Admission requirements

The University of Copenhagen welcomes applications from students from all over the world with an upper secondary/high school education. 

At the University of Copenhagen all bachelor’s degree programmes are taught in Danish and require the highest level in Danish or documentation for academic language skills in Danish.

In order to be eligible for admission to a bachelor’s degree programme, you need to fulfill – or expect to fulfill – the following admission requirements before 5 July. However, new students coming directly from a secondary/high school education are allowed to forward their Diplomas until 15 August. Please note that this does not apply to applicants who have just completed single subject courses/supplementary courses.

Application deadline

To apply for admission to Quota 2, you must:

  • Have a qualifying examination
  • Pass all admission requirements for the degree programme
  • Fulfil the language requirement
  • Pass the Quota 2 exam Please note that you will be invited to a quota 2 exam if you meet all of the admission requirements for the degree programme

All applicants with foreign or international examinations (regardless of nationality) must submit their online application along with necessary documentation before the application deadline on 15 March 12.00. The University does not assess applications received after this deadline. Hence, you have to start filling in the application form and uploading all your documents in due time before the deadline. 

Click here if you want to know  how to apply

Qualifying Examination

When we receive your application, we assess whether your exam qualifies you for admission, and whether your courses and levels your exam is equivalent to the Danish upper-secondary-school exam. We will then assess whether you meet the admission requirements.

Please note that for some countries, the upper secondary (high) school education is not enough, and you need to supplement. You can supplement by either one or two years of higher education or two courses: at least one A level subject and at least one B level subject.

Please check the general admission requirement for your country.

The Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education has general information about foreign qualifications for admission to higher education in Denmark.

Please note that the exam handbook is updated every year at the beginning of March.

Therefore, there may be changes shortly before the application deadline. Please note that citizenship is not relevant in relation to the admission rules, but is important in relation to residence permits and any payment or the programme.

Grade point average and quota 1

In order to apply, you must have an upper secondary school education (high school).  When you apply, you do so through either quota 1 or 2 – or both. Click here to learn more about the quota system. (link til quota 1 and 2).

If you have a foreign exam where it is possible to convert your grade point average (GPA) into a Danish GPA, your converted GPA should be 6.0 or higher if you want to apply in quota 1. If you are applying in quota 1, you apply exclusively based on your GPA from your original or first given exam certificate/diploma. Please note that grades can be assessed in very different ways from country to country. If your converted GPA is 5.9 or less, it is not possible to be assessed in quota 1.

Do you meet the admission requirements?

All of our degree programmes have specific requirements, which you need to fulfil. These are specific subject levels, i.e. Danish A, B and C levels, which correspond to basic, medium and high-level courses. This may be courses that you had in your upper secondary school education, but also in the course of a university degree programme or supplement.

See the admission requirements for each degree programme (the site is only in Danish).

If you do not meet the specific admission requirements for the degree programme at this point, you can supplement. Please note that all documentation for the admission requirements must be uploaded no later than 5 July at 12 noon in your application at optagelse.dk.

See the checklist of the documentation you need to provide and the specific requirements for all study programmes further down this page.

Please note that specific admission requirements may vary from one study programme to another in Denmark– and may differ from one university to another. The requirements described on this website apply to the University of Copenhagen only. If you consider studying at another institution, we advise you to reach out and get information from them.

Do you have a masters degree?

If you have already completed a master's degree, you may only receive admission to a bachelor’s or master's degree if there is a vacant slot. Vacant standby slots do not count as vacant slots.

If you are offered admission before you complete your master's degree but complete it after you are offered admission to Copenhagen University, you will not be allowed start your studies unless there is a vacant slot at the bachelor programme in question.

Applicants with a completed master's degree applying for a bachelor's degree with vacant slots will be prioritized by grade average form their high school education. 

Read more about the rule and the possibility of dispensation. 

How to obtain Danish language qualifications?

You can obtain Danish language qualifications by either:

  • passing 'Studieprøven i dansk'. Please note that this is only a possibility if during your secondary education have studied your native language on the highest level.
  • passing a supplementary course(in Danish only) in Danish A 
  • documenting that you have Danish language qualifications at the highest level (e.g. if you have studied Danish at a university for several years)

Students from the Nordic countries with Danish, Norwegian or Swedish included in their upper secondary school education are not required to pass a Danish language test. However, students from Iceland are required to pass the Danish language test.

Please have a look at the requirements if you hold an International Baccalaureate or European Baccalaureate.

Studieprøven i dansk som andetsprog

You can obtain Danish language qualifications by passing the 'Studieprøven i dansk som andetsprog', if you have studied your native language on the highest level during your secondary education.  'Studieprøven i dansk' is a nationally recognised test for foreign language speakers administered by numerous language schools in Denmark. In Copenhagen, Studieprøven i dansk is offered by Clavis and UCplus.

The test consists of an oral examination combined with a listening, reading and a written examination and must be passed with at least grade 02 in each of all the 3 examination disciplines. Please note that for Medicine (medicin), Dentistry (odontologi) and Dental Hygienist (tandplejer), you need to pass Studieprøven i dansk som andet sprog with at least grade 7 in each of the three examination disciplines.

Deadline for submitting the certificate is 15 March if you have already graduated or 5 July if you graduate in 2022.

Checklist for applicants with foreign or international exams

Please follow this checklist for documentation when applying for admission to a bachelor’s degree at the University of Copenhagen. You are to upload the documents on optagelse.dk.

  1. Upper secondary school education/high school Diploma: a copy of your original Diploma and a transcript of records (all the courses that you have had at school) issued by the school

  2. If you have studied after secondary school/high school: a copy of your original diploma and a transcript of records (all the courses that you have had at college or university) issued by the educational institutions

  3. Documentation for passed Danish language qualifications: Studieprøven i dansk or Dansk A

  4. If you have taken any supplementary courses in Denmark or abroad: documentation for the course

  5. If necessary, documentation for how many hours you were taught in specific courses or subjects at school 

  6. For citizens in countries outside EU/EEA: documentation of residence permit. If you are a British citizen, you need to supply documentation of your registration of residence in Denmark.

  7. Power of attorney if you wish to give someone written authorization to represent you or act on your behalf regarding your application

Please note: foreign diplomas and transcripts of records have to be translated into Danish or English by a sworn translator, unless they are issued in English, French, German, Swedish or Norwegian.

Tuition fee

If you have a citizenship from a country outside EU/EEA/Scandinavia, you need to pay tuition fees for your studies. Unless you have a residence permit which exempts you from paying tuition fees.

If you have British citizenship you must have registered residence in Denmark before January 1st 2021 in order to be exempt from paying tuition fees.

Please contact the relevant faculty for information on fees and how to pay.

Scholarships

The University of Copenhagen does not offer financial support or scholarships to foreign students.

For information on scholarships, please contact the Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education.

Code of conduct

Guidelines for Offering Danish Higher Education Programmes to International Students (pdf).