← Back to the rankingTrondheim Katedralskole
Trondheim, Norway · est. 1152 · State
Illustration · Trondheim
Trondheim Katedralskole (Katta) is a public upper secondary school (videregående skole) of Trøndelag county in central Trondheim, opposite Nidaros Cathedral. It is one of Norway's oldest schools: its roots go back to the mid-11th century, and it is known to have existed in 1152, when the archdiocese of Nidaros was founded; Latin is still taught. The school runs three-year programmes in Norwegian: general studies (studiespesialisering) with science and humanities-economics tracks, media and communication, music, dance and drama, and påbygg. It is the only school in Trøndelag offering pre-IB in Vg1 and the IB Diploma Programme in Vg2-Vg3: pre-IB follows the Norwegian curriculum with some lessons in English, and the Diploma Programme is taught in English. Education is free; the IB track charges only an annual exam fee. Seven buildings by the cathedral range from the historic Harsdorffbygningen to two new ones.
Key facts
Programmes
IB · DP · National programme
Languages of instruction
Norwegian, English
Languages taught
Spanish, French, German, Italian, Chinese, Latin
About the fees Education is free: this is a public school of Trøndelag county, and the county's student laptop page notes that upper secondary students are entitled to free textbooks and digital learning materials. For the IB track the school charges an annual fee of 6500 NOK to cover student registration and IB examinations.
Admissions Norwegian Vg1 programmes, including the pre-IB class (30 places, separate code STUSP1Z in vigo), are entered through the county's general admission on vigo.no by 1 March; students from all over Trøndelag can apply for pre-IB. Admission to the IB Diploma Programme (Vg2-Vg3) is granted by the county admissions office with the school; the deadline is 1 March, with the IB application form and certified documents sent to the school and an application in vigo. Applicants need a valid Norwegian residence permit and a registered address in Trøndelag (conditional offers for those moving), good English and completed Vg1 general studies or equivalent: from Vg1 grades of 4 or higher in mathematics, science, English and Norwegian and an average of 4; from MYP 5 grades of 6 or higher in mathematics and science, 5 or higher in languages and social science, an average of 5.5 and a completed personal project; from IGCSE grades A or B in mathematics, science and English. Year 10 students are usually asked to complete Vg1 first. Foreign school records are assessed individually, translated into English, with possible entrance tests and interviews. Internationally mobile students and returning Norwegians are a priority group: students with foreign school backgrounds moving to Trøndelag can be prioritised and even guaranteed a place before the deadline. Applicants without a Norwegian identity number must contact the county admissions office.
Stages and year groups Norwegian videregående skole under LK20, three years: general studies (studiespesialisering, with science or humanities-economics tracks, the Science programme with Thora Storm vgs and advanced mathematics), media and communication, music, dance and drama, and påbygg for vocational graduates; the result is the Norwegian diploma (vitnemål) with general university admission certification. The IB track: pre-IB in Vg1 (the Norwegian Vg1 curriculum with some lessons in English) and the IB Diploma Programme in Vg2-Vg3 in English. DP subjects: Norwegian A Literature, English A Language and Literature, Norwegian B, Spanish B, History, Global Politics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Mathematics AA and AI, plus TOK, the Extended Essay and CAS. Progression to DP year two requires at least 20 IB points and no grade of 1. In Norway the IB diploma is equivalent to Vg2-Vg3 general studies.
Address Munkegata 8, 7013 Trondheim
Accreditations and programmes verified against official registries
IB · DP · authorised programmeThe school is listed in the IB register and runs the Diploma Programme. The IB track runs inside a Norwegian upper-secondary school: after a preparatory year (pre-IB) in Vg1 comes the Diploma in Vg2-Vg3; alongside it runs the Norwegian studiespesialisering programme.
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: DP (ages 16-19). DP is the final stage, ages 16 to 19: six subjects plus a compulsory core of theory of knowledge, an extended essay and CAS. The diploma is accepted by universities all over the world, and in a number of countries it counts for admission on the same footing as the local leaving certificate.
Register to check for yourself, and the full guide →National programme
The state school programme of the country the school stands in: it is set by that country's ministry of education, which also licenses the school and awards the leaving certificate. That certificate is used for entry to local universities, and abroad it is matched to the local one.
What this means for this school. This entry does not count towards the score, and that is deliberate. Every lawful school in a country works to the national programme, so on its own it tells one school apart from no other - unlike the French, German or Russian programmes, which are carried abroad and confirmed by the register of their organisation. We show it because a parent needs to know what programme their child is taught and what certificate the child will get. Counting it would lift the whole ranking at once and still tell nobody apart.
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 hall
✓Laboratories
·Theatre or assembly hallnot stated on the website
✓Library
✓Catering
·School transportnot stated on the website
·Boardingnot stated on the website
Also on site: Makerspace
Clubs and activities: Elevrådet (student council) · Revy (school revue) · Årbok (school yearbook) · Talentutviklingsprogrammet (music talent development programme with NTNU) · CAS - Creativity, Activity, Service
Teaching staff
The school publishes neither the number of its teachers nor their qualifications.
Safety and wellbeing from the school's official website
·CCTVnot stated on the website
✓Security staff
·Access controlnot stated on the website
✓Nurse or medical room
✓Counsellor
✓Child protection policy
·Staff trainingnot stated on the website
✓Anti-bullying policy
The school must ensure a safe and good school environment for every student under chapter 12 of the Education Act: bullying, violence, discrimination and harassment, including online, are not accepted; every staff member must intervene and report to the principal, the school investigates within a week and draws up a written action plan; students can turn to the County Governor in Trøndelag. The student services include three counsellors and a school nurse (usually Monday to Thursday), and a physiotherapist; the county PPT service with psychologists works with the schools. The nurse and a counsellor are the contact persons for drug prevention. Supervisors are on duty in the buildings in the afternoon and evening.
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%)82 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 data85 Accreditation and verifiability (10%)85 Teaching staff (10%) scored on disclosed data55 Facilities (10%) scored on disclosed data75 Clubs and activities (8%) scored on disclosed data73 "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 8 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