Norway changed for international students in 2023. Until then higher education was free for everyone; since the autumn 2023 intake, students who are not citizens of an EU or EEA country or Switzerland pay tuition, and each institution sets its own rates. The change applies to new admissions only, so a student admitted before 2023 still studies free. Everything below is about the students who now pay.
Fees are set by subject category rather than by one institutional figure, and the categories differ from one university to the next. At NTNU in 2026/27 humanities, social sciences, economics, business and management cost NOK 176,300 a year, natural sciences, technology, sport and health sciences, education, performing arts and media cost NOK 205,600, and medicine, dentistry and veterinary medicine cost NOK 528,650, with a handful of programmes priced separately as low as NOK 26,445. The University of Bergen sets NOK 197,000 for its language and humanities master's degrees, NOK 226,000 for the sciences and NOK 401,704 for design, fine art and music performance. The University of Oslo publishes a programme by programme table two years ahead: for 2027/28 it lists 24 programmes at NOK 186,000, 30 at NOK 218,000 and one online programme at NOK 124,000. The Norwegian University of Life Sciences charges NOK 80,000 for its one English taught bachelor's degree and NOK 150,000 for master's programmes.
Several groups are exempt without applying: citizens of the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, exchange students on partner agreements, anyone admitted before 2023, students on an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master or a Nordic Five Tech joint degree, holders of a Students at Risk, NORPART, NORHED, NORSTIP or Fulbright place or a full degree scholarship from the Norwegian Directorate for Higher Education and Skills, and doctoral students. A second set of exemptions has to be applied for with documents: permanent residence in Norway, residence granted for protection or humanitarian reasons, and marriage to or a child with a Norwegian citizen. Note that both NTNU and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences say plainly that they offer no scholarships that cover tuition, so an applicant who needs one is looking outside the university.
Deadlines are early and they differ by citizenship, which catches people out. At NTNU the master's deadline for applicants from outside the EU and EEA is 1 December, against 15 January for EU and EEA applicants, 1 March for Norwegian or Nordic citizens educated outside the Nordics, and 15 April for Nordic applicants. The University of Bergen opens its portal on 1 November and closes it on 1 December, allows one master's programme per applicant, and sets a final documentation deadline of 15 December. So a student applying from outside Europe for an August start is applying nine months ahead, in the previous calendar year. Not every university uses 1 December: UiT The Arctic University of Norway in Tromsø closes its non-EU window on 15 November, two weeks earlier, and has also cut its fees from August 2026 to NOK 100,500 a year for humanities and social sciences and NOK 150,500 for science and technology, which makes it one of the cheaper options in Norway. The Norwegian University of Life Sciences asks IELTS 7.0 for master's, half a band above most others.
English is proved with a test at both universities checked here, and the bar is the same: IELTS Academic at 6.5 overall, with NTNU asking 6.5 on each part and Bergen asking 6.5 in each of the four components; TOEFL iBT at 90, with neither accepting MyBest scores; and PTE Academic at 62. The International Baccalaureate with English at Higher Level grade 4 is accepted at both. Tests may not be older than two years at the application deadline. Bergen does not accept IELTS One Skill Retake; NTNU does.
Beyond tuition, an applicant from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland has to document money for living costs before a study permit is granted. Both the University of Bergen and the Norwegian University of Life Sciences state that figure as NOK 166,859 for one academic year of two semesters. There is also a semester fee of roughly NOK 650 to 700, paid each term, which is not covered by any tuition exemption.
- https://www.ntnu.edu/studies/tuition-fees
- https://www.ntnu.edu/studies/application
- https://www.ntnu.edu/studies/langcourses/languagerequirements
- https://www4.uib.no/en/studies/admission-and-application/tuition-fee-for-international-students
- https://www4.uib.no/en/studies/admission-and-application/application-process-for-applicants-with-a-citizenship-from-outside-eueea-and-switzerland
- https://www4.uib.no/en/studies/admission-and-application/admission-requirements/english-language-requirements-for-masters
- https://www.uio.no/english/studies/admission/tuition/table-of-costs/
- https://www.nmbu.no/en/studies/tuition-fees