The applicant numbers for universities, colleges and vocational schools in Norway are clear.
Director of the Directorate for Higher Education and Skills, Sveinung Skule, presents the applicant figures at Oslomet.
– It is a concern that the proportion of male applicants has fallen to below 40 per cent, including for the Men’s Committee which recently presented its report, Skule said at today’s press conference when he presented the figures for how many have applied to universities and colleges in 2024.
– Among those who have health subjects as their first choice, there are 77 per cent women, and in the technology subjects it is the opposite with 67 per cent male applicants, Skule added.
– For nursing subjects, there is a growth in male applicants, which is very nice to see. Someone gets to do something about the gender balance.
– Nursing is in a positive development. More than 10% more than last year have nursing as their first choice.
See the press conference directly at the top of this case.
This year, 142,416 people have applied for a study place in higher education via Samordna admissions. There are 6 36 more than last year, and an increase of 4.7 per cent.
The rise is greatest in the subject areas of history, economics and social science.
More will study nursing
After several years of decline, the number of applicants for nursing education is now increasing.
The number of male applicants increases by almost fifty percent to nursing education in Oslo, this year’s applicant figures for OsloMet show.
– We are very happy to see that so many people want to study nursing at OsloMet. The need for nurses is great throughout the country, and will increase in the coming years. This is both a good and safe educational choice and a choice that is important for society, says headmaster Christen Krogh in a press release.
Other female-dominated courses at OsloMet also have more male applicants this year. Nearly 19 per cent of applicants to child protection are men, compared to 15 last year.
In residential care, 33 per cent of applicants are men, while almost 20 per cent of those who have applied for social work are men.
Sveinung Skule
Fewer will become primary school teachers
For the fifth year in a row, the number of applicants to teacher education programs has fallen.
The number who have set teacher education as their first choice has decreased by 4.2 per cent from 2023.
The decline is particularly critical for primary school teacher training courses for grades 1–7. and 5–10 steps. There, the number of first-choice applicants is down by 11 and 12 per cent from last year.
– The teaching profession is a great profession and one of our most important. Therefore, the continued decline in the number of applicants is dramatic, says head of the Education Association, Geir Røsvoll, in a message.
He calls for political measures.
– Now there must be effective measures that can provide both better pay and working conditions for teachers, whether they work in schools or in kindergartens, Røsvoll believes.
