Application process for applicants with a citizenship from outside EU/EEA and Switzerland

• You must have obtained a bachelor's degree, normally of minimum 4 years' duration. 
• Your degree must be issued by an officially recognised and accredited university. Check the specific requirements for the country where you have studied in the country list.

• Your degree must include courses equalling at least 80 ECTS (approximately 1.5 years of full-time studies) in a subject relevant to the programme you apply for. 
• Check the specific requirements for the master's programmes you will apply for in the programme descriptions. Note that there might be additional programme specific requirements that applicants are not exempted from.

• You must have a minimum grade average comparable to a Norwegian C. A Norwegian C is a good grade, comparable to an American B and a Second Class Upper in the British system. All foreign education is individually evaluated during the admission process. 
• Please note that meeting the minimum average grade requirement does not guarantee admission, since admission is highly competitive. Approximately 8 % of international applicants are granted admission.

• You must document your English language proficiency. For IELTS tests, minimum overall band score of 6.5 with at least 6.5 in each component (listening, reading, speaking and writing).  See English requirements for approved tests. Note that it is not possible to be exempted from uploading a valid English test if you apply for a programme that requires higher test results than the general minimum requirements. 
• If you are exempt from the English language admission requirements, please upload documentation proving this in your application for admission.

Applicants to any master's programme with a citizenship from outside the EU/EEA and residing outside of Norway, must document sufficient funds to cover living expenses and tuition fees

• You must document that you have sufficient funds to cover both living expenses and tuition fees. 

Cost of living in Norway 

To be granted a residence permit in Norway as a non-EU/EEA citizen the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) requires that you show documentation that you have enough money to live on while studying in Norway. For the academic year 2025/2026 the amount is NOK 166 859 for one year (two semesters).

Applicants to our master’s programmes with citizenship from outside the EU/EEA must documents sufficient funds in one of the following ways: 

Official bank statement

• The bank statement cannot be more than three months old.
• The bank statement must clearly show the total balance available in the bank account.
• The bank statement can be in any currency. Use a currency converter to find what your currency of choice amounts to in NOK.
• All documentation must be in English or come with an English translation. 

A sponsor guarantee letter and a sponsor’s recent official bank statement

If you have a sponsor, you must document both a sponsor guarantee letter and an official bank statement of your sponsor showing the total amount of funds required. Anyone can be your sponsor, including family members. The following criteria must also be met: 

• The letter must state that the sponsor will support your stay in Norway financially with cost of living and/or your tuition fees. The letter must be signed. You can use any format.
• The bank statement cannot be more than three months old.
• The bank statement must clearly show the total balance available in the bank account.
• The bank statement can be in any currency. Use a currency converter to find what your currency of choice amounts to in NOK.
• All documentation must be in English or come with an English translation. 

A scholarship, stipend or student loan confirmation

If you plan to cover sufficient funds with a scholarship, stipend or a student loan the following criteria must be met: 

• A letter confirming that you are eligible for a scholarship, stipend or student loan from your home country, how much you will receive and from which institution.
• All documentation must be in English or come with an English translation.
• Note that UiB is registered with a deferment only status in the Federal Student Aid programme.
•  

Some applicants may be exempt from paying tuition fees at UiB. See this website for more information about the different categories for exemption from tuition fees. 

• Applicants who belong to one of the exemption categories from paying tuition fees must refer to the correct category and upload the required documentation. Please see the following information: exemption categories
• Note that it is not possible to be exempt from the cost-of-living requirement. This must be documented in one of the ways described above. 

Application period: 1 November-1 December

Application deadline: 1 December 

Final documentation deadline: 15 Dec. 

 Remember to upload  all documents by this date 

Mid-April 

You will receive the result of your application. If you are offered admission, you will  be notified by e-mail.  The result will also be published at Søknadsweb. 

Admitted students must  deposit money into the student deposit account to obtain their official letter of acceptance and to be able to apply for a student residence permit for studies.

You will receive a confirmation of your deposit, normally within 5 working days after the transaction is complete. 

Information about the final deadline for depositing money will be sent to admitted students after the deadline to accept offer of admission has passed. 

Late April

Deadline to accept offer of admission: To be announced 

May  

The Letter of Acceptance will be issued after confirmation of your transfer to the student deposit account within the deadline.  

The letter must be attached to your application for a  student residence permit.  

Application deadline for student housing: 15 May 

Admitted students can apply for student housing within the given deadline.  Detailed information will be sent separately by email.

Please read the information regarding terms and conditions, and cancellation deadline carefully. 

June 

Residence permit:  Apply for a residence permit for studies. 

Week 32 

Start of the autumn semester: Mandatory attendance for new students 

September 

Verification of application documents: New students must hand in original transcripts and diplomas for a final verification. Successful verification will finalise your admission to UiB. 

Non-EU students should apply for and be granted a study permit before traveling to Norway. Processing time may take several weeks.

Applications submitted by the 1 July will be processed in time for the semester start in August. 

Required documentation:

• Letter of Acceptance: Letter which confirms full-time admission etc. Sent by email or uploaded on Søknadsweb.
• Documentation of adequate and secure housing: A copy of the tenancy agreement must included in your application.
• Documentation of funds (2025/2026):
  • Students staying for two semesters (2025/2026) or longer: NOK 166 859 (per year).
• Tuition fee confirmation.

For more information, please check UDI.no

1. Print UDI's checklist and gather the necessary documents
2. Create an account on UDI's Application Portal and
   1. Submit your online application
   2. Pay the application fee (currently NOK 5400)
   3. Register the UiB's organization number: 874 789 542
3. Book an appointment to hand in your documents in person at the nearest embassy or VFS centres.
4. Always check the updated application procedures for your country at UDI's website.

UDI is the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration.

• Study Permits
• Who needs a visa

The UIB organization number is 874 789 542. The number must be registered when applying for study permit.

For inquiries regarding documentation of finance for exchange students, please contact incoming@uib.no

• Check the country list to ensure that you meet the requirement of an approved bachelor's degree, as well as the English language requirement and any specific documentational requirements. 
• Check that your education is recognised and accredited by international standards. UiB uses the database Anabin to check this requirement. We demand a rating of H+. 
• Check that you meet the minimum English language proficiency requirements. 
• Ensure that you have the correct documentation to prove sufficient funding for both living costs and tuition fees. 
• Check if the master's programme you apply for has any additional requirements. 

• Secondary school certificate / High school diploma 
• Bachelor's degree certificate/diploma (all pages) 
• Transcript of records including a description of the grading scale used 
• Proof of English language proficiency 
• Proof of funding for cost of living and tuition fees 
• Copy of your valid passport  
• CV including your educational background 
• Motivation letter, maximum 450 words. Describe your personal motivation for applying to the programme you are applying for 
• Course descriptions for all relevant courses, including academic content and syllabus/reading list 
• Any additional documentation requirements 

• Documents should be scanned from original documentation. 
• The documents must be uploaded as PDF files of good quality. 
• If the original language of your documents is not English or a Scandinavian language, officially certified copies of a translation to one of these languages must accompany certified copies of your documents in the original language.

Admitted students must hand in original transcripts and diplomas for a final verification. Successful verification will finalize your admission to UiB. Students who cannot present approved documentation may lose their right to study at UiB. 

The Norwegian government has decided that Norwegian universities will be required to introduce tuition fees for certain categories of students, starting autumn 2024. This includes students from countries outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland. Admitted students from these countries must pay tuition fees.  

You must also document that you have sufficient funds to cover living costs, both in your application for admission to UiB and later when you apply for a study permit, if you are offered admission. Read more about documentation of funds.

Unfortunately, UiB does not offer any grants, scholarships or funding.

You can check if you meet the admission requirements by 

• Comparing your academic background to the general admission requirements 
• Checking if you meet the specific requirements that the master’s programme you want to apply for has. Find the study programme descriptions in the list of master's programmes we offer. 

Unfortunately, UiB does not offer conditional offers of admission for applicants from non-EU/EEA countries, due to regulations by the immigration authorities. This means that we will only consider your application if all the required documents are uploaded in your application by the relevant documentation deadline. 

Follow these steps to log in and do not use Feide (only active students have this type of account): 

1. Go to Søknadsweb's login page. 
2. Choose International Applicant, if you are not already in that pane. 
3. Register as a new international applicant. 
4. Log in to Søknadsweb using the password sent to you by email. 

Søknadweb does not have a button to officially submit your application. Your application is officially complete when: 

• You have filled in your complete home address. 
• You have selected the study programmes you wish to apply for. 
• You have uploaded all the required documents. 
• You have saved the information.

You can make changes to your application until the deadline 1 December.

The status of your application will be Under consideration at Søknadsweb until we have finished processing your application. 

If you are offered admission to UiB, you must document to the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration (UDI) that you have the sufficient funds to apply for a student residence permit for the first year of study in Norway. See the required amount at the top of the page. 

Student deposit account 

It is not possible to open a Norwegian bank account from abroad. This means that you must transfer money to the student deposit account organised by the Student Welfare Organisation in Bergen (Sammen), for the purpose of applying for a student residence permit to UDI. UiB will provide detailed information on how to do this. Make sure you don't transfer money to the student deposit account until you receive the necessary information from UiB as the transaction needs to include your unique identification code. 

You will receive confirmation of your deposit, normally within 5 working days after the transaction is complete. This confirmation must be included in your application for a student residence permit. 

Your money will be returned to you 

Your money will be transferred back to you once you have completed the following steps: 

• received a student residence permit
• arrived in Norway
• completed the necessary registration for new students
• open a Norwegian bank account
• inform Sammen about your bank account details and request a transfer of funds 

For information about refunding, see this page. 

Yes, you always have to upload your bachelor's degree diploma in your application.

This is the same as an academic transcript and is an official statement listing courses/subjects you have completed at your university, including your grades and workload (ECTS or similar). The transcript of records should include the grading scale used by your university.

 The course descriptions /syllabi should contain:  

• Academic content 
• Syllabus/reading list 
• Teaching hours 

It is sufficient to download a version of the course description from your home university's web page and upload it in your application as a pdf. This does not need to be signed, stamped or authorised by your home university. 

The course name and code in the course description must match the course name and code in your transcript. The description should be in English or Norwegian, but if a translation is needed, it does not have to be provided by an authorised translator.

The course descriptions are used by the academic committees to evaluate the content of your degree and assess its relevance for the master's degree you have applied for. These documents can therefore increase your chances of a successful application.

We realise it might be challenging to retrieve these documents. First try to contact your university to see if they have information about the courses in your degree. If your university is unable to help you, we suggest that you write a description of the content of your degree, to the best of your ability. 

You will still be able to apply even if you are unable to provide all the documentation above.   

Normally you must document this with an English test. If you have taken a test which is not on the list, you can contact us via the contact form on this page to find out if this can be approved. 

Read more about which tests are approved and whether you may be exempt from submitting a test. 

You can only be exempt if you have completed a programme in specific countries. Make sure you check the specific details about the country where you have studied in the list of exemptions. 

Read about how you document sufficient funds in your application to UiB. 

Approximately 1 page (450 words). We do not require a specific template or format. 

No, this is not a requirement and such letters will not be taken into consideration in the processing of your application.  

When you create your application, you follow the steps (1-5) on Søknadsweb and upload accordingly. 

If you log in later, you can choose My documents from the top menu and from there upload documents. 

If you can't find 'My documents' in the top menu, click on the three white stripes in the top left corner and you will find 'My documents' in the drop down menu. 

You must upload the required documents, preferably within 1 December, or at the latest by 15 December. 

No, we do not accept documents sent by post - you have to upload all documents to Søknadsweb.  

We will verify the original documents of admitted students after arrival at UiB.

The document titles listed are the same for all admissions to UiB, some of them will therefore not apply to you. You should only choose the titles that correspond to the documents you will upload. If you cannot find a relevant title, choose 'Other'.