceed to NORINT0120?
It's correct that NORINT0114 does not qualify for level 2, but you can use the placement test to qualify for NORINT0120 if you have taken NORINT0114, NORINT0105M or NORINT0106M. If you`re placed on level 2 with the placement test, you are qualified for NORINT0120.
I participated in the course NORINTxxxx. The recognition process at my university requires an official paper or course certificate. How can I acquire this?
At UiO, you need to order your transcript from Studentweb. You can read more about ordering transcripts here.