Care Assistant CV for Norway (Pleiemedarbeider): Language Level, Police Certificate and an Example

A care assistant (pleiemedarbeider) CV in Norway is read by a ward or team manager at a nursing home or in the home-care service who has a shift rota to fill. She is looking for four things: your Norwegian level, when you can work, whether you have done hands-on care (paid or unpaid), and whether you understand that a police certificate is required.

For newcomers, the most common problem is not weak Norwegian. It is a CV that is vague about language level and availability, or that uses a professional title you do not hold in Norway.

Language level: match the number in the ad

Care assistant ads in Norway are often specific about language, and the level varies by employer. Bærum municipality, for example, requires a passed Norwegian test at B1 written and oral for care assistants from outside Scandinavia, and B2 for healthcare assistants (ad, Stabæktunet nursing home). Stavanger municipality asks for B2 for care assistants in home nursing (ad).

So: state your level as a CEFR number with the test and year, oral and written separately — for example "Norwegian: B2 oral, B1 written (Norskprøven, 2025)". If you have not taken the test yet, say what you can do in practice and when you will sit it. Our guide to language levels on a CV covers the wording.

Police certificate and health declaration

Employers in Norway's municipal health and care services must require a police certificate (politiattest) when they offer you a job (Health and Care Services Act § 5-4). It may not be older than three months. The only exception is for people who provide services occasionally and are not normally alone with patients — which rarely describes a care assistant.

Do not attach it to the application. One line is enough: "Police certificate available on request." Some employers also ask for a self-declaration about tuberculosis before you start (example).

Care assistant vs healthcare assistant: use the right title

Helsefagarbeider (healthcare assistant) is a protected title that requires Norwegian authorisation from the Directorate of Health. Pleiemedarbeider is an assistant role without that requirement (IMDi). If you trained as a nurse or care worker abroad, list that education — country, year and title as written on the diploma — and say whether you have applied for approval. But apply as a care assistant, and do not call yourself a nurse or healthcare assistant until you are authorised. Once you are, switch to the healthcare assistant CV guide.

The skeleton

One page, PDF, one column, file name with your own name.

Name · phone · email · town
Profile: two lines on who you are and why elderly care
Availability: shifts, weekends, nights, start date
Care experience (including placements and unpaid care)
Other work experience
Courses and education
Languages — oral and written separately
Driving licence (important for home care)
References

Availability gets its own line because many openings are weekend posts or on-call substitute work. "Available days, evenings and every third weekend. Can start 1 November" saves the manager a phone call.

Courses worth listing

If you have completed the free e-learning course Introduction to health and care work (Introduksjon til helse- og omsorgsarbeid) from the Norwegian National Centre for Ageing and Health, list it. It has four modules totalling seven hours, is available in Norwegian, English and Ukrainian, and ends with a course certificate (IMDi). First-aid courses and a placement through the introduction programme belong here too.

Constructed example

This is invented — copy the shape, not the content:

Care assistant placement — municipal nursing home, Drammen (Feb–Jun 2025)
Long-term ward with 16 residents, several with dementia
Helped with morning care, meals and outdoor walks
Reported changes in residents to the nurse on duty
Spoke Norwegian with residents and staff throughout the day
Caring for my father after a stroke, Kharkiv (2019–2022)
Daily personal care, transfers and follow-up of medical appointments

Nothing is dressed up: a manager needs to know who you helped and what you did.

Common mistakes

"Fluent Norwegian" you cannot back up. It shows in the first minute of the interview.
Leaving out family care. It is relevant experience — list it as experience.
No availability. The manager is filling a rota; tell her when you can work.
The wrong title. Not "nurse" or "helsefagarbeider" without Norwegian authorisation.
No driving licence listed. For home care it is often a requirement.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need training to become a care assistant? Usually not. Several ads state that no formal education is required, though experience is an advantage.

Should I attach the police certificate? No. It is requested when you are offered the job. Just say you can provide it.

What if my Norwegian is below B1? Look for ads that do not set a fixed level, and describe honestly what you can do. Keep taking classes and sit the test, so you have a number to show.

Next step

Build the CV from the skeleton above and run a free CV check against the ad you are applying to. Heading to an interview? Read care assistant interview questions. Already authorised? See the healthcare assistant CV guide.