The Kindergarten Act (Section 24) requires kindergartens to have sound pedagogical and administrative management, led by a head with relevant pedagogical or child‑specific higher education. Under the Education Act (Section 17‑1), schools must have sound professional, educational and administrative management, organised by school size, with leadership resources determined by the municipality or county.

Requirements for appointment

Under the Kindergarten Act (‘barnehageloven’), the head of kindergarten (styrer) must be a qualified kindergarten teacher or have other tertiary‑level education that provides pedagogical competence and qualifications for working with children. This is a statutory requirement. Persons appointed as heads also need to fulfill minimum requirements in Norwegian language. To be employed in a kindergarten you also need a police certificate.

Under the Education Act (‘opplæringsloven’), every school must have sound professional, educational and administrative management, and teaching must be led by a head teacher (‘rektor’). The Act specifies that school leaders must have pedagogical qualifications and they must have the necessary leadership abilities. There is no statutory requirement for a master’s degree or a formal leadership programme in order to be appointed as a school principal; The Education Act does not prescribe a specific degree level, length of leadership training, or a mandatory leadership qualification beyond this. 

There is no clear pattern of recruitment to administrative positions beyond official encouragement of female staff to seek higher level posts. Available positions are advertised, and posts are often filled by external applicants, i.e. applicants from other schools and other municipalities/counties.

Conditions for service

School leaders are appointed by municipalities (primary and lower secondary education) and counties (upper secondary education). Recruitment is based primarily on qualifications and interviews, with administrative, financial and pedagogical leadership experience considered an asset. Positions are publicly advertised and frequently filled by external candidates, with limited evidence of systematic internal career pathways beyond measures to encourage women to apply for senior roles.

Working time for school leaders is regulated in a collective agreement between the Norwegian Association of Local and Regional Authorities (KS) and trade unions at central level. Headmasters and administrative staff for early childhood education and schools are supposed to work 37.5 hours per week, 45 weeks a year. Wages for school heads are negotiated individually/groupwise at local level.