📘 Norwegian for students: discounted courses, tandems and A1→A2/B1 plan

🎯 Set a goal: what level do you need for your role

🔹 Customer-facing vs. internal

If you work at a campus service desk or sports centre, aim for spoken A2→B1 (greetings, simple instructions, safety). For assistant/lab roles and internships, reading at A2 and speaking at A2 will suffice: agreeing on a time, asking for materials, clarifying a task.

🔹 Reading documents and chats

Even English-speaking teams often keep everyday announcements, library rules and campus messages in bokmål. Practise ‘passive comprehension’: short letters, announcements, lab checklists.

📚 Learning formats for busy people

🏫 University courses (if you are enrolled)

• UiO (NORINT): a range of courses for international students, levels from beginner; schedule and selection on the faculty website.
• OsloMet: Norwegian Language for Foreign Students – Intermediate course for its students at no extra cost; places are allocated on a competitive basis.
• NTNU: ‘Norsk for utlendinger’ (levels from ‘beginner’ to “advanced”) — aimed at students/employees of the ‘technology capital’. Plus an open online course Norwegian on the Web (NoW) — convenient as a base for A1→A2.

Life hack: if there are no places on campus, use NoW as a ‘skeleton’ and add a language café/tandem for oral practice.

🏛️ Municipal courses for adults (voksenopplæring)

In the capital region — Oslo VO (for immigrant residents, conditions and benefits depend on status). Bergen and Trondheim have their own centres. Check the admission criteria and fees before registering: exchange students are often not eligible for benefits.

☕ Conversation clubs and language cafés (free)

• Oslo (Deichman): regular Language Cafés in city libraries.
• Bergen Offentlige Bibliotek: drop-in format, mixed levels.
• Trondheim Public Library: Language Café in the evenings, convenient after classes/work.

Plus: student welfare funds and unions sometimes hold open events (e.g., SiO in Oslo) — keep an eye on the calendar.

🕒 Five-minute language breaks during the workday

📝 ‘Word of the day,’ flashcards, dictations

Pick 10–15 words related to your field (see the ‘working vocabulary’ section), write them on cards, and review them in the morning or on the metro. For quick reference and examples, use LEXIN (bilingual dictionaries for learners) and the visual dictionary Bildetema — useful for terms with pictures.

🎧 Podcasts and reading at your own pace

Light news Klar Tale: short texts/audio to practise recognising common structures.

📖 Personal glossary for your role

💻 IT / engineering / campus services

Collect 50–80 ‘working’ words: access/card, schedule, queue, safety, equipment, report, shift, schedule. Add template phrases: ‘Kan jeg hjelpe deg?’, ‘Har du studentkort?’, ‘Vi stenger klokka…’.

📊 How to keep a glossary

• Column NO → EN → example.
• Mark ‘trigger situations’: cash desk, reception, equipment distribution, safety briefing.
• Once a week — 60-second mini-pitch: ‘what I did during my shift’ (in NO).

📅 12-week plan: A1→A2 / A2→B1

Weeks 1–2. Sound and rhythm basics (NoW/campus course), 20 key ‘front office’ phrases.

Weeks 3–4. Personal details/schedule/time; 2 language cafés per week.

Weeks 5–6. Mini work dialogues (role-play: ‘visitor — employee’).

Weeks 7–8. Written mini-tasks: note to a colleague, short shift log.

Weeks 9–10. Role debrief: 1-minute oral reports; expand the glossary to 80 words.

Weeks 11–12. ‘Dry’ test: 10-minute dialogue + 1 paragraph in writing (self-check); plan for the next level.

Metrics: 1500–2000 actively recognisable words, 2× language café/week, 1 short voice recording/week (self-assessment).

💼 Interviews and onboarding in EN: how not to lose progress in NO

Ask during the interview: is it possible to hold meetings/documents in EN, and conduct meetings with the ‘front line’ (cashier/reception) in NO according to a script; are there any internal courses; is it permissible to switch to EN for complex cases.

After the offer: agree on ‘anchors’ — 1–2 daily tasks in NO (chats/mini-briefings), 1 verbal update/week.

🤝 Tandems and clubs: how to speak more

• On the library/student fund page, look for Language Café / Språkkafé and Language Buddy/Exchange. The basis is 30 minutes NO + 30 minutes EN, once a week.
• Prepare 3 topics in advance: ‘my studies’, ‘my part-time job’, ‘my neighbourhood/campus’.

✅ Mini checklist ‘I study even when I'm busy’

• 2× language café per week (library/campus).
• Online database: NoW or campus course (UiO/OsloMet/NTNU).
• LEXIN/Bildetema — for quick checks and pictures.
• Role glossary + 1 voice recording per week.
• Memorise ‘three scenarios’: ask, explain, apologise/rephrase.