The University of Bergen (Norwegian: Universitetet i Bergen) is a publicresearch university located in Bergen, Norway. As of 2021, the university has over 4,000 employees and 19,000 students.[1] It was established by an act of parliament in 1946 based on several older scientific institutions dating back to 1825, and is Norway's second-oldest university. It is considered one of Norway's four "established universities" and has faculties and programmes in all the fields of a classical university including fields that are traditionally reserved by law for established universities, including medicine and law.[2] It is also one of Norway's leading universities in many natural sciences, including marine research and climate research. It is consistently ranked in the top one percentage among the world's universities, usually among the best 200 universities[3] and among the best 10 or 50 universities worldwide in some fields such as earth and marine sciences.[4][5] It is part of the Coimbra Group and of the U5 group of Norway's oldest and highest ranked universities.
Bergen would eventually become a city with several arenas for higher education and research with the Geophysical Institute being established in 1917, the Chr. Michelsen Institute in 1930, the Norwegian School of Economics in 1936 and finally the university in 1946.[7] The University of Bergen was established by an act of parliament in 1946, as Norway's second university.
The University of Bergen has an elected rector. The current rector is Margareth Hagen, who was elected for a four-year term starting August 1, 2021 after serving as interim rector.[8]
The university has 7 faculties, the newest being The Faculty of Fine Art, Music and Design which was established in 2017.[9] The University of Bergen Library and the University Museum of Bergen have a faculty-like status. Most of the university campus and administration is located in the Nygård neighbourhood, which has resulted in the campus area often being referred to as Nygårdshøyden or simply Høyden, meaning "the hill".
Within these areas, UiB will contribute to society with research, education, interdisciplinary cooperation and dissemination of knowledge and innovation.
The University of Bergen, in common with other Norwegian universities, does not charge tuition fees,[18] except for students coming from outside the EU.[19] Students are however required to be members of the student welfare organisation. As of 2022, this fee (semesteravgift) is NOK 590 (approx. US$70) per semester, and provides access to several services, including cultural activities, childcare, refunds for many medical expenses and subsidized accommodation. 40kr of the fee is a donation to the SAIH, a student charity, but this is optional. However most of the students give the donation.
The Faculty of Fine Art, Music and Design was established on 1 January 2017. It is composed of the earlier Grieg Academy – Department of Music, and the Bergen Academy of Art and Design.
Department of Linguistics, Literary and Aesthetical studies (LLE) (Nordic, Comparative Literature, Theatre Studies, Digital Culture, Linguistics, Art History, Classics)
The Faculty of Law at the University of Bergen, seen from Magnus Lagabøtes plass.
The Faculty of Law was established as a separate faculty in 1980, with legal studies and research having been conducted at the university since 1969. The faculty is one of three Norwegian institutions which offer legal studies, the other two being the law faculties at the University of Oslo and the University of Tromsø. The faculty offers a five-year programme leading to a Master's degree in law and a three-year PhD programme, and currently has approximately 1900 students.
The University of Bergen is the only institution in the Nordic countries where the study of psychology has been assigned to its own faculty. Established in 1980, it educates psychologists and is responsible[citation needed] for the university's pedagogic education.
Department of Psychosocial Science
Department of Health Promotion and Development
Department of Education
Department of Clinical Psychology
Department of Biological and Medical Psychology
Centre for Crisis Psychology
SLATE: Centre for the Science of Learning & Technology
Norwegian Competence Center for Gambling and Gaming Research
See also: University colleges with accredited study programs There are also several institutions with approved studies at college level, but without institutional accreditation as a college. These still have the right to call themselves a university college.
