Regulations for student exchange

§1 Scope of regulations

The regulations for student exchange are applied when selecting students at Western Norway University of Applied Sciences (HVL) for study abroad. By study abroad it is meant:

  • Student exchange to a foreign country within a field of study that will be integrated as a part of the student’s education at HVL. The exchange must be of a length between 3 and 12 months and take place within the framework of a bilateral exchange agreement. Academic exchange may be combined with practical placements.
  • Practical placement exchange to a foreign country where the placement will be integrated as part of the students’s education at HVL. Practical placements must last for at least 2 months and take place within the framework of a bilateral agreement with an organisation or a university.

The regulation is effective at all levels of education offered at HVL, and for all fields of study. Written agreements and the regulations of student mobility programmes (like Erasmus+) may further regulate the process of student exchange.

§2 Conditions to qualify for student exchange

  • The student must, at the time of application, have produced a minimum of 60 ECTS at the bachelor’s level or higher.
  • If the study programme has specified requirements that students need to meet in order to advance to the next term or year, the student must have fulfilled these requirements.
  • In order to apply for student exchange, the student must be enrolled in a study programme leading to a degree at HVL. The enrolment must be valid for the entire exchange period.
  • The student must apply for student exchange through SøknadsWeb within the specified deadlines.
  • The student exchange must be academically pre-approved as a part of the student’s academic plan at HVL.

Applicants can also be subject to a general evaluation of their eligibility.

HVL reserves the right to refuse applications that do not fulfil the conditions in §2. In such cases, the student has the right to hand in a formal complaint.

§3 Ranking of qualified applicants

In cases where there is a limited number of available exchanges, scholarships or other economical incentives from HVL and / or the host institution, competing applicants will be ranked before allocation.

When ranking, emphasis shall be on:

  • Applicants that have not previously completed a student exchange abroad will be prioritised.
  • Grade averages at HVL.
  • If two or more applicants are regarded as equal in all relevant and measurable ways, the allocation will be decided by drawing lots.

Students that do not receive an official offer of student exchange because there are more applicants than available spaces can be given the choice between being placed on a waiting list for the desired exchange institution or finding a new exchange institution. Priority may be given to students from specified study programmes for exchanges, and scholarships and other economic incentives from HVL and / or the partner institution.