In recent years, the numbers of newly arrived refugees to Europe have peaked and increased the pressure on the local integration work in host countries. In Norway, refugees are offered an introduction programme, but the programme fails to prepare everyone to employment. An adult education centre initiated a new qualification model, “the Ryfylke model”, in 2015, which aims to qualify adult immigrants as health workers, and reorganised responsibilities in the public sector. A municipal agency implements a programme which is usually implemented by a workplace or an upper secondary school. This thesis explores integration policies in Norway and the impact of a specialised organisational structure through a case study of the Ryfylke model. The study analyses and discusses how and why the Ryfylke model crosses horizontal and vertical specialisation principles in the organisational structure of the public sector in Norway. Semi-structured interviews with 22 informants constitute the empirical data.
The new model crosses specialisation principles in the organisational structure because the existing ways to achieve vocational qualifications are not appropriate for adult immigrants, and require a client approach to organisation. A specialised organisational structure complicates the implementation of integration policies if the organisations do not recognise their work in a broader context. National authorities should require a nation-wide standard by the end of any vocational qualification, but the municipality should have the authority to design the method. An advantage at the local level is proximity to the policy problem and ability to adapt the public service to the clientele and area-specific needs in different sectors.