Denmark

Higher Education in Denmark

Higher Education Are you moving to Denmark and thinking about continuing your studies? In Denmark, you can find a wide variety of courses from undergraduate to PhD level. There are about 130 English taught programs and most of them starting from Master’s level.
Danish higher educational system at the Bachelor’s level is divided into three categories. So if you are just starting your undergraduate program you can choose among Universities, University-colleges and Academies of Professional Higher Education.
Universities offer research-based programs starting from Bachelor’s and continuing with Master’s and PhD programs. Such programs can be found at University of Copenhagen, Aarhus University, University of Southern Denmark , Aalborg University among others. Within this category there are also included the university level institutions of fine and performing arts, design and architecture (Aarhus School of Architecture, Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, School of Visual Arts etc.)
University–colleges offer professional Bachelor’s programs in areas such as teaching training, engineering, nursing, health, business and social work. These kinds of programs are 3-41/2 years long and are only undergraduate programs. The institutions are also called Professionshøjskoler.
The Academies of Professional Higher Education (Erhversakademier) offer 2-21/2 year Academy Profession programs and joint Bachelor’s programs in co-operation with universities.
Each institution has its own requirement concerning admission, therefore it is very important to check all the details with the institution you would like to apply to. For the Bachelor’s programs the basic requirement for studying in a Danish higher education institution is to hold a qualification comparable to a Danish qualifying examination. For more information about this document you should check with the institution you are interested in. For a Master’s program it is compulsory to have an internationally recognized Bachelor’s degree of good standard or equivalent and for a PhD program a Candidatus/Master’s degree or equivalent (comparable to the Danish two-year Candidatus/Master’s degree in some areas). Most certainly you need to prove your proficiency in English or Danish. You can find more information about recognized documents and the recognition procedures on Cirius.
In what concerns the cost of studying, higher education in Denmark is usually provided free of charge for all EU/EEA students and for students who are participating in an exchange program. All other students have to pay a tuition fee range from 6,000 to 16,000 euro. Nevertheless, you can apply for scholarships or grants from the Danish Government or from the institution you wish to apply for. The Danish Ministry of Education has launched a new scholarship program for students from non-EU/EEA countries studying specified subjects at Academies of Professional Higher Education and University Colleges. You also have the possibility to apply for the Erasmus Mundus scheme to undertake specific Master's degree programs offered jointly by a Danish institution and other European institutions. You can find more information about Erasmus Mundus scholarships and about other scholarships and grants offered by the Danish Government or different institutions at Cirius.
Higher Education
State funding programs are also available in Denmark for some foreign nationals. You can check if you qualify at: SU. Students who qualify for SU also qualify for low interest state loans. You can check the amount of the grant for 2009 at Grants and Loans amount.

Other two types of support programs are SUV and VEU. SUV applies for education in basic school, high school or university, while VEU is a type of support for adult education. It applies for education in the business education levels. You can find more information in English about these programs at UVM
Student-life is definitely exciting anywhere and Denmark is not different, starting with life in the halls of residence to partying in clubs. You do not have you worry about getting your way around in the first days and finding supermarkets close to your hall of residence or any other things like that because most higher education institutions have established a “buddy-program”. On arrival, a “buddy”, who is a current student at the same institution, will help the students to get settled, meet other students and assist them with practical matters in their first weeks at the institution. Welcome programs and courses in Danish language and culture provide international students with another opportunity to get more comfortable with the host country and meet other international and Danish students.
If higher education is not for you, you can also take classes at a folk high school. This is a non-formal adult residential school that offers a wide variety of courses from mathematics and biology to rhythmic dance, jewelry and yoga. Each institution decides on the content of the courses. It is good to know that there are no tests or exams you need to pass in order to take the courses.
You can find more information about the institutions, courses, scholarships and grants on the web pages listed bellow. You can find more information about student life, institutions and programs, scholarships and grants on Study in Denmark and on the links below: