Admission requirements when applying for an outbound exchange

The University of Stavanger wants as many of our students as possible to be able to go on an exchange. At the same time, there are certain requirements when applying.

Published 24. Aug. 2020. Updated on 05. Jul. 2023

GUIDELINES TO APPLY FOR A PERIOD OF EXCHANGE AS PART OF A FULL DEGREE STUDY PROGRAMME

Approved by the Education Committee 12 September 2012. Revised 18 November 2020.

The student must apply for an exchange within set deadlines. The application must be registered in Søknadsweb. The student must check that the registered application is complete and that all required documents are uploaded.
The International Office may, upon written and reasoned application from the student, grant processing of applications and any additional documentation up to 1 week after the application deadline has expired. After this, applications for late submission of applications and/or additional documents shall only exceptionally be granted. It must be possible to document the circumstances on which the application for late submission is based.
The student must have completed at least 60 credits prior to the exchange semester abroad.
The student must meet the admission criteria of the partner institution.
The exchange semester must be pre-approved by the relevant faculty/department.
The study period abroad must not impact the already approved education plan.

Utveksling_SDSU student — UiS-student on exchange at San Diego State University

Exchange semester

All study programmes have recommended semesters for studies abroad, and exceptions are rarely granted. Please find your study programme in the exchange map and read about your exchange opportunities.

Please note that only Bachelor's or Master's students may apply for exchange.

Credits and study progress

The minimum requirement for going on a student exchange is that you must have passed exams equivalent to a one-year programme (60 credits) before travelling. Some partner institutions require applicants to have attained at least 60 credits at the time of applying.

Your faculty/ department at the University of Stavanger (UiS) may in special cases discourage you from applying for an exchange if you do not have sufficient credit production in accordance with your study plan, or if the exchange will be at the expense of an approved education plan.

An exchange must take place during your studies. You cannot go on an exchange after completing your degree or to take courses you have not passed at UiS.

Grade point average

UiS does not set requirements for a particular grade point average (GPA) when you apply for an exchange, but a number of our partner institutions have their own admission requirements (particularly in countries outside Europe). UiS would like students who goes on an exchange to be good ambassadors and obtain good results at our partner institution.

In special cases, your faculty/ department may advise you against applying for an exchange if your GPA is particularly low.

English language requirements

The University of Stavanger does not require language proficiency tests of students, but some of our partner institutions do. This especially applies to institutions in the USA and Australia.

At most of our partner institutions, we have been exempted from the requirement for an English test as documentation of English skills. It is generally sufficient if you have a grade of 4 or better in English from Norwegian upper secondary school (or equivalent). However, if you have a lower grade, you must take an English test.

Different institutions accept different tests and test results. The most common language tests are IELTS and TOEFL. These measure you by how good you are at reading, writing, listening, and speaking. Please note that there may be differences in the requirements depending on whether you are a bachelor's or master's student. Information about this must be stated in the institution description for the institution you are interested in.

The International Office strongly recommends that you find out which requirements apply to you early in the application process, so that you can register for the test well in advance of the documentation deadline.

Erasmus+

For the Erasmus+ programme, the language proficiency expected of students in relation to the Council of Europe's language proficiency scale will be specified in the agreement between the educational institutions.

Pre-approval of your courses

Courses you plan to take abroad during your exchange must always be pre-approved by UiS. You must apply for pre-approval in the Digital service desk. It is your faculty/ department that processes your application for pre-approval. More information about pre-approval.

Before submitting an application for pre-approval of courses, it is important that you check whether you meet any academic prerequisites and/ or requirements for the courses you wish to study at the host institution.