Study programmes and students
Throughout the year, BI has focused on creating an inclusive student environment and developing BI’s study programs portfolio.
Study programs and students
Student involvement and inclusive learning environment
All students at BI should have a good and inclusive learning environment where diversity is valued. We listen to our students and actively collaborate with them. BI is committed to involving students at all levels, from institutional decision-making forums to course and class-level dialogue meetings. In all courses at each place of study, lecturers and class representatives meet halfway through the semester to evaluate the teaching. In addition, there is a programme evaluation meeting every six months between the academic leader, students and study administration to discuss the overall quality and further development of the study programme.
Student involvement is a central element in the pedagogy for BI's Executive offer. In 2022, all Executive course descriptions were updated with a text about the student's duty and rights to involvement in courses and programmes.
Regular dialogue meetings are held between our student organisation BISO, and BI leaders, as well as through the Learning Environment Committee (LMU). LMU is the formal body that oversees BI's learning environments and has an advisory role on the BI board of trustees, with the same number of employee and student representatives
Academic and social integration and development
A good environment where students are looked after both academically and socially is important. In 2022, BI organised many activities to contribute to academic and social integration and development.
Creating a sense of belonging among the students was an important focus at the start of studies in the autumn of 2022. That is why BI launched the "We got your back" campaign across all campuses. To help new students get a safe start to their studies, with a sense of cohesion and belonging, all students were invited to a gathering where academic and social integration was the main objective. In addition, representatives from BISO and employees from BI were present to talk about the opportunities at BI and answer questions from the students.
BI created a registration form on the Studentportalen where they could get help to form study groups, as part of helping the students get in touch with each other and find someone to study with. More than 200 students made use of this offer in 2022.
Coffee Hour is organised twice a week on campus Oslo, and between 500 and 700 students show up each time. Similar events are held on all campuses. The purpose is to facilitate so that students can get to know each other while getting help from BI's employees to solve academic and social challenges.
Through an academic tutoring offer, BI's talented students contribute as learning assistants and tutor other students. In 2022, 100 learning assistants did approximately 400 assignment guides in 39 courses. In addition, they were available for drop-in tutoring throughout the academic year.
BI offers extra follow-up and facilitation for students with special needs. For example, in 2022, 15 students with various disabilities and learning difficulties received personal guidance in challenging courses throughout the academic year.
In a collaborative project between the student organisation BISO and BI, the BI Student app was further developed. By downloading the app, students can join BISO, pay the membership fee and gain access to various membership benefits.
The Student Experience department delivers services and offers to BI's full-time students that will strengthen the experienced and actual work-life relevance of the studies at BI. In 2022, the students were offered courses and skills training in relevant tools to facilitate the individual student's learning and strengthen their candidate profile. The students have also been offered different learning arenas and meeting points between business and students, including through BI's internship scheme and case solutions.
Project Library 2030
The Library 2030 project started in 2021 and has continued through 2022. This renovation and upgrading project on campus Oslo will create a new, exciting, future-oriented library. In 2022, the doors will open to newly renovated areas in the entrance area, the group room department and the area that houses BI's physical book collection. The library should surprise and inspire and provide a good framework for various learning activities.
The library will become a space and a service that can change in step with new ways of obtaining information, different teaching formats and changing learning activities.
Completion rate and dropouts
BI works systematically to reduce dropout rates, ensure study progression and increase completion rates among BI students. The completion rate among undergraduates last year increased from 49.5% in 2020 to 53% in 2021. At a master's level, the completion increased from 82% in 2021 to 84% in 2022. The completion rate for PhD after six years was lower in 2022 compared to 2021, 45.5% in 2022 from 50% in 2021. Here it is important to note that the data on which these figures are based is limited and that small changes have a major impact.
In 2022, 4210 degrees were completed (not standardised time, but all who graduated).
Over time, BI has prioritised efforts to reduce dropout rates among existing students. We do this by digitising dropout data and using this to take accurate and preventive measures against students who risk falling out of studies. Examples include increasing low activity in its learning, reminders around work requirement submissions, and students' options if they fail exams. Other measures include sending information to all our students via SMS and e-mail with practical information, invitations to activities and calling at-risk students.
Perhaps the most important challenge here is the dropout rate among undergraduate students in their first year. In 2022, we were satisfied that the dropout rate among this group has remained relatively low at 12%, an increase of 1% compared to the previous year. We emphasise that dropouts are defined in different ways. In this context, we are talking about students who drop out due to progression requirements set by BI (progression-related definition).
Admissions 2022
Full-time market
In 2022, the full-time division had a turnover of 5.2% more than in 2021. 336 more full-time students started a bachelor's degree in autumn 2022 compared to the previous year. In 2022, as in 2021, there was a substantial increase in applicants to the bachelor's programmes in Finance and Real Estate, Law and Economics. The number of students starting the bachelor's in Finance increased by 53%. On the Bachelor's in Real Estate, Law and Economics, enrollment increased by 89%.
Admission to the first year of study in the master's programmes fell from 832 students in autumn 2021 to 734 students in autumn 2022, corresponding to a decrease of 13.4%. Part of this is that more people chose to study abroad after two years of restrictions and unpredictability due to the pandemic. A strong labour market also contributed to more people starting to work instead of studying. For our master's programmes, it is pleasing to see an increase in the master's programme management and organisational psychology. 24% more students started here in the autumn of 2022 compared to 2021. 2022 was also the first year students could take this degree at campus Bergen.
Executive education
BI had a high student volume in executive education in 2022, despite some decline from the record intake in 2021. The Executive division, including Corporate, saw a decreased turnover of 5.3%. The decrease is attributed to fewer funds allocated through the Directorate for Higher Education and Skills, the lapse of pandemic measures, somewhat lower demand for online courses without physical meetings and a decrease in the number of students for the BI-Fudan MBA programme at Fudan University, School of Management in Shanghai. On the other hand, the turnover for Corporate, which targets the business market, had a positive growth of 16.1%.
BI's international programs, the EMBA programme and the Executive Master of Management in Energy (EMME), were popular in 2022. COVID-19 helped make recruiting international students for the EMBA programme difficult, so most participants were residents in Norway. EMME, on the other hand, had participants from 19 nationalities. In 2022, a new programme format was launched for EMME, where all courses are 50% online. In addition, the programme is designed so that students who do not have the opportunity to travel can participate digitally in the physical gatherings on campus. The opportunity to participate digitally made it easier for the students to commit to the course of study after there was still significant uncertainty related to travel restrictions and other uncertainties. The course thus became more attractive to international students.
Innovation in our study programme portfolio
BI's strategy 2025 states that BI will be a leading international European business school. Therefore, we must constantly develop our study programs to deliver excellent education that prepares our students for an international, digital and sustainable future. At the same time, the authorities have demands and expectations for the education sector. In recent years there has been a particular focus on increased mobility across national borders, the relevance of working life in the course of education and that you should have the opportunity to "learn all your life”.
An important project in this work is further developing BI's bachelor's model. Work on the revised bachelor's model has been an important priority through 2022 and will be launched in the autumn of 2023. The model provides for increased internationalisation through exchange and more relevance to working life through, for example, corporate internships.
Today's students have high demands and expectations regarding quality in teaching, flexibility and digitalisation. Through the pandemic, students also got used to the increased use of digitalisation, shaping the expectations for how BI will deliver education in the years ahead. This is addressed in the Future Programme Delivery project, where BI considers how higher teaching quality and digital solutions development should lead to a better learning experience. The project will also develop the digital and physical learning environments at BI.
For Executive programmes, we created "stackable programmes" in 2022, which means experimenting with dividing courses into several modules with fewer credits. One of the new additions last year was that all participants receive a digital certificate of participation which is issued using blockchain technology and can be shared with potential employers or on social media.
From now on, we expect that more and more Executive students will want short and intensive courses that can be combined with other commitments. Our so-called Short Learning Modules are just one of several possible course concepts now brought together under the product name Executive Short Courses. Several courses in this category, both with and without credits, will be launched in the future.
BI has piloted a new study offer in responsible management linked to data and artificial intelligence and a new digital short course series in sustainability specifically aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises. Both offers resulted from development projects funded by the Directorate for Higher Education and Skills. These two educational offers and a third offer in digital compliance and law will be launched in the market in 2023.
Full-time studies commencing in 2022:
- Bachelor of Digital Business
- Master of Science in Digital Communication Management
- Master of Science in Data Science for Business
- In addition, the Master of Science in Leadership and Organisational Psychology was launched at campus Bergen
Executive courses and programmes commencing in 2022:
- Storytelling as a strategic tool (Executive Master programme)
- Multicultural leadership (Executive Master programme)
- Sustainability in practice (Executive Master programme)
- Customer Experience Management (Executive Master programme)
- SLM: Management under constant change
- Project management (online course)
- Marketing Communication (online course)
- Distribution (online course)
- Digital Innovation (Bachelor of Management course)
Scholarships
In 2022, 91 students at BI received scholarships, 26 bachelor's students and 65 master's students. This increase from 67 scholarships the previous year aligns with the school's aim of increased internationalisation and diversity. 56% of those who received scholarships were women, and 44% were men. The recipients represented 30 nationalities from 5 continents.
Last year, the Women in Finance and Tech grant was awarded for the first time. The scholarship aims to attract top female students to our finance, data science and business analysis programmes.
BI is grateful for the support from the A. Wilhelmsen Foundation for their sponsorship of scholarships for two master's students annually.
Internships
BI's credit-bearing internship offer is an attractive option for students at both bachelor's and master's levels. The number of students who choose this as part of their degree is relatively similar when comparing 2022 and 2021. Still, if you compare the development over several years, the number of students who choose internships has increased in recent years. This results from increased attention to the scheme, active sales to companies and changes in the course delivery, which opens up a larger intake on master's level.
In 2022, 307 bachelor's students and 297 master's students had an internship as part of the timetable, compared to 336 and 282, respectively, in 2021. 10 bachelor's students had an internship in their own company, compared to 20 in 2021. In the revised bachelor's model, which will be launched in 2023, more bachelor's students can choose an internship in their course of study.
Financial aid for Ukrainian students
After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, BI launched an aid program for Ukrainian students. Since August 2022, this program has supported ten bachelor's and master's students with funds to cover tuition fees at BI and funds for living expenses.
Number of students at BI in 2022*
Full-time studies
2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |
Bachelor | 11859 | 11896 | 11545 |
Master of Science | 1587 | 1633 | 1543 |
PhD studies | 71 | 68 | 62 |
Executive studies
2022 | 2021 | 2020 | |||||||
Vår | Høst | Totalt | Vår | Høst | Totalt | Vår | Høst | Totalt | |
Online studies | 1749 | 1598 | 2749 | 1969 | 1894 | 3007 | 1544 | 1971 | 2796 |
Executive Bachelor | 1307 | 1158 | 2140 | 1492 | 1615 | 2695 | 1470 | 1449 | 2441 |
Executive Master | 1800 | 1560 | 2535 | 1759 | 1668 | 2568 | 1809 | 1670 | 2598 |
Executive MBA | 71 | 71 | 69 | 65 | 35 | 65 | 68 | 29 | 68 |
Executive Master of Management in Energy | 52 | 49 | 51 | 50 | 17 | 17 | 53 | 31 | 53 |
BI-Fudan MBA | 194 | 199 | 243 | 338 | 355 | 355 | 328 | 338 | 383 |
Short Learning Modules | - | - | 1496 | - | - | - | - | - | 1712 |
Corporate | 1289 | 1278 | 2350 | - | - | - | - | - | 1780 |
Total number of students | 20520 |
*All figures are taken from BI's Discover dashboard, Student Insight. The figures only include active students, i.e. people with an active examination or course registration. BI's full-time studies are only admitted in the autumn, while several continuing and further education programmes and courses start and end in spring and autumn. Therefore, the latter table shows the number of students in the different programme areas as of spring, autumn and in total. A student can follow courses and programmes in several programme areas within a year and, in these cases, will be counted in both places. The total number of students shows the unique students who completed a course or programme at BI that year. This number does not include PhD students, as these are considered employees by BI.