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– I know some international students wonder whether or not to book a ticket to Norway during Christmas due to the rules and cost of quarantined hotels. They should avoid having that uncertainty. I hope that Norwegian universities and colleges will cover this cost for their international students, Research and Higher Education Minister Henrik Asheim said on Wednesday.
The price of quarantined hotels is NOK 500 per night, and with the requirement to stay there for ten days, this will cost universities and colleges NOK 5,000 per student.
– The vast majority of foreign students coming to Norway to study in spring will not meet the conditions for exemption from quarantined hotel stays, writes the Ministry of Education (KD).
The scheme applies to both international students obtaining full degrees in Norway and international exchange students.
Quarantined hotel
- Everyone is in quarantine when they come from red countries, be it in a quarantine hotel or in a suitable place.
- During a press conference on Wednesday, the government announced that they are making some exceptions to the requirement to be in quarantined hotels.
- The main rule is that you should continue with quarantined hotels, but there is no longer a requirement that you own the house. Documented leases are also approved.
- It will also be possible to get approval for suitable quarantine places, for example in private rooms in someone else’s house, but then you need to have your own room, your own bathroom and access to food. It should also be possible to avoid meeting others.
Must come out with five million
At the NTNU campuses in Trondheim, Gjøvik and Ålesund, they expect to receive approximately 300 master’s students and 600 exchange students next semester. This means that the university now has to shell out around NOK 5 million for these students to visit the quarantine hotel before starting their studies.
– We take note of KD’s expectations and today we have decided to cover quarantined hotels, NTNU Vice Chancellor Marit Reitan tells Dagbladet.
– We had already decided to cover quarantined hotels for master’s students. Now exchange students can cover this expense too. This will have no consequences for other students.
The vice chancellor says that NTNU is very satisfied with quarantined hotels as a solution. She believes this ensures that foreign students are well cared for upon arrival in Norway.
– The quarantine hotel plan offers a good guarantee that there will be no infection in our study cities as a result of the arrival of foreign students, says Reitan.
Oslo universities pay
OsloMet, the metropolitan universities of Oslo and Akershus, say they will also cover quarantine hotels for their 160 new foreign students, who come to Norway to study over Christmas.
– If everyone comes, the costs of the quarantined hotels will amount to NOK 800,000. From experience, however, there are some who for various reasons end up without traveling, so we don’t know the final number until after the New Year, says OsloMet Vice Chancellor Nina Waaler.
The University of Oslo (UiO) will also pay for its students up to 5,000 crowns. They do not fear a possible contagion pressure from the outside.
– Since the purpose of the quarantine stay is to prevent the spread of infection, we are not particularly concerned. Furthermore, we are concerned about following the infection control rules of the government and the municipality of Oslo in general and this also includes this group, says UiO.
The university expects around 500 foreign students and says they will reallocate resources in the budget to cover this.
Not worried
The University of Bergen also hopes to receive a large number of foreign students in the new year and will cover stays at karanene hotels for everyone.
– We expect up to 400 new international students to arrive at UiB in the spring of 2021. We cover Korona hotel accommodation at NOK 500 per night. In addition, the subsistence allowance of NOK 295 per day is covered, says Vice Chancellor for Education Oddrun Samdal at UiB to Dagbladet.
In total, the UiB expects 400 foreign students to arrive.
– The infection pressure from foreign students has been very low and therefore it is not a cause for concern that new international students will arrive next semester, as long as we have good infection control routines to prevent the spread of infection, and we have, says Samdal.
Dagbladet was unable to get a comment from the universities of Tromsø and Stavanger.
