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Country Handbooks


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Iceland
| Education


The Icelandic educational system is divided into three levels: compulsory education (ages 6-15), secondary education (ages 15-19), and higher education (ages 20+).

HIGHER EDUCATION

The modern Icelandic system of higher education dates back to the founding of the University of Iceland in 1911. The University of Iceland remains the principal institution of higher education in Iceland, but in addition there are two more specialized universities and several small colleges that offer programs at the higher education level.

There are two types of higher educational institutions in Iceland, universities and colleges. Universities have research responsibilities and offer more than one program of study. Colleges offer specialized training courses at higher education level, but generally do not carry out research. Their teaching is, however, based on the results of university research.

There are three universities in Iceland with research responsibilities offering more than one program of study. The University of Iceland offers programs of study in all traditional university subjects, while the two other universities are more specialized and offer fewer programs of study. The University of Iceland is comprised of eleven faculties with research and teaching responsibilities. The faculties are: Humanities, Odontology, Economics and Business Administration, Engineering, Law, Medicine [Physiotherapy], Nursing, Pharmacy, Sciences, Social Sciences, and Theology.

The University of Akureyri consists of four departments: health science, management study, fishery studies, and education. The University College of Education is responsible for the education of teachers at the compulsory school level. It also offers a Master of Education (Med) program with specialization in curriculum studies, special education, educational administration or educational theory.


Grades and Credit Equivalent

Grades are given on a scale of 0-10. Credits are awarded only when a course has been completed and all required examinations have been successfully taken.

Icelandic
Grade
U.S. Equivalent
10.0-7.25
A
7.24-6.00
B
5.99-5.50
C
5.49-4.00
D
3.99-0
F

Credit Equivalent:

  • Unit of Measurement: ECTS - 1 Icelandic credit = 2ECTS credits
  • 60 ECTS credits is considered to be a full workload for an academic year.