Record number of Norwegian students on exchange abroad

Posted On: July 10, 2023

There have never been so many Norwegian exchange students abroad as there are now, but even fewer are taking their entire degrees abroad.

The number of Norwegian students abroad has dropped significantly due to the coronavirus pandemic. Now, however, the numbers are on the rise again:

In the 2022–2023 academic year, 22,400 Norwegian students will receive loans and grants from Lånekassen for study abroad. 13,800 of them are degree students, that is they took their entire degree abroad, while 8,600 are on exchange, meaning that students are taking one or two semesters abroad. Never before have there been so many exchanges, the closest being 8,300 in the 2019-2020 academic year. However, the number of degree students is lower than before the pandemic, and at the peak of 2014–2015, 17,500 students were taking their full degrees abroad.

– It’s great to see Norwegian students again choosing to study abroad. Studying abroad provides valuable experience, and is often found attractive by future employers. Personal and professional development, opportunities to experience new cultures and gain connections across countries are some of the things international students bring home, says Kjetil Moen, CEO of Lånekassen.

The number of Norwegian students abroad is around 3,000 less this academic year than in 2015–2016, when 25,400 Norwegians studied abroad.

Fewer went to favorite England, while Australia improved

The UK has for several years been the most popular country for Norwegian students from abroad, and this is also the case this year, but the number of Norwegian students in the UK has declined in recent years. In 2022–2023, 3,300 Norwegians are studying in the UK, compared with 5,500 a decade ago.
Denmark is also a popular country of study for Norwegian students, and 2,500 Norwegians will receive support from Lånekassen for education in Denmark in 2022–2023. The United States and Australia also top the list.

– Australia has for several years been one of the most popular countries among Norwegian students, but has seen a sharp decline in the number of Norwegian students due to coronavirus restrictions. This year, a large number of Norwegian students are studying there – 1,800 compared to 400 the previous year. In the years before the pandemic, there were around 2,000 Norwegian students in Australia each year, said Moen.

Medicine, business and technology at its best

Medicine has been the most popular education for Norwegian postgraduate students for several years, followed by economics/business. 3,000 Norwegians study medicine abroad in 2022–2023 – the same level as in recent years. 2,600 Norwegian degree students are majoring in economics/business, which is also on par with previous years.

The most popular field of study among exchange students is science and technology, followed by economics and administration. In the 2022–2023 academic year, 2,050 exchange students are taking science and technology, while 1,950 are taking economics and administration.