Across the entire country, more than 142,416 students have applied for higher education by the April 15 deadline this year. This represents an increase of 6,436 applicants compared to last year. It also means that every sixth applicant for higher education has NTNU as their first priority.
Marit Reitan, the Pro-Rector for Education at NTNU, expresses optimism about the overall quality of applicants. She emphasizes that there continues to be strong interest in NTNU’s technology-related programs, including the engineering programs.
Reitan explains that some programs have followed the national trend of decreasing applicant numbers.
Increase in technology
“The technology fields remain robust, with applications for technology-related studies increasing by over 11 percent from 2023 to 2024. This reaffirms NTNU’s position as a university with a strong technological focus,” Reitan says.
In addition to positive applicant numbers for various technology programs in Trondheim, there has also been an increase in applicants for engineering studies in Ålesund and Gjøvik. Reitan also highligts some positive developments within teacher education programs at NTNU.
Variations in teaching-programs
“Despite a nationwide decline in recruitment for these programs, NTNU has seen an increase in applicants for primary school teacher education (grades 1-7) and vocational teacher programs. For some of the teacher education programs the situation still gives cause for concern,” Reitan says.
Regarding health-related programs, after a drop in applicant numbers across the country in 2022, the situation has now stabilized. Reitan believes that NTNU will be able to fill its places with qualified applicants for the upcoming fall semester.
Medical education
“The medical education program at the Gjøvik campus has received strong applicant numbers, and the overall picture looks promising. But there is still a desire for more applicants specifically for nursing at some of our campuses,” she says.
In the fields of social sciences and humanities, Reitan expresses satisfaction with NTNU’s applicant numbers.
However, language programs have experienced a significant decline in the number of applicants.
“Overall, NTNU still remains a popular choice for higher education, particularly in technology-related fields, despite the minor fluctuations in applicant numbers,” Reitan concludes.