UMB began in 1859 as the only Norwegian agricultural post-graduate college (Norges landbrukshøgskole), a mainly educational institution. Research received a primary function nearly 40 years later and on 1 January 2005 the institution received the Norwegian university status. UMB, under Norwegian law and in follow-up to the European Bologna Declaration, has implemented a quality reform and has restructured the courses, credits and degrees to meet European standards. In total, UMB has some 3,150 students of which about 380 are PhD students. Annually, the University confers 50 to 60 PhD degrees upon successful candidates. There are many different nationalities at UMB; the international students make up over 15% of all students at the University. Of the 940 University staff, more than half hold scientific positions. The Norwegian University of Life Sciences comprises 8 departments. High professional quality, a high degree of teacher-student interaction and a pleasant social and physical environment characterise education at UMB.
