13 - Norway - Student assessment
Student evaluation in higher education is usually based on examinations at the end of courses.
Certificates, issued at the end of a professional education or a degree course, contain all the marks
given in the different courses a student has taken. Certificates document the specialisation, depth of
study and interdisciplinary aspects of courses.
For graduate (master) students and doctoral students there is a system of individual supervision of the
thesis, which also functions as an evaluation of the student's work and progression.
Marks are given on the basis of written and/or oral examinations. Universities and university colleges
generally hold individual written examinations. Group examinations and home-based examinations are
other forms of written examinations used in professional studies at universities and university colleges.
In addition, a term paper may constitute part of an examination. Oral examinations are normally
individual, but can in certain cases be conducted in groups. Universities and university colleges are
largely free to determine what types of examination best suit the course objectives, content and
structure. With the Quality Reform, portfolio assessment was introduced.
Use of external examiners to set the marks (alone or in cooperation with the course teacher) has been
obligatory for all written and oral examinations. External examiners are recruited from other institutions
and/or professional work. With the Quality Reform, external examiners are no longer obligatory for
examinations on bachelor level. Besides, the increasing use of formative examinations instead of
summative examinations has left the course teacher(s) more in charge of assessing the students.
The Quality Reform in higher education introduced from 2003/04 a new, uniform grading scale
conforming to the ECTS rating scale. The grading scale is A-E for pass and F for failed.
Eurydice - the information network on education in Europe
Date: 2009
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