Educational supervisor in kindergarten or Head of kindergarten
If you have a foreign education or professional qualification and wish to practice your profession in Norway, you generally need approval or authorisation. You will find information about documentation requirements, the application process and regulations here. The competent authority will assess whether you meet the requirements to practice the profession and use the professional title in Norway. If you intend to establish in Norway and work permanently in your chosen profession, the rules below apply to you. However, if you wish to work in Norway for shorter periods of time within your chosen profession, the rules for temporary provision of services apply.
Find the form at hkdir.noAbout this form
Applications can only be submitted by the professional/individual.
Establishment:
If you wish to establish yourself or work permanently in Norway within your profession, you must apply for recognition from the competent authority before you can practice this profession in Norway.
Temporary provision of services:
You do not need to apply for recognition in order to work temporarily in this profession in Norway.
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A valid identity document that contains your full name, date of birth and photography.
- If applicable, proof of name change, such as marriage certificate
- Your education diploma, transcript and diploma supplement in the original language
- Relevant work references in the original language.
- Translations of all documents not issued in Norwegian or a Nordic language
- Please note that the Directorate for Higher Education and Skills sometimes needs to request additional documentation.
Applicants need to document at least one year of working experience in a Norwegian kindergarten to be recognised as head of kindergarten and an educational supervisor in kindergarten. If you are a kindergarten teacher from a Nordic country, you are exempted from this requirement.
Comments
Work references
You should document all relevant work experience with certificates of employment. This could have a positive effect on the outcome of your application.
Translation
Documents issued in a different language than English or one of the Nordic languages must be translated into Norwegian or English. The Directorate for Higher Education and Skills requires that you send in your documents in both the original language and translations of the documents into Norwegian or English.
The following documents are accepted:
- Translations done by a government authorised translator. You can find authorised translators in Norway through Translatørportalen, website of the Association of Government Authorised Translators in Norway.
- Translations done by other professional translators in Norway or abroad, Tolketjenesten, embassies, etc. You can find translators operating in Norway in The Brønnøysund Register Service.
- Documents issued in English by the university at which you studied or received your degree.
- Are your documents issued in Icelandic and Finnish? If the answer is yes, we recommend that you translate them into Norwegian, Swedish, Danish or English. This will ensure faster processing of your application.
- The translated documents are not required to have an apostille.
- The name of the translator must be apparent on the translation. If the submitted translations are insufficient, new translations may be requested.
Translations done by your self or other private persons will not be accepted.
Language requirements:
Norwegian language skills are not a requirement for recognition of the professional qualification. It is expected that the professional has the language skills in Norwegian necessary to practice the regulated profession in Norway. Your employer will consider your skills in Norwegian before you are employed.
Criteria/conditions for recognition:
To get a recognition as head of kindergarten and educational supervisor, you need a professional qualification from abroad that is equivalent to the education requirements for both professions, and/or foreign education that is comparable to the Norwegian kindergarten teacher’s education.
We require that the educational program is within kindergarten/pre-school pedagogy and management in kindergarten, and that the education contains:
- equivalent to 30 Norwegian credits in pedagogy towards children in kindergarten (age 0-6), included supervised teaching practice in kindergarten or pre-school
- social studies, general religious and ethical education
- aesthetic, practical, and social training such as theatre and drama, physical training, and music.
- science subjects such as natural science/environmental studies and mathematics
The requirements on level and scope depends on if you have the right to work in the profession in Norway, following EU’s Professional Qualifications Directive. Normally, this applies for people with teaching qualifications from an EEA-country or Switzerland.
In addition, there is also a requirement on knowledge of Norwegian societal conditions and kindergarten conditions.
Case processing deadlines:
The competent authority must acknowledge receipt of your application within one month of receiving it and inform you of any missing or incomplete documentation.
Following the submission of a complete application, the competent authority should complete processing your application within three months.
Fees:
The Directorate for Higher Education and Skills does not charge a fee for processing applications for recognition.
Right of appeal:
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the decision, you may appeal in writing, pursuant to Chapter VI of the Public Administration Act. If your application is processed in accordance with the Professional Qualifications Act, the right of appeal also applies if the competent authority has exceeded the case processing deadlines (see Case processing deadlines above).
Competent authority
The Directorate for Higher Education and Skills
P.O. Box 1093
5809 Bergen
E-mail: enic-naric@hkdir.no
Phone: (+47) 21 49 56 29
