How to Get Into a University in Denmark as an International Student

Fee figures: catalogue of 6 October 2026.

Denmark has one national application system for bachelor's programmes. You apply on a single portal, list your choices in order, and receive at most one offer. Each university or college still assesses its own applicants, but the deadlines and the rules for ranking choices are the same everywhere.

One application, up to eight choices

The system is called the Coordinated Admission, known by its Danish initials KOT, and the portal is Optagelse.dk. You can apply for up to 8 programmes at once and put them in order of priority. If you qualify for several, you are offered a place on the highest one on your list, and only that one. So put the programme you want most at the top, not the one you think is safest.

The language of study: Danish or English

Most bachelor's programmes are taught in Danish. Our catalogue lists 45 undergraduate programmes taught in English out of 582 in total; English is much more common at master's level.

• Danish-taught programmes. You must prove Danish at the level needed for study, for example with the test Studieprøven (Danish as a second language). Some programmes ask for a higher level. The Danish requirement does not depend on your citizenship.
• Every programme, including Danish-taught ones, expects English at the level of Danish upper secondary "English B". Study in Denmark gives IELTS 6.5 as the usual equivalent, and 7.0 for programmes that ask for "English A". Each institution decides which tests and scores it accepts, so check the programme page. See IELTS and TOEFL for European universities.

Your school diploma and the specific requirements

You need a qualification on a level with the Danish upper secondary leaving certificate. The Danish agency for higher education publishes a list of foreign qualifications that give access to higher education, country by country.

On top of that, most programmes have specific requirements: particular subjects passed at a given level, such as Mathematics. The institution checks whether your subjects match, which is one reason to apply early.

Quota 1 and quota 2

Places are split into two quotas, and where there are more applicants than places, each quota is filled differently.

• Quota 1 ranks applicants by grade point average alone. If you have a foreign diploma, you are considered in quota 1 as well, provided your average can be converted to the Danish scale.
• Quota 2 uses criteria each institution sets: grades in certain subjects, an admission test or interview, work experience, a motivation letter. This is where a foreign applicant can show more than an average.

Denmark grades on a 7-point scale whose top mark is 12. The quota 1 cut-off is the average of the last applicant admitted. Many programmes take everyone who qualifies; competitive ones such as Medicine or International Business sit above 10. You can compare the last three years by field on our page of entry scores in Denmark. A cut-off describes last year, not a promise for the next.

Step by step

1. Shortlist programmes and read their specific requirements and language rules.
2. Check that your diploma gives access, and book an English test (and Studieprøven, for Danish-taught study).
3. Apply on Optagelse.dk when it opens in early February, ranking up to 8 choices.
4. Submit before the mid-March deadline. It applies to everyone with a foreign or international diploma, including the IB, to all quota 2 applicants and to programmes with an admission test. The later July deadline is only for applicants with a Danish diploma applying on their average.
5. Take any admission test or interview the institution invites you to.
6. Answers arrive in late July. Accept the offer by the date given.
7. If you are not a citizen of the EU, the EEA or Switzerland, apply for a residence permit for study straight after.

If you are not an EU citizen

Non-EU students need a residence permit from SIRI, the Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration, applied for with the admission letter. You pay a case fee, show that you can support yourself and normally pay tuition. The figures are in how much it costs to study in Denmark; see also our student visa overview.

Where to look next

• How much it costs to study in Denmark
• All 582 programmes in Denmark, by city and field

Official sources

• Optagelse.dk: the national application portal
• Study in Denmark: how to apply: Ministry of Higher Education and Science
• Study in Denmark: language requirements
• Foreign qualifications for entry: Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science

Always check current information on the official website of the university before you apply.