Students ignore calls for exchange

Students defy calls for exchangeStudents at university.Photo: Frank May / NTB scanpix

Both the Minister and principals want the Norwegian students to study abroad. But the latest figures show that the number of students studying abroad  has stagnated.

Last year a total of 6,478 Norwegian students were exchange students for three months or more abroad. This is a decrease of three students from the previous year, writes Khronos, referring to figures from the Norwegian center for research data.
According to the student website  Minister Torbjørn Røe Isaksen (H) is airing proposal on mandatory exchange. The Norwegian student organization and several principals have also argued that more people should become exchange students, but their message does not seem to have made much of an impression on the students in 2015.
Hilde Skeie, section chief at the International Office at the University of Trondheim, points to the weak exchange rate as a cause of the decline.
– At NTNU, we have seen a general increase in exchange students, even though it stagnated slightly last year. The reason for this  is probably a lot to do with the current rate of exchange for kroner. Many who travel abroad go to the US, UK or Australia, and since the Norwegian krone weakened, there probable are quite a few who are waiting for things to become a little cheaper before venturing abroad as a part of their studies, she says to Khronos.
On the other hand, the courses at Norwegian universities have increased in popularity abroad. Last year, 8,182 exchange students came to Norway, an increase of 676 students from the previous year.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today