Education and Driving in Norway: School Stages, the Vitnemål, Driving Theory and University Entry
A guide to schooling in Norway, upper secondary school and the Vitnemål, Category B driving theory with Statens vegvesen, vocational training and admission through Samordna opptak.
In short
Education in Norway is a public responsibility, and almost all pupils attend public schools. The Ministry of Education and Research sets the framework, and the Directorate for Education and Training (Udir) is responsible for the curriculum and for the national tests and exams. Schooling is compulsory from the age of six and lasts for ten years. After that, young people have a legal right to three years of upper secondary education. Those who complete a study-preparatory programme receive the Vitnemål (diploma, often written Vitnemal without the accent), which gives them general entrance qualification for higher education. Applications to universities and university colleges go through one central service, Samordna opptak.
School stages
- Primary and lower secondary school (grunnskole): Ten years, from age six to about sixteen. It is divided into primary school (barneskole), usually years one to seven, and lower secondary school (ungdomsskole), years eight to ten. Pupils study Norwegian, mathematics, English, natural sciences, social studies, religion and ethics, arts and crafts, music, food and health, and physical education. In the lower years pupils receive feedback but not marks, and marks are given from lower secondary school.
- Upper secondary school (videregående skole): Usually three years, from about sixteen to nineteen. Pupils choose between study-preparatory programmes, which lead to higher education, and vocational programmes.
- Vocational route: Many vocational programmes follow a model with two years in school and two years of training in a company. This ends with a trade certificate (fagbrev or svennebrev). Pupils on a vocational route can add a supplementary year to qualify for higher education.
- Higher education: Universities, university colleges and specialised institutions offer bachelor degrees of three years, master degrees of two further years, and doctoral studies. Well-known institutions include the University of Oslo, the University of Bergen, NTNU in Trondheim and UiT in Tromsø.
Marks, exams and the Vitnemål
Marks in upper secondary school run from 1 to 6. A 6 is the highest mark, 2 is the lowest passing mark, and 1 means the pupil has not passed. The Vitnemål lists the marks for each subject, both the marks given by teachers during the year and the marks from exams. Pupils usually take a written exam in some subjects, and other subjects have oral or practical exams. Which subjects have a written exam is decided by drawing, so a pupil may not know until late in the school year. Many written exams are set nationally, while others are set by the county.
Norwegian has two official written standards, bokmål and nynorsk, and pupils learn both of them. Mathematics, Norwegian, English and other core subjects are compulsory in the study-preparatory programmes, and pupils choose some subjects, such as advanced mathematics (Matematikk R2), natural sciences, languages or social studies.
Driving in Norway: Statens vegvesen Teoriprøve Klasse B
To obtain a Category B passenger car driving licence in Norway, candidates must pass both a practical driving test and a computerized theoretical test administered at Statens vegvesen traffic stations (trafikkstasjon). The theoretical test evaluates knowledge of the Norwegian Road Traffic Act (Vegtrafikkloven), Traffic Regulations (Trafikkreglene), Sign Regulations (Skiltforskriften), right-of-way (including høyreregelen and roundabout priority), vehicle dynamics, and seasonal hazards. Because of Norway's severe winter climate and mountainous geography, the test places strong emphasis on studded tyres (piggdekk), winter tyre tread depth (minimum 3.0 mm), mountain convoy driving (kolonnekjøring), long tunnel emergency protocols, and big game collision procedures (elg and hjort).
Admission through Samordna opptak
Most applications to universities and university colleges are submitted through Samordna opptak, the national coordinated admission service. Applicants list their choices in order, and the system distributes places on the basis of competition points. These points are mainly calculated from the average of the marks on the Vitnemål, with extra points for some subjects, for age, for military or civilian service, for higher education already completed, and for other factors. Some programmes, such as medicine, have a high point threshold, and a few programmes, such as music or art, also require auditions or tests. Applicants without the right marks can also apply through a special route for people with practical experience.
International students
Public universities in Norway have traditionally not charged tuition fees, though the rules for students from outside Europe have changed, so students should check the current rules on the official study portals. Students who want to follow programmes in Norwegian must show their language skills with a recognised test, and many master programmes are taught in English and ask for English test results.
Vocational and adult learning
Alongside the university route, Norway has higher vocational education through the technical colleges (fagskoler) and a strong tradition of adult learning, including folk high schools, which give a year of general study without exams. Many workplaces also use aptitude tests and general knowledge tests in their selection of candidates.
Practising on GetMyMockTest
These are practice questions we wrote for study. They are not the official exams, and we do not claim they match an exam's current format. Free practice for Norway:
- Vitnemål (vitnemal-norway): mathematics (including advanced Matematikk R2), Norwegian language and literature, and history of Norway, with timed mock tests and flashcard sets.
- Driving Theory Test (statens-vegvesen-driving-norway): Norwegian Category B road traffic rules, signs, signals, road markings, vehicle safety, studded tyres, and winter driving, with 5 timed mock tests and flashcards.
- Norwegian General Knowledge (gk-no): history and politics, geography and nature, and science, arts and culture, with primary sources cited.