Erasmus at OsloMet

During my M. A. studies, I studied at OsloMet for one summer semester. I chose my partner university in Oslo because I was extremely fascinated by the country and its culture.

PREPARATION

Universities in Norway are extremely glad to welcome Erasmus Students and will help you with all problems and questions. The application process is relatively simple: since I wanted to enrol for the spring semester in Oslo (lectures from January to June), I began gathering all necessary signatures in July. In October, I applied online for OsloMet and for a room. Everything else was taken care of by the international offices of both schools. By November, I had signed my Erasmus contract and my lease. Shortly before Christmas, I received my schedule.

Since Norway is part of Europe, I could rely on my regular insurance card and did not have to take out foreign health insurance. You do have to be careful not to visit private surgeries - you have to cover the costs yourself and only get a fraction of the money back!

As an EU citizen you do not have to apply for a visa, but you do have to register online, made very easy by an online form.

If you plan on staying for longer than eight months or on working in Norway, you will need a personal ID. You can apply for it in Norway. Once you receive it, you can also open up a bank account, sign work contracts and you are provided with your own GP. You definitely do not need a Norwegian bank account if you have a VISA credit card, since you pay almost exclusively by card in Norway. I can recommend the DKB or the Consorsbank, since they do not charge extra for cash transactions abroad.

ACCOMODATION

It is up to you whether you want to look for a room yourself or accept a room in one of the student residences. Every Erasmus student is guaranteed a room in a student residence. It is definitely possible to find a room in a well-located shared flat for 500€ per month, however, you would need to search for one once you arrive. Finding single flats under 1000€ per month is not possible.

I would recommend living in student houses, since it allows you to meet other people easily. You can find those for prices ranging from 370€ to more than 1000€ per months. All student residences are perfectly fine to live in. For people who like to save money, like me, I can recommend Kringsjå or Sogn. I lived in a room in a flat of six in Sogn for 370€ per month. The kitchen was huge and we had our own balcony. As opposed to other flats, all kitchen utensils were provided in ours, thanks to numerous previous residents. From Sogn, it only takes 20 minutes to get to the OsloMet campus and 10 minutes to get to the University of Oslo. Kringsjå is located right next to Sognsvann lake, where many ski slopes and hiking trails are located. They also have their own metro station. If you have a bit more money to spare, if you want to walk to uni, not rely on night buses to get you home after a night out and live with Norwegians, I would recommend taking at look at Stensberggata (558€ per month) or Sofienberg (530€ per month). Do take care to apply for a furnished room!

FINANCES

While Oslo is officially the most expensive city in Europe, it is totally possible to survive there as a German student. Definitely try to apply for Auslandsbafög (a student loan for exchange students). The maximum loan for Norway is currently 1,100€ per month. If you add the Erasmus grant of 300€ and possibly the German Kindergeld (child benefit) of 180€, it is more than enough. But you can make do with even less money. I spent around 1000€ every month, trips not included.

Here's a short calculation of my average monthly spendings:

• Room: 389€
• Monthly ticket: 47€
• Food: 350€
• Gym: 20€
• Going out: 120€
• Leisure: 100€

If you want to save money on food, I would recommend buying fruits, vegetables and meat in Grønland. Everything surrounding the Grønland tog is great. Instead of taking the train, you can borrow a bike from bike stations all over the city for 40€ per year. If you don't want to pay for the gym, you can simply use the uni gym.

As an Erasmus student, you are allowed to work for up to 20 hours per week. In Norway, Facebook groups and LinkedIn are the most important job portals; it is relatively easy to find a job at a bar or for example as a nanny.

THE OSLOMET

The OsloMet (former Høgskolen Oslo i Akershus) is located in the centre of the city. It has a beautiful campus in a former factory building. The classrooms are modern and you always have access to the laboratories. The library is relatively small, which is why I recommend you use the library of the UiO in Blindern for more extensive research. The university has its own gym, which is free to use, and many sports clubs. The university also offers free language courses in Norwegian and English.

The uni takes very good care of their international students and it is very easy to meet people and make friends during "buddy-week".

The classes have a smaller workload than German classes. I took classes for 35 credit points and only attended uni on three days of the week, for half the day. There is much room for self-study. Students also have to sit more intermediate exams, in addition to the final exam, than in Germany.

FREE TIME IN OSLO

Since I spent the spring semester abroad, I experienced both summer and winter in Oslo - and both are beautiful. In winter, you should visit the sledging track Klokketrekkeren, go ice skating in the city, visit Sognsvann and the salt sauna by the harbour. If you can, take a trip to Tromso where you can see the Northern Lights and watch reindeers and whales. Taking the metro, you can go straight to ski slopes and amazing biking and hiking trails. In the summer, there are great open-air clubs like Palace Grill, you can go on hikes in the surrounding mountains like the Vettakollen, swim in the fjord at the Paradisbukta and visit the open-air museum. These days, you can use Flixbus and go on cheap trips to Copenhagen, Malmö, Stockholm or Bergen. Visiting the Hardanger region with Trolltunga and its waterfalls is also a must. Other than this, Oslo has much else to offer. Like in any other big city, you can find bars, clubs, cinemas, bowling alleys, escape rooms, laser tag places and many more. Be careful when you go out: consuming alcohol in public is prohibited and clubs close around 3 am.

SOCIALIZING

Norwegians are definitely not as unapproachable as some YouTube vloggers want to have you believe. However, politeness is held in high esteem here. If you want to get in touch with Norwegians, you should take the first step. Once you've broken the ice a little, they are wonderful and kind people. Caution: the cold, unapproachable façade usually crumbles once alcohol is involved. Then, Oslo's shy people, who cannot even hold eye contact on public transport, suddenly open up and start making out with random strangers. Not only young people visit clubs in Oslo, many people over 30 do the same. Many clubs have age limits of 21, 23, 25 in order to attract the right (rich) clients. Sometimes, you might even get to know your future employer at a club!

Like most other Erasmus students on my exchange, I largely spent time with other exchange students. It is easy to meet people, either through the welcome week at uni, events organized by the ESN in Oslo, Erasmus parties or through your flatmates and fellow students. And YES, these wonderful, short and intense friendships will last for life.

In these six months, I did not only learn all about Fiskekaker, Hygge and Allemannnsretten, but also about myself. I would always choose Oslo all over again.