Norway in a Nutshell – at your doorstep!
The city of Ålesund is known for its Art Nouveau houses. Almost like a small Venice, it lies on the Atlantic coast, surrounded by fjords, mountains and the open sea. Thousands of tourists from all over the world comes every year to discover this gem in western Norway.
Ålesund and our school are easy to reach; by bus, plane (approx. 35 min to the airport), ship (Hurtigruten) or train/bus.
But what is a folkehøgskole (folk high school)?
A year in folkehøgskole lasts nine months, from end of August to mid-May. Most students attend folk high schools right after graduating from high school (upper secondary school). Most folk high school students are between 18 and 25 years.
We have tried to outline a typical year in Ålesund folkehøgskole, the Travel school, below. You can find more specific information in norwegian on our homepage; alesundfhs.no.
You can also find more general information about folk high school here.
Diversity and openness – Welcome to the community!
Ålesund Folkehøgskole is open to all people from 18 years of age. The school owner is a christian Lutheran organization (Sunnmøre Indremisjon). The school is part of the association of over 70 folk high schools in Norway. We call ourselves the Travel School.
Our students usually come from all over Norway and sometimes also from abroad, which guarantees a divers and exciting atmosphere. Everyone should be able to feel comfortable here. Together we create an unforgettable year!
The school offers comfortable rooms with bathroom. Normally, two students share a room. A single room can be provided upon request; however it is not guaranteed. In general, this is also not recommended, as a year at a folk high school should be as social as possible.
Choose your class
After 6 months of intensive preparation, each class will travel to their destination for 3-4 weeks.
In addition to different classes, we offer many different electives (valgfag), which you can choose yourself. Three times a school year, you have the chance to tailor your own schedule. There are more than 50 different electives with a large variety of topics to choose from. These subjects occupy approx. 10-15 hours per week. A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try new things without being under pressure and no exams! See an overview of electives here.
You can also apply for a specialty, which runs on Tuesdays throughout the year. (Uses a full day of the elective days). If you want to apply for Diving, you make this your first choice on the application, and then choose your Major as second choice.
Together!
We also offer joint teaching 4 times a week. We discuss different topics within ethics, psychology and religion and current affairs happening in the world, we have a school choir, quiet time (different meditations) and on Saturdays we hold seminars or activities with a wide range of topics.
Some Saturday evenings and communal evenings during the week are also an official part of the schedule.
In addition to all these school subjects, we organize a lot of voluntary leisure activities such as indoor and outdoor ball-activities, climbing, aerobics, canoeing, table tennis, billiards, art, dance, year-round fjord bathing, hiking, etc. The limits are only your imagination and your own commitment.
As a major, you choose one of our classes (Linje), which will be your class throughout the year and where you spend a minimum of two days a week. Choosing a class defines your travel destination in March.
