Abdul Hannan (26) entered master’s programs in both Germany and Australia – countries that do not have extra fees for international students. Despite this, Hannan chose to study in Stavanger. Because this was where the best education was, in his eyes. Now he regrets it. The number of students from countries outside the EEA in international master’s programs at the University of Stavanger (UiS) has decreased by 76 percent since 2022. These countries are in the EEA Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Italy, Austria, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Malta, Iceland, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The decline is related to the fact that the Storting decided this summer that students from these countries must pay to study in Norway. At UiS, these students now have to pay between NOK 150,000 and 180,000 for one academic year. International master’s degree students at UiS 2022–2023 In 2022, 321 international master’s degree students were admitted, and 299 came from countries outside the EEA. In 2023, 137 international master’s degree students were admitted to international (English language) master’s degree programmes. Of these 137, 70 come from countries outside the EU/EEA. This corresponds to a decrease of 57 per cent in international students, and 76 per cent for international students outside the EEA. Big drop in Oslo At Oslo Met, international students have to shell out between NOK 180,000 and 370,000 each year. This year, only nine students have attended the Oslo school. In 2019, there were 72. There will also be fewer at the University of Oslo. In 2019, there were 163 such students on the master’s programme. This year there are 61. Disappearance of engineers – can have consequences for green transition In Stavanger, it is the technological subjects that are hardest hit by the decline. In eight of the master’s degree programs with international admission, only one to three international students showed up, figures from UiS show. The development worries both UiS and the Norwegian Confederation of Business and Industry (NHO). 53 per cent of the NHO companies in Rogaland state that they have a great or some need for expertise in technical subjects and engineering subjects. – It is worrying if there are fewer students in these subjects, says regional director of NHO, Tone Grindland. Regional director of NHO Rogaland, Tone Grindland, is concerned about the lack of manpower. Photo: Thomas Ystrøm / news She believes that a dropout of students with such expertise can prevent and delay solutions to the climate crisis. – If the companies don’t get the expertise they need either, it can lead to lost opportunities and a halt in development, says Grindland. Candidate survey international students at UiS The candidate survey for UiS was conducted from 23 November to 5 December 2022. The target group for the survey was former students who were admitted as international applicants to a master’s program, and who completed between 2020 and 2022. A total of 419 candidates were sent the survey, and 60 percent responded. The results show that 90 per cent of the candidates are from countries outside the EEA, and 86 per cent now live in Norway. 76 per cent are employed and 83 per cent of these work in the private sector. 83 per cent state that a master’s degree was required when they applied for the current position. 93 percent answer that they would not have chosen to study at UiS if there had been NOK 150,000 in tuition fees per year. – Unfair Hannan studies Computational Engineering at UiS. There is a great demand for this competence. – The politicians may think that the tax should give better advice, but that is not true. Norway is losing valuable labor and expertise because of this, says Hannan. Hannan is enjoying his studies, but says it is unfair that he has to pay almost 170 times more than his classmates. Photo: Tom Edvindsen / news His student friends from their bachelor’s degree in their native Pakistan have chosen to take their master’s degree in Germany, where there are no tuition fees. – We were a group of twelve friends who were going to study at UiS. But it was only Hannan who agreed to the study place when the fee was introduced. Hannan got help from his parents to cover the tuition fees. He works at McDonalds to keep the wheels turning. The rest of the time is spent studying. Will not remove the fee But the government will not remove the tuition fee. Research and Higher Education Minister Sandra Borch (Sp) believes that universities must rethink how they are going to recruit more foreign students. – I believe that UiS and other universities in Norway will be able to recruit more people. Other universities in Europe manage it with tuition fees, Norway must also manage it, says Borch. Minister for Research and Higher Education Sandra Borch (Sp). The fee is here to stay, she says. Photo: Stine Bækkelien / news The majority stay UiS has carried out surveys which show that the majority of international students stay in the region after further education. – The international students are our seeds. Now we are not allowed to harvest them at the other end, says vice-chancellor at UiS, Marte Cecilie Wilhelmsen Solheim. The number of students from countries outside the EEA on international master’s programs at the University of Stavanger (UiS) has decreased by 76 per cent in just one year. Photo: Josef Benoni Ness Tveit / news She has been critical of the introduction of tuition fees since the proposal was introduced in 2022. She thinks it is strange that the government adopted the change in the law since at the same time progress is being made in the green shift. Renowned master’s degree program with international admission Data Science, Mechanical Engineering, Structural Engineering, Environmental engineering, Industrial Asset Management, Risk Analysis – Engineering and Technology, Energy, Reservoir and Earth Sciences, Mathematics and Physics. – It is paradoxical. The region is crying out for expertise that can handle the change. The government does the same. Nevertheless, we stand here, she says. Solheim is afraid that the region will lose important expertise, while Stavanger as a student city will miss out on diversity, new impulses, other perspectives and experiences. – I hope it will be a wreck Solheim fears that even fewer students from outside the EEA next autumn. The annual price for master’s studies will increase from NOK 150,000 per year to NOK 180,000 in 2024. – I hope the tuition fee will be scrapped. The system is unfair. The others I study with only need to pay a semester fee of around NOK 900, while I have to shell out massive sums, says Hannan.
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International students disappear from universities – NHO is concerned – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
