Student Parliament proposes exam-free May 18th
UiO Student Parliament says it is unfair to have exams right after Norwegian National Day, and will fight for new rules.
Every year, scores of students sit inside studying on May 17th, Norway’s National Day. It’s one of the biggest celebrations of the year, but these students have exams the day after. The University of Oslo Student Parliament wants to put an end to what some students might deem cruel and unusual punishment.
President of the Student Parliament Hans Christian Paulsen says there are two good reasons for exams to be banned on May 18th. «First of all, there are cultural reasons for this – people should be able to celebrate the 17th of May properly without worry about exams. And secondly, university services don’t operate on the 17th of May,» he said.
Paulsen emphasized this is only a proposal from the student parliament. The university still has to be convinced that students need May 18th to be exam-free.
«This is just the first step. We need to convince UiO that it makes sense,» Paulsen said. He was confident they had a good case. «It’s concerning that support services aren’t up and running on the 17th of May, and the arguments as a whole should be enough to convince the university,» he added.
Rector Ole Petter Ottersen was in Japan when Universitas tried to reach him for a comment.
«How realistic is it that this demand will be followed through on?» Universitas asked.
«I cannot answer that at this point in time. I need more information first, since this isn’t something I’m familiar with,» said Ottersen.
