NIFU

What NIFU does

NIFU (Nordisk institutt for studier av innovasjon, forskning og utdanning / Nordic Institute for Studies of Innovation, Research and Education) is an independent, non-profit research foundation headquartered in Oslo, Norway. Established in 1969 (with roots in a 1954 NAVF research department and reorganized as a foundation in 1996), the institute delivers action- and decision-oriented research on education, research, and innovation policy to Norwegian ministries, directorates, the Research Council of Norway, universities, and international bodies such as the European Commission and OECD.

Its underlying technology stack is methodological rather than software-based: NIFU combines survey research (R&D statistics, Candidate Surveys, Employer Surveys), linked registry datasets covering business, employment, education, and research careers, a leading Norwegian bibliometrics program (active since 1989), systematic knowledge summaries (reviews, rapid reviews, scoping reviews), quantitative econometrics, and a futures literacy method developed through a UNESCO chair with the University of Stavanger since 2021. Proprietary data assets include the Recruitment Monitor and decades-long linked career-in-working-life datasets. Survey series include "Spørsmål til Skole-Norge" (commissioned by the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training since 2009), the Kandidatundersøkelsen for vocational graduates, and Studiebarometeret for fagskolene.

NIFU's business model is that of a non-profit foundation: revenue is generated through government base appropriations and project-based commissioned research from public-sector clients. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; publications and reports are made freely available. Go-to-market is sales-led for commissioned work, complemented by community-led dissemination via the Kunnskapsfloker podcast, NIFU-video archive, the Forskningspolitikk magazine, seminars and conferences, newsletters, and media engagement. NIFU merged with STEP in 2004 to broaden its innovation-research scope, transferred R&D statistics production to Statistics Norway in 2022, and is governed by a board drawn from the Research Council of Norway, Universities Norway (UHR), and FFA, with NOK 1.0 million in share capital.

Name

NIFU

Legal name

Research Foundation NIFU (Stiftelsen NIFU)

Website

https://nifu.no

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

NIFU is an Oslo-based, non-profit Nordic research foundation that conducts policy-oriented research on education, research, and innovation for Norwegian ministries, the Research Council of Norway, and universities, funded via government appropriations and commissioned projects.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Research and Policy Analysis

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro primary industry

Institutional Effectiveness & Continuous Improvement Reviews (EDADAGAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Survey, Panel & Fieldwork Services (BPAHALAJ), Economic Research, Statistics & Policy Advisory (BPADAMAJ)

Keywords

• Education policy research
• Innovation studies
• Research evaluation services
• Bibliometric analysis
• Knowledge policy research

Headquarters

HQ city

Oslo

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Research funding and commissions: NIFU operates as an independent and non-profit foundation providing research services to public and private sector clients. The institute receives core funding and project-based commissions for specific research assignments.
2. Government appropriations: As a research institute, NIFU receives government funding through base allocations and commissioned research from ministries, directorates, and the Research Council of Norway.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

NIFU provides action- and decision-oriented research on education, research, and innovation policy to public and private sector clients in Norway and the Nordic region. The institute delivers commissioned studies, recurring surveys, bibliometric analyses, and systematic knowledge summaries, and disseminates findings through publications, podcasts, video archives, and seminars. NIFU also produces surveys for specific sectors such as the Spørringene til Skole-Norge school survey and tracks graduate outcomes through Kandidatundersøkelsen and Studiebarometeret for fagskolene.

Product overview

NIFU is a Nordic research institute (Nordic Institute for Studies in Innovation, Research and Education) offering action- and decision-oriented research services rather than a traditional software product. Its offerings include: the Kunnskapsfloker podcast series, NIFU-video archive of seminars and webinars, the Forskningspolitikk research policy magazine, survey services (Spørringene til Skole-Norge since 2009, Kandidatundersøkelsen for vocational graduates, Studiebarometeret for fagskolene), the Bibliometri og kunnskapsoppsummeringer research group providing bibliometric analyses and systematic knowledge reviews, and an academic library. The institute functions as a research service organization providing knowledge bases for education, innovation, and research policy to public and private sector clients.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Kunnskapsfloker podcast Podcast series covering topics in innovation, research, and education, published by NIFU and distributed on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Podspace. Aims to contribute to a knowledge-based and nuanced picture of various topics.
• NIFU-video archive Online archive of recordings from NIFU seminars, webinars, and conferences, including films with information and main findings from NIFU's projects and research reports.
• Forskningspolitikk magazine Magazine covering topics on research and innovation policy, published by NIFU with contributions from researchers and policy experts; freely available by subscription.
• Spørringene til Skole-Norge (school surveys for Utdanningsdirektoratet) Bi-annual survey series conducted among school leaders and school owners, commissioned by the Norwegian Directorate for Education (Utdanningsdirektoratet) since 2009, covering various aspects of the education sector.
• Bibliometri og kunnskapsoppsummeringer research group Research service providing quantitative studies of scientific publishing (citation analyses, publication patterns, co-authorship studies) and systematic knowledge summaries including science mapping and evidence syntheses, with bibliometrics research at NIFU since 1989.
• Kandidatundersøkelsen (graduate survey for higher vocational education) Recurring survey of graduates from higher vocational education (fagskole) tracking career outcomes and employment patterns.
• Studiebarometeret for fagskolene Survey instrument for quality assessment of higher vocational education at fagskolene, designed to strengthen quality measures and increase relevance for the sector.
• NIFU Bibliotek (academic library) Academic library covering NIFU's core areas of research, innovation, and education; serves researchers and is part of the BIBSYS consortium.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 years of continuous operation as a leading research institute
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability3 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

20 partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• University of StavangerminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021UNESCO chair in management and innovation awarded jointly, enabling futures literacy methodology development at NIFU.
• CHER - Consortium of Higher Education ResearcherscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational network for research in higher education with approximately 160 members from more than 30 countries. CHER secretariat is located at the Center for Research on Higher Education and Work, University of Kassel.
• EAIR - European Higher Education SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization for managers in higher education and for researchers in management in higher education with around 500 members from 50 countries.
• ISSI - International Society for Scientometrics and InformetricscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational society that contributes to communication and exchange of professional information within scientometrics and infometrics, improving standards, theory and practice.
• Nordic Workshop on Bibliometrics and Research PolicycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual workshop organized by bibliometrics researchers in the Nordics since 1996 to present current research and promote contact between research groups.
• NORIA netminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNordic cooperation program on registers and biobanks managed by NordForsk. NIFU coordinates one of the projects on bibliometrics in research policy and evaluation.
• AFINO - Responsible Research and Innovation in NorwayminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetwork and learning center for responsible innovation and corporate social responsibility in Norway, led by NTNU, BI, UiB and OsloMet. NIFU is a collaboration partner.
• INNOFF - National Research Network for Innovation in the Public SectorminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational network for researchers highlighting and updating research on innovation processes in the public sector and improving interaction between researchers.
• ENID - European Network Indicators DesignersminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation of European institutions working with indicator development in science and technology, organizing an annual conference.
• OREEC - Oslo Renewable Energy and Environment ClusterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCluster organization including companies, research institutes, higher education organizations and local government bodies working with environmentally friendly energy and cleantech.
• Trøndelag forskning og UtviklingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNIFU collaborates with Trøndelag forskning og Utvikling which conducts surveys for the kindergarten sector.
• EAWATCH NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization carrying out research for the EU Commission's Directorate-General for Research.
• Hedda - Higher Education Development AssociationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization strengthening the relationship between research in higher education and practice in Europe.
• International Research Network on Youth Education and Training (IRNYET)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational research network studying, describing, comparing and analyzing upper secondary education across multiple countries.
• GRADUATEDminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational Network of Graduate Traces Studies for actors working with candidate surveys among people with higher education.
• OsloMet - Oslo Metropolitan UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on joint seminars including events on vocational education and competence development in working life.
• FafocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch institute collaborating with NIFU on seminars and research projects, particularly on labor market and education topics.
• NTNU SamfunnsforskningminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on the research and development project 'Tett på' with Utdanningsdirektoratet and Scandinavian University Press.
• Statistics NorwaycoreTechnology or IntegrationNIFU works closely with Statistics Norway in projects where relevant. Since 2022, R&D statistics production was transferred to Statistics Norway.
• Universitetet i Bergen (University of Bergen)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of Nordic Workshop on Bibliometrics and Research Policy (NWB 2025) with University Library at UiB.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• PRIO (Peace Research Institute Oslo): Norwegian independent research foundation conducting social science research on peace, conflict, and security for government and international clients; structurally analogous non-profit research foundation.
• Institute for Social Research (ISF): Oslo-based social science research institute conducting labor market, welfare, and education research for Norwegian ministries; similar scale, mandate, and government-funding model.
• Fafo (Institute for Labour and Social Research): Norwegian non-profit social science research institute delivering policy-relevant research on labor markets, welfare, and education to government clients; identical foundation structure and government-commissioned research model.
• NTNU Samfunnsforskning (NTNU Social Research): Norwegian applied social science research organization producing policy evaluations, surveys, and statistical analyses for public sector clients; directly comparable methodology stack and customer base.
• VIVE (Danish National Center for Social Research): Danish non-profit research foundation delivering social science research and policy evaluation for ministries and agencies; the closest direct Nordic structural equivalent to NIFU.

Broad incumbents

• Statistics Norway (SSB): Norway's central statistics bureau; absorbed NIFU's R&D statistics function in 2022 and represents both a competitor in policy statistical research and a key partner through close collaboration.
• Technopolis Group: European research and innovation policy consultancy serving EU Commission, national governments, and research funders; comparable R&D evaluation and policy advisory work across Europe.
• SINTEF: Norway's largest independent research institute with broad applied science and technology mandate; comparable public-funded research model but significantly larger and more diversified than NIFU.
• OECD Directorate for Education and Skills: International policy organization producing comparative education indicators and policy research; comparable scope on education-system evaluation and indicator development.

Regional players

• Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI): Stockholm University research institute conducting social and labor market research; comparable Nordic peer with overlapping welfare and education research mandate, based in Sweden.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NIFU01
• Facebookfacebook.com/nifu1
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nifu-nordic

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about NIFU