Most and fewest completing upper secondary

Analysis: why are some at the top and others at the bottom?

We compared completion share with every other municipal figure we have, from Statistics Norway, NIPH and the Brønnøysund Register Centre. Below are the figures that go most closely together with completion share across the country, and what marks the municipalities at the top and bottom on those figures.

The pattern across the country

• Municipalities that rank high on «Share with lower secondary as highest education (16 and over)» most often rank low on completion share (strong association, rank correlation −0.52 across 269 municipalities; Statistics Norway table 09429).
• Municipalities that rank high on «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» most often also rank high on completion share (moderate association, rank correlation 0.39 across 269 municipalities; NIPH indicator 508).
• Municipalities that rank high on «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» most often rank low on completion share (moderate association, rank correlation −0.39 across 269 municipalities; NIPH indicator 787).
• Municipalities that rank high on «Employed, share of age 20–66» most often also rank high on completion share (moderate association, rank correlation 0.38 across 269 municipalities; Statistics Norway table 11618).

The highest and the lowest

• No. 1 Vindafjord (94.2%) Fits the pattern: «Employed, share of age 20–66» 81.0% (no. 27 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618); «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 8.4% (no. 298 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» 83.3 (no. 63 of 348 from the top; NIPH indicator 508). Most distinctive industry: jordbruk og tjenester tilknyttet jordbruk, jakt og viltstell, 10% of the jobs, 7.6 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 2 Hole (94.2%) Fits the pattern: «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 6.7% (no. 349 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Share with lower secondary as highest education (16 and over)» 19.6% (no. 337 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 09429). Most distinctive industry: overnattingsvirksomhet, 5% of the jobs, 4.8 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 3 Suldal (92.3%) Fits the pattern: «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 8.2% (no. 306 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787); «Employed, share of age 20–66» 79.5% (no. 71 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618); «Share with lower secondary as highest education (16 and over)» 22.1% (no. 276 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 09429). Most distinctive industry: bryting og bergverksdrift ellers, 14% of the jobs, 117.6 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 269 Vega (60.5%, among the lowest) Fits the pattern: «Employed, share of age 20–66» 71.6% (no. 318 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618); «Share with lower secondary as highest education (16 and over)» 30.7% (no. 45 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 09429); «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 13.8% (no. 60 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787). Most distinctive industry: fiske, fangst og akvakultur, 10% of the jobs, 12.2 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 268 Flakstad (60.8%, among the lowest) Fits the pattern: «Share with lower secondary as highest education (16 and over)» 35.7% (no. 14 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 09429); «Employed, share of age 20–66» 70.9% (no. 328 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 11618). Most distinctive industry: fiske, fangst og akvakultur, 20% of the jobs, 25.1 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).
• No. 267 Kåfjord (61.9%, among the lowest) Fits the pattern: «Life expectancy at birth (15-year period)» 80.1 (no. 339 of 348 from the top; NIPH indicator 508); «Share with lower secondary as highest education (16 and over)» 34.9% (no. 15 of 357 from the top; Statistics Norway table 09429); «Disability benefit recipients aged 20–66 (standardised)» 15.1% (no. 27 of 357 from the top; NIPH indicator 787). Most distinctive industry: jordbruk og tjenester tilknyttet jordbruk, jakt og viltstell, 8% of the jobs, 6.5 times the national share (Statistics Norway table 13470, 2025).

The analysis describes what goes together, not what causes what. Two figures can follow each other because both depend on something else, such as size, location or industry. The figures are from the latest year available for each source, so the years can differ. Rank correlation runs from −1 to 1; values near 1 mean the municipalities lie in roughly the same order on both measures.