← Back to the rankingTrondheim International School
Trondheim, Norway · est. 2004 · Private
Illustration · Trondheim
Trondheim International School (THIS) is a private non-profit school in Trondheim operating under the Private School Act with public funding: the state covers 85% of costs and parents' fees the rest. A group of enthusiasts founded the school on 28 April 2004 with 34 students and 8 staff; in 2008 it became an IB school. Today it has about 230 students of 45 nationalities and 40 staff. IB programmes: the Primary Years Programme in grades 1-6 (ages 6-12) and the Middle Years Programme in grades 7-10 (ages 13-16); after grade 10 graduates receive an IB certificate and the Norwegian certificate of general education. The primary language of instruction is English; all students learn Norwegian in every grade, and French or Spanish is added as an elective from grade 8. The school is introducing multilingual co-teaching: in primary 4-5 hours of mathematics and units of inquiry are taught by two teachers in Norwegian and English, and in middle school humanities and mathematics are taught this way, because most graduates go on to Norwegian upper secondary schools. The school is by Kristiansten Fortress, 1.5 km from the city centre.
Key facts
Languages of instruction
English
Languages taught
Norwegian, French, Spanish
Class size
For first grade the school admits at least 15 students; it does not state exact class sizes.
About the fees Tuition: grades 1-6 34650 NOK per year (3150 NOK per month), grades 7-10 37950 NOK per year (3450 NOK per month), 11 instalments, no payment in July. The fee schedule does not state a year: the school calls it its current fees. The sibling discount is 10% for the second child and 25% for the third. Fees cover up to 15% of the school's costs; the state funds the rest.
Admissions The school welcomes children from Norway and abroad; it is open to all children who meet the criteria for attending Norwegian public schools and has space for 230 students in 10 grades. Grade is set by year of birth. The main admission deadline is 1 February for the school year starting in August; if oversubscribed, priorities apply in strict order: children of staff, first grade applicants until the class reaches 15 students, siblings of students, children who attended an IB school, children who attended an English-language school or preschool for more than 6 months, English-speaking children, children with English as an additional language, those who attended an English-language school for less than 6 months, those who regularly use English socially, international children, children with a non-Norwegian passport, with at least one native language other than Norwegian, with at least one non-Norwegian parent, then a lottery. After the main admission there is a waiting list, and students are admitted during the year if places are available; an application is valid for one school year. Families can book an individual meeting or a few trial days. The place is decided by the Head of School and can be appealed to the County Governor in Trøndelag. To enrol, a contract is signed and a deposit of half a month's fee is paid. Two months' notice is required for withdrawal.
Stages and year groups Grades 1-10. Norwegian grunnskole (grades 1-10) within IB programmes: the Primary Years Programme (grades 1-6, ages 6-12) with the Exhibition and the Middle Years Programme (grades 7-10, ages 13-16) with the Personal Project. After grade 10 graduates receive an IB certificate and the Norwegian certificate of general education and go on to Norwegian upper secondary schools, including the IB Diploma Programme at Trondheim Katedralskole, where students from this school can complete the programme in two years without the transition year. In primary reports are shared after each unit, in middle school grades and comments at the end of each semester.
Address Festningsgata 2, 7014 Trondheim
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · PYP, MYP · authorised programmeThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Primary Years and Middle Years programmes.
school is in an official registryconfirmed by a school document, by membership or by taking part in a networkclaimed by the school, no confirmation, not counted in the scoreGuide to all organisations → What stands behind each entry
IBInternational Baccalaureate
A Swiss non-profit, working since 1968. Its programmes are among the most widely recognised school programmes in the world. Authorisation is granted stage by stage, so a school with the final stage does not necessarily run the younger ones; which stages this school holds is set out in the line below.
What the badge means for this school. The school is allowed to run this programme and to award its certificate. This is a confirmation of the programme, not a judgement on the school as a whole. The entry stands in the organisation's public register - anyone can check it. At this school: PYP (ages 3-12), MYP (ages 11-16). PYP is the primary stage, ages 3 to 12. It is not a set of subjects but a frame for the whole school: learning is built around lines of inquiry, and there are no exams at the end. MYP is the middle stage, ages 11 to 16. There are no exams here either; at the end an optional electronic assessment of pupils' work is possible.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →Exams and destinations from the school's official website
The school publishes nothing about where its leavers go: no share going on to university, no exam results, no list of universities.
Facilities from the school's official website
·Swimming poolnot stated on the website
·Sports hallnot stated on the website
·Laboratoriesnot stated on the website
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
·Cateringnot stated on the website
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Playground
Campus: The school is about 1.5 km from the centre of Trondheim, next to Kristiansten Fortress and its park, where PE and outdoor activities take place; it overlooks the fjord and Nidaros Cathedral, and NTNU is nearby. There is a school library with a librarian and books in Norwegian, English and other languages. All students receive the necessary stationery and IT equipment free of charge. Children bring packed lunch; milk can be ordered through the Tine scheme. The before and after school programme (SFO) for grades 1-4 runs from 07:30 to 08:30 and after school until 16:30, serves a meal every day and is open in the autumn, winter and summer holidays except July. It is a day school with no boarding.
Clubs and activities: Basketball club · Football club · Cooking · Knitting · Digital art · Holiday clubs · Student Council
Teaching staff from the school's official website
·Teachers listed by namenot published
✓Teacher qualifications
·Number of teachersthe school does not say
✓Students per teacher or class sizein the key facts above
What the listings show: The school describes a highly educated staff with extensive experience in the IB; all teachers regularly take IB professional development and other training.
The staff page names 13 primary teachers and 13 middle school teachers, with their subjects and countries of origin, plus leadership, a learning support coordinator, a social pedagogue, assistants and the SFO team. The school has about 40 staff from many countries. Former students on the website mention small classes.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
·Security staffnot stated on the website
·Access controlnot stated on the website
✓Nurse or medical room
✓Counsellor
✓Child protection policy
✓Staff training
✓Anti-bullying policy
The school has a child protection policy, a school environment plan, a code of conduct and an absence plan. All staff and volunteers provide a police certificate (politiattest), and child protection training is provided regularly. A Trondheim municipality school health team is attached to the school: a nurse (60% position, with a base near reception), a doctor, an occupational therapist, a physiotherapist and a psychologist; health checks and vaccinations are given by grade. The municipality's multidisciplinary School Support Service (Skolelag) with PPT and family services offers early help. Complaints go to the teacher, coordinator, Head of School, then the board or the County Governor.
Reviews
No reviews yet. The community rating counts towards the score once a school has five verified reviews - until then we do not show a zero, so as not to mislead.
Criteria breakdown criterion weight in brackets
Academics and programmes (16%)72 Community rating (16%)no dataparent reviews are needed: the criterion switches on at the fifth verified one Exams and destinations (12%) scored on disclosed data55 Safety and wellbeing (12%) scored on disclosed data80 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data65 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data78 Value for money (6%) scored at the median95 "Scored on disclosed data" stands where we count only what the school has written about itself on its own site: exams and destinations, safety and wellbeing, teaching staff, facilities, clubs and activities. A low score here means the school does not write about this, not that the school does not have it: a school with good security and a sparse site will score low. A school can fill in its profile, and the score will be counted again.
The score is counted from 7 of the 9 criteria.Only those with checkable data count: programmes and accreditations from official registers, the fee from a published price list. Where it says "scored on the median", the school has no data and the middle of the list is put in its place, so that a gap gives no advantage. Admissions, teaching staff and reviews come in as their data arrives.
The full methodology → Similar schools in the country