Exchange through bilateral agreements

How to apply

To find out if you may apply to become a bilateral student at UiO, please contact the international office at your home institution. You have to apply through your home university. Local procedures and deadlines will vary according to each institution.

Specifications about English language requirements at the University of Oslo are available on our web page about English proficiency requirements.

After nomination by your home institution, you must fill in the application form for bilateral applicants (pdf)

The application form must be sent to the International Education Office at the University of Oslo by the exchange coordinator at your home institution.

Deadlines

Applications should be sent well before:

• 15 April for the autumn semester (August - December)
• 15 October for the spring semester (January - May)

This is to ensure that admitted students have enough time to prepare for their exchange, apply for student visa etc.

At the very latest, applications must have reached the International Education Office by 1 May for the Autumn semester and 1 November for the Spring semester.

Courses in English

Bilateral students may choose from more than 800 courses offered in English. In the application form you must make a prioritized list of the courses you are interested in taking during your first semester at UiO.

The course descriptions give detailed information about each course, course content, when it's taught, the syllabus, examination form, etc. The list is updated for the coming semester in late November/mid-May. Please note that questions regarding courses must be directed to the relevant department or faculty. Contact information can be found at the bottom of the relevant course description.

Some courses are only taught in English if requested by exchange students. If you want to apply for one of these courses, you must do so within the deadlines for completing the Declaration of Acceptance (25 June/25 November).

The University of Oslo will make effort to enrol you into the selected courses. However, the availability of all courses that you request at the time of admission can not be guaranteed. The enrollment can only be confirmed after your arrival and is dependant upon the timetabling of the courses and the number of places available in each course.

The University of Oslo uses the ECTS credit system where a full semester work load should give 30 credits. For further information see academic system.

For questions concerning courses offered in other foreign languages than English, please contact the local international coordinator at your home university.

Norwegian language courses

Bilateral students at the University of Oslo may apply for Norwegian Language Courses on foundation and advanced level:

• Norwegian Language Courses at the Department of Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies. The credit value of these courses may be incorporated into a degree, if the courses are recognized by your home institution.

• Intensive Norwegian Language Courses offered through the International Summer School (ISS) at the University of Oslo. The courses have a fee and are accredited with 15-20 ECTS credits. For further information about academics and admission, see The International Summer School (ISS)

Residence permit

Applying for a student residence permit in Norway may take up to two months. It is therefore important that you start this process early. Students who are not EU/EEA citizens must apply for a student residence permit immediately after they have received their letter of acceptance from the University of Oslo. They may also need to apply for a visa to enter Norway. As a rule, students who enter Norway without the necessary permits will not be allowed to remain in Norway.

If you for some reason are unable to start this process more than two months prior to your arrival, please note that bilateral exchange students to the University of Oslo may apply for a student residence permit within 7 days after arrival in Norway. However, you may still need to apply for a visa before you arrive, depending on your citizenship. For further information about visa and student residence permit procedures, please see residence permit

After admission

Letters of Admission will be sent out in the beginning of November for the Spring semester, and in the middle of May for the Autumn semester. Together with the Letter of Admission you will also receive directions on how to go to the online Declaration of Acceptance form, which must be submitted before 25 November for the Spring semester and 25 June for the Autumn semester.

Student housing must also be booked before 25 November for the Spring semester and 25 June for the Autumn semester. Students who follow the directions are guaranteed housing in one of the student residences. See student housing

The Spring semester usually starts in the second week of January and ends in the third week of June. The Autumn semester usually starts in the middle of August and ends in the third week of December. Bilateral students should arrive in Oslo at least one week prior to the start of a semester to ensure that they will be present for the Orientation Week for new students.

Most questions regarding practical issues are answered on our web pages for new international students.

Contact information

For questions regarding courses and other academic matters, please contact the department or faculty with which your institution has an agreement, see list of units at the university of Oslo.