– I do undeclared work to survive

– All credit is due to those who manage to work on top of their studies, the student in question thinks. He is a student at the University of Oslo (UiO). The student has taken on two part-time jobs in order to make ends meet; one declared and one undeclared job. Both jobs are within the service sector.

He is unaware of how much he earns, but he knows that it would have exceeded the income limit if he had chosen two ordinary jobs.

– Living expenses are high in Oslo, I do this to survive. What is more, I have an expensive hobby; I play in a band, so money talks, the student says. He thinks that the limit should be removed altogether.

– I cannot see the purpose of it. A possible argument could be that people only register to get the money. But not even that is a good enough reason for me to avoid exceeding the current limit.

– But is it just that people are allowed to make as much money as they want and still receive government funding?

– Yes, if people are able to pull it off, they should be allowed to.

In case the income limit is increased, he feels that it should reach at least NOK 200,000 for it to be worthwhile paying taxes.

– How are your studies coming along if you have to work this much?

– There are ups and downs but I work mostly weekends and evenings so I am all right, he confirms.

– If the limit remains the same, I will probably keep on doing undeclared work for a while longer.

Need More

According to a survey by Sentio on behalf of Universitas and NSU (the Norwegian union of students), more than 50 per cent of the population thinks that the income limit for students should be increased or removed completely. The largest group is those who are under 30, where an astounding 68.3 per cent feels that the current limit is too low.

Jørn Henriksen, leader of NSU, supports their view.

– This survey goes to show that most people agree with NSU that students need to be cut more slack as far as the income limit goes, Henriksen says.

However, he does not think the limit should be removed altogether:

– NSU holds that a student should be allowed to earn more than what is possible today. However, this should be according to needs. A student who earns NOK 300,000 does not need a grant, Henriksen says. He thinks the limit should be increased by somewhere in the neighbourhood of NOK10,000 to 20,000.

– Furthermore, earnings during the summer holiday should not be taken into account. This used to be common practice, and it would be ridiculous if what you make during the summer would mean that you cannot work for the rest of the year.

No Choice

Rolf Reikvam, leader of the Standing Committee on Education and Research and representative of the socialist party SV, agrees that the limit is too low.

– The limit should be increased. The current situation is that far too many reach the limit. What students make is not that important as long as they progress well.

But Reikvam would rather focus on student funding so that students are able to concentrate on their studies rather than jobs.

– Ideally, student funding should cover expenses so that students are not forced to work during the academic year. Students of today have no choice. Funding does not cover living expenses, particularly not in a large city like Oslo.

Reikvam feels, as opposed to Jørn Henriksen, that what you earn during the summer should be accounted for when a limit is intact.

– When the students make their money to survive, is besides the point. What is required, is merely an increased limit in general so that students can survive.

Impossible to Live on Less

Bjørn Morten Svalland (22), a student at the Norwegian School of Management (BI), has two different part-time jobs as well. The only difference between him and the UiO student is that both are declared.

– I like to do things in an orderly fashion. However, if I got the right offer, I would probably have considered it, Bjørn says and agrees that the limit is too low.

– If not removed altogether, it should definitely be increased. I made about NOK 125,000 last year and my grant was consequently cut in half. I have a car, rent and other expenses to cover so it is impossible for me to live on less than what I make today.

Bjørn Morten Svalland therefore leads and incredibly hectic life. Universitas barely got the chance to talk to him for a few minutes while he was driving from one job to the next.

– Won’t this interfere with your studies?

– Well, yeah, I guess. I was never a hard-working student, but I get by. Also, I only take jobs that are somewhat flexible so I work less during exams.