The semester fee

In Norway all students who wish to take exams in higher education at a public school, are required by law to pay a semester fee. It is not to be confused with a tuition fee, as public higher education is free, the money does not end up at the educational institution. Rather it goes to the the organisation in charge of maintaining student welfare, the local Studentsamskipnad. In Trondheim the Studentsamskipnad is called SiT. SiT has, through a co-opreation agreement with Velferdstinget, VT, given the responsibility of deciding both the size of the semester fee, and allocation of the funds, to VT.

The semester fee is now 420 Norwegian kroners per semester, and it’s the educational institutions who levy the fee, and sometimes they use the same bill to levy other expences, like a copying fee and so on, but only 420 kroners goes to SiT / VT.

What is the money spent on

All the activity which is funded by the fee is organised under SiT Welfare. In 2006 the money was allocated thus:

Please click the picture for a larger image

Health services

Socio-psychological services offer counseling and guidance, short term treatment and group terapy. They employ dedicated psychologists, psychiatric nurses and social workers. The service is not meant as a substitute to the public services, but they have a special competence on students and studentrelated issues, and short waiting lists. All students who contact them are guaranteed a preliminary counseltation within two weeks.

Health expences reimbursement scheme is a service where student with high expences due to illness or injury, which are not reimbursed by the public healt care system, may apply for reimbursement. The threshold for when you will be applicable are 2500 kroners, above this sum you will be reimbursed with 75 % of the cost, as long as you have receipts.

The health station can offer you free contraceptives, diagnostics and treatment for STDs and guidance on issues related to such matters. The service is free of charge and is open every thursday between 16.00 and 19.00 at Gløshaugen legesenter. There is no advance booking.

Day care centers

The day care centers run by SiT are partially funded by the semester fee, and partially funded by parent payment and goverment funding.The parents pay a lower fee than in communal day care centers. The evening and saturday services can also be used by parents which children not normally use the day care centers.

Running costs VT

VT - The welfare council, is the students own organisation responsible for the overseeing of SiT. Some of the semester fee goes to the running cost of the office, and the salaries of the full time staff.

Transfers from VT

VT tranfers yearly support to a number of student organisations, according to fixed agreements. These include the sports associations NTNUI and HiSSI, the Student skiing cottage, student media and the conductors of the students ensemblees at Samfundet. The students legal counseling service Jushjelpa Midt-Morge also gets a share of this money. Jushjelpa is run by students, and offer free legal counseling to among other students. Last but not least, the local student democracies at NTNU, HiST and DMMH get a sum to pay for the memberships in the national studentorganisations.

Student culture

The International students festival in Trondheim, ISFiT, among others recieve support from SiT through the semester fee. Also, the exercise-instructors at the sports halls run by SiT is funded by the semester fee, as well as the student priest service which get some funding because of their services in cases where students experience personal tragedies.

SiT Advice

SiT Advice offer different courses and group-classes, to help students cope with the situation they are in, e.g. economy-classes, "speak up"- training and support groups for students who experience personal losses, or other sorrows.

Students information center

This center is located at the old chemistry block, and can answer just about anything about SiT and other welfare-related issues.

Administration costs SiT Welfare

Some of the semester fee is used to cover the administrative cost of running SiT Welfare and the services. In this pie chart these cost are separated as opposed to being distributed among the different activities.

Have you got any questions, dont hesitate, contact us!