The Norwegian University of Life Sciences (UMB)

Exchange to Ås, Norway, Fall 2005Sarah MorrisonGlobal Resource Systems presentation, March 2006

My perspectiveMy perspective• Five months outside of Oslo, Norway• Economics student, focused on academics, in a program

with mostly non-Norwegian students• Connections to home; serious phone bill• My presentation will focus on finances and academics

Affording NorwayAffording Norway• Norwegian Kroner: one of

the most overvalued currencies in the world

• Norway: commonly ranked the most expensive country in the world to live.

• Average salary: $34,000 GBP: over $70,000 Canadian.

• Minimum wage: 100 NOK/hour (about $20)

Average CostsAverage CostsTrain from Ås to Oslo: $10

Main course in restaurant: $30

Bank Fees: $10-20

McDonald’s Happy Meal $8

Drink at a bar: $8-11

Bottle of wine: $14-20

Latte: $7

FoodFood…Or, how living in

Norway taught me how to cook…

• Cost of food• Eating out vs. Eating

in• Local Specialities:

lutefisk and waffles

Academics at UMBAcademics at UMB• Small, rural campus• Smaller classes, more interaction with professors• Marking based on group projects, midterms, oral exams, final exams• Courses offered in English and Norwegian• Two-year Master’s programs in English in

Agroecology, Aquaculture, Development & Resource Economics, Development Studies, Feed Manufacturing, Management of Natural Resources and Sustainable Agriculture, & Tropical Ecology and the Management of Natural Resources.

Development & Resource Development & Resource EconomicsEconomics

• Two-year Master’s program

• Small and very diverse class

• 6-week field study for thesis research

• Strong emphasis on research in Africa

Development & Resource EconomicsDevelopment & Resource Economics

First-year:Required economics coursesSummer:Field SchoolSecond-year:Elective courses and thesis

(second term)

Classes I took:• Intermediate Microeconomics• Econometrics• International Economics

Keeping my nose to the grindstone….Keeping my nose to the grindstone….

The BadThe Bad• The bureaucracy• The isolation (UMB

and Norway)• The dark, dark

winters!• The cost!

The GoodThe Good• Norwegians!• Ugandans! And

everyone in the DRE program!

• Academic environment

• Library • Proximity to cows,

nature• Jam.

In Conclusion…•I enjoyed Norway.

•The Norwegians I met were very friendly.

•It is expensive.

•I wish I’d spent less time

on school and more time

travelling.

•I am glad I learned to

cook.