University of Copenhagen: admission for international applicants

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) teaches all of its bachelor programmes in Danish, so the real entry bar for an applicant from abroad is Danish, not English. If you hold a foreign or international exam, you apply through optagelse.dk and submit the online application with all documents before 15 March at 12:00.

UCPH puts it bluntly on its admission page: it only offers bachelor programmes taught in Danish, and applicants must show the highest level in Danish or documented academic Danish. There is no English-taught bachelor to fall back on. The five facts below are what an applicant from abroad needs first.

Quota 1 is the route for applicants whose grade average is converted and ranked against the programme cut-off; quota 2 is the route with UCPH's own assessment through a test and an interview. The next chapters explain both. This chapter only flags what decides most applications before a grade is read.

How many people apply, and how many get a place

These are 2026 statistics, shown for scale and not as a rule for 2027. UCPH reports that 6,710 applicants were offered a place on a bachelor programme on 28 July 2026. 18,118 applicants had submitted 33,933 applications. These totals give no overall admit rate and no split by nationality, so this report does not state one.

The rules that catch international applicants out

• Danish for everyone with a foreign exam. UCPH says all applicants with foreign and international examinations need to fulfil Danish language qualifications, which means academic language skills in Danish.
• Diplomas from outside the EU/EEA. With an upper secondary education from a non-EU/EEA and non-Nordic country, you are only able to apply through quota 2.
• UK diplomas. From 2025 it is no longer possible to apply through quota 1 with a UK upper secondary education.
• No Danish CPR number. Without a civil registration (CPR) number you cannot sign with MitID, the Danish digital ID, so you print, sign, scan and email the signature page to optagelse@ku.dk by 15 March at 12:00.
• Citizenship. UCPH states that citizenship is not relevant for the admission rules; it matters for residence permits and tuition.

The sections that follow cover the Danish requirement first and in the most detail, because it is the gate that most applicants from abroad fail to plan for.

The University of Copenhagen says it is the highest-ranking university in Denmark, and its own rankings page lists it at 90 in the QS 2027 world table and 81 in the THE 2027 world table. These are UCPH's own figures, not read from the publishers' pages, so this report does not list an overall position of its own.

UCPH's rankings page reports its position in the Shanghai ranking (ARWU), the CWTS Leiden Ranking, QS and Times Higher Education (THE). On that page it describes itself as the highest-ranking university in Denmark and as often the highest-ranking one in the Nordic region. Read every number below as what the university reports about itself.

A ranking is a weak guide for an applicant who cannot study in English anyway. It tells you about research output and reputation across the whole university, not about the Danish-language bachelor you would join. Use it to place UCPH among Nordic and European research universities, then judge the programme on its admission rules and content.

History and size

UCPH was founded in 1479. It describes itself as Denmark's largest educational institution, with six faculties, 36 departments and more than 200 research centres, and four campuses in Copenhagen and one in Taastrup.

Its facts page, updated with 2025 figures, lists 36,758 students and 10,738 employees, of whom 6,237 are researchers. The profile page rounds differently, at 37,000 students and 10,000 employees. Treat both as the same order of size, not as two conflicting counts.

Nobel Prizes

UCPH reports that 10 Nobel Prizes have been awarded to researchers at the university.

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) gives no acceptance rate in its 2026 bachelor statistics; what it gives is that 18,118 applicants submitted 33,933 applications and that 6,710 applicants were offered a place on 28 July 2026. Among the programmes tabled below, quota 1 cut-offs in 2026 ran from open admission to 11,1.

Applications and applicants are different counts: one applicant can submit several applications, so the two totals above cannot be turned into a chance of admission, and we do not calculate one. UCPH's bachelor statistics list cut-off, standby, admitted, quota split, applications, age and gender per programme. They contain no admit rate and no split by nationality, so we cannot say how international applicants fared. All figures in this chapter are 2026 statistics and describe what happened in 2026, not what 2027 will require.

What a cut-off is

The Danish term is adgangskvotient, which we call the cut-off; in the table below it is the quota 1 figure. It is a result, not a rule written in advance: UCPH says it only knows a round's cut-off when all applications have been received and processed, which is 28 July, the day applicants also get their answer.

Cut-offs change from year to year, depending on how many people apply and what their averages are, and UCPH says earlier years are only a pointer (fingerpeg). Two limits matter for an applicant from abroad. The grade requirement of 6.0 is a requirement, but it does not replace the quota 1 cut-off, which is often higher than 6,0. And a cut-off is the lowest admitted grade in a past round, not a minimum you can rely on and not the level of a typical admitted student.

2026 cut-offs for the programmes applicants ask about

UCPH's statistics use Danish notation: a comma is the decimal point and a dot separates thousands. The cut-off column is the quota 1 figure on the Danish grading scale.

The spread is wide. Molecular Biomedicine and Psychology sit above 11,0, while Computer Science admitted every qualified applicant. UCPH's 2026 statistics also show Mathematics, Chemistry and English with no cut-off (all admitted), and others far lower than the headline programmes, for example Biochemistry at 7,6 and Geography and Geoinformatics at 7,0. Read each figure as the 2026 result for that one programme.

Why the quota split matters for international applicants

The split column shows how places were divided between quota 1, which rests on your converted grade average, and quota 2, which is the assessment route. Medicine took 90% / 10% in 2026 and Psychology 80% / 20%. If your diploma is from a non-EU/EEA and non-Nordic country and is not an IB or EB, or is from the UK, quota 2 is the only route open to you, so the quota 2 share of places is the part of the table that applies to you. The quota 2 chapter explains how those places are assessed.

A bachelor place at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) is awarded through quota 1, which ranks your converted grade average and needs 6.0 or higher, or through quota 2, which judges a test and an interview. When you apply before 15 March at 12:00, your application is automatically linked to quota 2 and, where quota 1 applies to you, to quota 1 as well.

Which quota you can use depends on your diploma, not on your nationality. Applicants from the EU/EEA member countries are evaluated on equal terms as applicants with a Danish upper secondary school examination both in quota 1 and quota 2, and the same holds for Nordic applicants and for holders of an International Baccalaureate (IB) or European Baccalaureate (EB). A diploma from a non-EU/EEA and non-Nordic country means quota 2 only, and a vocational secondary education is not eligible for admission via quota 1.

Quota 1: the converted grade average

In quota 1 your foreign exam counts through its converted grade average. For a foreign exam that can be converted (UCPH names only Scandinavian and EU/EEA countries), the converted average must be 6.0 or higher. If it is 5.9 or less, you can only apply through quota 2. Clearing 6.0 only lets you into the ranking: the programme's cut-off, often higher, decides whether you are admitted.

Applicants with Nordic, EU/EEA, IB or EB qualifications are evaluated on equal terms as applicants with a Danish upper secondary exam, both in quota 1 and quota 2.

Quota 2: test and interview

Quota 2 is the route for applicants whose diploma does not qualify for quota 1. The overall assessment rests mainly on the interview and less on the test and the grades. Each programme's admission committee sets how the criteria are weighted, and each programme has its own interview questions.

If quota 1 also applies to you, UCPH links your application to quota 1 automatically, where the programme's cut-off decides.

Standby

Standby is a waiting list for quota 1 applicants who mark it and whose average is just under the cut-off. UCPH's 2023 example is Anthropology, with a cut-off of 10,5 and a standby cut-off of 10,1 (2023 statistics, shown only as an example). To request standby you must meet the admission requirements by 5 July at 12. If no place is offered by 15 August, the standby place becomes a commitment to admission the following year, and you must apply again so UCPH knows you are still interested.

Quota 2 at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) has two stages: a test taken in Danish and then an interview. In 2026 the pass mark for the test was 25 points out of 60 points, but popular programmes needed far more to be invited to interview. The test and the interview belong to quota 2.

UCPH states that applicants who have not participated in and passed the quota 2 test will not be considered for admission. If you apply with a diploma that only qualifies for quota 2, the test is therefore the first hurdle. The quota 2 process consists of a quota 2 test and a quota 2 interview; quota 1 rests on the converted grade average instead.

The quota 2 test

The test is in Danish and consists of language-related and mathematical-logical tasks. Each of its six categories is scored from 0 to 10 and all six count equally, so the maximum is 60 points.

UCPH's page gives only the months: sign-up opens in March (date to follow), and the test is held in April (date to follow), at UCPH's exam house in Copenhagen or online. It does not give exact dates for the quota 2 test, so check the page after you have applied.

Taking the test from abroad

You can take the test online if UCPH approves it. You must document at least one criterion, for example that you live abroad (or on an island without a bridge) or that you are abroad on all the days the tests are held (minimum ét af følgende kriterier). Online tests are supervised with the Observer software, which records your webcam, microphone and computer activity (Observer).

2026 test scores to reach the interview

In 2026, 7.288 applicants took the test (UCPH writes thousands with a dot). The pass mark was 25 points, but the score needed to be invited to interview depends on the programme and on how many applied. The table shows the 2026 minimum scores for two programmes. They are 2026 statistics, not minimums you can plan around.

The interview: written and oral

For written quota 2 interviews, you get three rounds and 90 minutes in total, with 1.500 characters including spaces for each round. Four programmes use an oral interview instead: Forest and Landscape Engineering, Dental Hygiene, Theatre and Performance Studies and Veterinary Medicine. An oral interview lasts about 20 minutes and runs over Zoom or on campus, depending on the programme.

Oral interviews take place in May and June, and you can answer in Danish, Norwegian or Swedish (dansk, norsk eller svensk). English is not on that list. Musicology adds its own compulsory admission test in elementary musical skills on top of the general requirements (obligatorisk adgangsprøve).

SAT, ACT and other standardised tests

The two routes UCPH describes rest on a converted grade average in quota 1 and on UCPH's own quota 2 test and interview in quota 2, so plan on those rather than on a SAT or ACT score.

You apply to the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) on optagelse.dk, which opens on 1 February. With a foreign or international exam the deadline is 15 March at 12:00 CET in both quota 1 and quota 2; UCPH gives answers on 28 July and you must accept by 2 August.

These are standing dates: UCPH's pages state them without a year, and we repeat them the same way. Applicants with a Danish exam have a different quota 1 deadline (5 July at 12 in quota 1), so ignore any page that gives 5 July as the application deadline if your exam is foreign or international. UCPH's Danish deadline page says 15 March at 12 in quota 2 and for all applicants with a foreign or international exam applying in quota 1.

Documents you upload

UCPH's checklist for applicants with foreign or international exams starts with a copy of your original diploma and a transcript of records issued by the school, listing all the courses you have had. You also upload documentation of passed Danish language qualifications (Studieprøven i dansk som andetsprog or Dansk A); the Danish chapter explains what that means. Citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA, including Great Britain, also add documentation of residence permit.

Documents must be official, signed and stamped by the issuing school or institution. Anything not in one of the major European languages or in Norwegian or Swedish must come with officially translated and certified copies, attached in addition to the original. You can list up to eight programmes on optagelse.dk, at UCPH and at other institutions.

Without a Danish CPR number

If you have no Danish civil registration (CPR) number, you cannot sign with MitID. After you approve your application you get a signature page; print it, sign it and email it as an attachment to optagelse@ku.dk. The deadline is 15 March at 12:00.

If your final results come late

UCPH says you have until 5 July at 12:00 to fulfil the admission requirements. If you come straight from secondary school and do not receive your results by then, you may submit your diplomas until 15 August. For that you must hand in, with your application and before 15 March at 12:00, a letter from the school confirming that it will examine you before 5 July but will receive your documentation later.

Answer, acceptance and start

The answer appears on Mit KU on 28 July at 00:00, and UCPH reminds you to say yes or no to your place by 2 August. Enrolment to the bachelor programmes happens once a year, in September. Medicine is the exception: it enrols in September and in February. Teaching starts in the first week of September (første uge i september).

Preliminary assessment for admission in 2027

If your exam is not Danish, you can ask UCPH for a preliminary assessment of whether you meet the admission requirements for a programme. For admission in 2027, UCPH's page gives the application period as 2 September - 22 October, so a request made after 22 October falls outside the period UCPH gives.

The assessment is not a substitute for applying: with a foreign or international exam you must still apply by 15 March at 12:00, and you have until 5 July at 12:00 to fulfil the admission requirements. The assessment only applies to the 2027 admission, and the ministry's executive order may change between the assessment and your application.

Danish is the real language gate at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH): the teaching language is Danish, so UCPH makes Dansk A an admission requirement for all bachelor programmes, and every applicant must document Danish. One route is the Studieprøven i dansk som andetsprog, passed with at least grade 02 in each of its three parts.

UCPH separates two things that sound alike. The specific admission requirement of Danish A, meaning your native language at the highest level, is not the same as the Danish language qualifications. Both are asked of you, and this chapter is about the second one, the Danish language qualifications that applicants with foreign exams have to document.

Ways to document Danish

Bilingualism does not count. UCPH states that being bilingual with Danish, speaking it at home or on holidays in Denmark cannot be considered to fulfil the requirement. A request to have other Danish qualifications recognised has the deadline 15 March at 12:00.

Medicine, Dentistry and Dental Hygiene need grade 7

Four UCPH programmes set a higher bar on the Studieprøven: Medicine in Copenhagen, Medicine in Køge, Dentistry (odontologi) and Dental Hygiene (tandpleje). For them you must pass with the grade 7 in each part of the test. UCPH's English page words it the same way: at least grade 7 in each of the three disciplines.

Who is exempt, and how IB Danish counts

Students from the Nordic countries who had Danish, Norwegian or Swedish in upper secondary school are not required to pass a Danish language test; students from Iceland are.

With the International Baccalaureate, Danish A1 HL and Danish A Literature HL (Danish A1 HL, Danish A Literature HL) count as Dansk A. Several other IB Danish courses count as Danish qualifications if you also have English A or your own native language A. If your Language A HL or SL, or your B HL, is not Danish, Norwegian or Swedish, you must pass the Danish language test or document your qualifications in Danish in another way; Danish B HL usually gives an exemption.

Where to take the Studieprøven

In Copenhagen the test is offered by UCplus and Speak School of Danish. Plan for it before you apply: UCPH asks for documentation of passed Danish qualifications in your application.

The programme pages of the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) list English B as a school subject at the Danish level, and the English degree asks for English A. Cambridge C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency can meet English B, but UCPH says you cannot meet it with TOEFL or IELTS. No bachelor programme is taught in English, so English is a smaller hurdle than Danish.

Dansk A is an admission requirement for all bachelor programmes, and the programme pages add English as a subject: Economics, Psychology and Computer Science and Economics list Engelsk B, while the English degree asks for Engelsk A. For an EU/EEA diploma UCPH assesses your native language, English language and Danish language, and for certain programmes an additional language as well.

If you use a Cambridge certificate, you must document it by 5 July at 12 noon at the latest (senest in Danish).

How IB English maps

For the International Baccalaureate, UCPH assesses your native language at the highest level, corresponding to Danish A, and English on B-level. IB English B at standard level counts as Engelsk B (English B, standard level (SL)), while English A courses and English B at higher level count as Engelsk A.

Some programmes need a further language

Some programmes ask for a language beyond Danish and English. UCPH says it assesses an additional language for certain programmes. History, for example, asks for Dansk A, Engelsk B and one foreign language (French or German as beginner A or continuing B, Spanish A, or another foreign language A).

English-taught options

UCPH states that all bachelor's programmes are taught in Danish, so the programme information is in Danish only. It points to its master's level for English-language study: 54 master's degree programmes and more than 500 courses taught in English. Even in a Danish-taught degree you will read in English: on Medicine, UCPH says teaching is mainly in Danish, some teachers speak English, and you read many academic texts in English.

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) decides your route by the country where you completed your education, not by your passport: only an EU/EEA or Nordic diploma, an IB or a European Baccalaureate can use quota 1, while UK, US and other non-EU/EEA diplomas go through quota 2. UCPH says that the country where you have completed your education, and not your nationality or citizenship, determines what rules apply to you.

EU/EEA certificates

The general requirement is accomplished upper secondary (high) school education. UCPH lists examples that qualify, among them the Polish Swiadectwo Dojrzalosci / Matura, the German Zeugnis der Allgemeinen Hochschulreife (Abitur), the French Baccalauréat general and the Italian Diploma di Maturitá. For quota 1 you need a grade average equivalent to the Danish 6.0 or more, and UCPH converts your grades to the Danish scale. Check how your own grades convert before you count on quota 1. Applications from Switzerland are processed within the same rules.

If no grade average can be calculated, for example with a vocational education, UCPH makes an individual assessment to decide whether you qualify to apply through quota 2. Even if your exam is listed, UCPH tells you to double-check with the Guidance and Admissions Office, because important details may not be listed.

International Baccalaureate and other international diplomas

IB, European Baccalaureate and OIB holders can apply through both quota 1 and quota 2. The general requirement is a completed IB Diploma with Diploma Programme results, plus a grade average equivalent to the Danish 6.0 or more, with your IB points converted to the Danish scale. An IB Certificate qualifies only with minimum 18 points and at least grade 3 in all your six courses and after supplementary courses. If you apply straight from the IB exam, give UCPH access to your results through your IB coordinator before 1 May, using institutional code 002600. For the European Baccalaureate and the OIB you need to check how it is assessed.

United Kingdom

UCPH asks for at least 9 subjects (GCSE, AS and A-level) including at least 6 different subjects and at least 3 A-levels. The 3 A-levels can alternatively be 2 A-levels plus 2 AS-levels or 1 A-level plus 4 AS-levels. If your prior learning is not based on the GCSE system, admission is based on 2 subjects at AS-level and 3 subjects at A-level, in a minimum of 5 different subjects. The same rules also apply to IGCSE and international GCE AS and A-level. From 2025 it is no longer possible to apply through quota 1 with a UK education, so quota 2 is the only route.

United States and other countries outside the EU/EEA

For the US, UCPH names a High School Graduation Diploma plus 1 year of higher education studies or supplementary courses, or plus 3 Advanced Placement tests within academic subjects. In these country rules, A level and B level are Danish levels: A level subjects are Advanced level and B level subjects are intermediate level, not British A-levels.

Brazil and China (with the Gao Kao) also need 1 year of higher education studies or supplementary courses, and a Turkish Lise diploma from before 2009 needs the same (Lise Diplomasi (8+4 years) is enough from 2009). With an upper secondary education from a non-EU/EEA and non-Nordic country you are only able to apply through quota 2, which means you must participate in and pass the quota 2 test.

Whose rules apply

UCPH converts your results to Danish subjects and levels under rules set by the Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education. The Agency's information on foreign qualifications is updated every year at the beginning of March, so changes can come shortly before the application deadline.

Besides a qualifying exam, each bachelor programme at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) lists school subjects you must have passed at Danish levels A, B or C, and the list differs by programme: Psychology needs Mathematics B, Economics needs Mathematics A, and some programmes need an average of 7,0 inside a subject. UCPH's programme pages state the requirement per programme, and UCPH warns that specific requirements may vary from one bachelor programme to another.

The levels are Danish ones: A (advanced level), B (intermediate level) and C (elementary level). Your transcript must show the level you reached in each relevant subject (for example A-level, O-level or AP), the number of years you studied it and, in some cases, the number of taught hours in the subject. The general requirement on a programme page, for example Economics, is a qualifying exam with mindst 6,0 i gennemsnit (an average of at least 6,0) or a qualifying exam with a passed UCPH quota 2 test. Danish uses a comma as the decimal point.

Three details change the picture. The grade minimum applies to the subject, not to your overall average. For Physics the Physics B average of at least 7,0 falls away if you have passed Physics A (ikke et karakterkrav, no grade requirement). Cognitive Data Science asks, from admission in 2026, for at least 7,0 in Mathematics A plus Chemistry B or Biotechnology A.

Humanities and the Asian studies exceptions

Humanities programmes add language and history subjects. Philosophy, for example, asks for Danish A, English B, one history subject at B level and one further language or Communication/IT A, and English (the degree) asks for English A. Asian Studies (Chinese) asks for Chinese A with at least 10,0 on average or, as an alternative, preparatory teaching on the programme.

Dental Hygiene and Musicology

Dental Hygiene (tandplejer) has no further subject requirements. In quota 1 it needs a qualifying upper secondary exam with at least 6,0, and in quota 2 one with at least 2,0. Musicology is not covered by the 6.0 rule at all (ikke omfattet af kravet om mindst 6.0), and it adds a compulsory admission test in elementary musical skills.

If a subject is missing

If you do not meet the specific requirements, you can supplement them. All documentation for the requirements must be uploaded in your optagelse.dk application no later than 5 July at 12:00 in the year you apply. Grades from a supplement count in the quota 2 grade criterion only if UCPH has received them before the quota 2 deadline of 15 March at 12.

You can also ask UCPH to recognise equivalent qualifications from other education. UCPH notes that the deadline for that request is 15 March at 12, even if you apply in quota 1.

Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) are among the hardest places to win from abroad, because they combine high cut-offs with the strictest Danish bar. In 2026, Medicine in Copenhagen had a quota 1 cut-off of 10,5 with 496 students admitted, Dentistry 10,9 and Veterinary Medicine 9,7.

Studieprøven, UCPH's Danish-as-a-second-language exam, has to be passed with the grade 7 in each of the test's parts for Medicine in Copenhagen, Medicine in Køge, Dentistry and Dental Hygiene. UCPH's page does not name Veterinary Medicine in that rule, so for Veterinary Medicine the standard Danish requirement from the Danish chapter applies. Danish decides first whether you can apply here at all.

These figures describe 2026. They are what happened in one round, not minimums. Read the quota split as the share of places: in Dentistry and Veterinary Medicine half of the places went through quota 2, which is the only route if your diploma is from a non-EU/EEA and non-Nordic country (unless it is an IB or EB) or from the UK.

What Medicine asks for

The general requirement is a qualifying exam with mindst 6,0 i gennemsnit (an average of at least 6,0) or a qualifying exam with a passed UCPH quota 2 test. The subjects for Medicine in Copenhagen are Danish A, English B, Mathematics A and one of four science combinations: Physics B and Chemistry B; Physics B and Biotechnology A; Chemistry B and Geoscience A; or Chemistry B, Biology A and Physics C. UCPH's programme pages for Veterinary Medicine and Molecular Biomedicine list the same subject sets.

For Medicine, UCPH gives the deadline for applicants with further documentation as quota 1 and quota 2: 15 March at 12, the same day as the 15 March at 12:00 deadline for foreign or international exams.

Start dates and size

Medicine admits once a year but starts twice: half of those admitted start in September and the other half in February, and you cannot change the start date you are given. The bachelor lasts tre år (three years) with all courses compulsory. UCPH puts a Copenhagen year group at just under 500 students; Dentistry has 100 students a year group.

Veterinary Medicine and the oral interview

Veterinary Medicine is one of four programmes where the quota 2 interview is oral rather than written (Veterinærmedicin), so you should expect a live interview if you are invited. The oral interview lasts about 20 minutes and runs over Zoom or on campus, depending on the programme.

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) lists 75 bachelor's degree programmes, all taught in Danish, and most follow the same structure of three years of bachelor study at 60 ECTS credits a year. UCPH's students facts page, updated with 2025 figures, counts 20,260 bachelor's students.

Students at the Maersk Tower, University of Copenhagen

UCPH says the study structure follows a 3+2+3 structure: three years of undergraduate studies lead to a bachelor's degree, two more to a master's and three more to a PhD, and only a few degrees differ from this model. A full year is 60 ECTS, the European credit system. If you come from a country with a different school system, this is the part of the Danish model that maps most easily onto your own plans.

The language of teaching

As UCPH puts it, all bachelor's degree programmes at UCPH are taught in Danish, which is why programme information is in Danish only. Medicine illustrates the pattern: teaching is primært på dansk (mainly in Danish), you can meet teachers who speak English, and you read many academic texts in English. Plan to study, read and write in Danish.

Examples of programmes and their size

The list covers law, economics, political science, psychology, medicine, the natural sciences and the humanities. Cognitive Data Science and Machine Learning and Data Science are on the list. The bars show how many new students each of several programmes admitted in 2026; they are 2026 statistics, not a fixed capacity.

UCPH puts Veterinary Medicine at 175 students a year group. Pharmacy runs for three years: compulsory courses in the first 5 semesters, then electives and the bachelor project in semester 6.

Dropout and completion

UCPH's own tables give two context figures: 9,6 % of bachelor's students dropped out in the first year, and 39 % of undergraduate students completed in the prescribed time (UCPH writes percentages with a comma). They are institution-wide, not per programme, and do not describe international students separately.

This chapter gives no employment rate or salary figure for University of Copenhagen (UCPH) bachelor graduates, so no number here can tell you what a graduate earns. What UCPH publishes is a mix of programme statements, a sector split for one master's programme and a set of career services for students, including international ones.

Treat these as the university's own characterisation. They are not employment statistics, they do not separate international graduates, and the Political Science split describes master's graduates, not bachelor's graduates.

Career support during your studies

The UCPH Job & Project Portal brings students and businesses together, and students can also use faculty-based or external talent programmes and services. UCPH recommends internships: in Denmark an internship is popular and, in some cases, can result in permanent employment. UCPH also stresses networking, because many positions in private businesses are not advertised.

International students and jobs in Denmark

UCPH offers job-search and networking advice for international alumni and graduates from 5 career experts and counsellors in videos. It also says that working with a company during your studies often leads to full-time employment after graduation, for both Danish and international students.

Two points are worth knowing before you apply. A Danish-taught degree prepares you for a Danish-language labour market, so your Danish level matters beyond admission. For a post-study work permit, check the residence permit chapter and the Danish authorities' pages for the conditions that apply to your citizenship.

Tuition at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) depends on your citizenship and residence permit, not on where you studied: UCPH says that 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. Living in Copenhagen is estimated by UCPH at EUR 1,280-1,800 per month.

Two more exemptions appear on UCPH's fees page: having become an EU citizen or enjoying equality of treatment with an EU citizen under the EU Residence Order, and holding a permanent residence permit in one of the other Nordic countries. Your passport nationality is not an admission criterion, but it is the first thing that decides what you pay.

How much the tuition is

UCPH states that tuition fees vary depending on the programme and that the tuition fee is for 60 ECTS, a full study year. The amount for each programme sits in a programme selector on UCPH's fees page, so open that page, pick your programme and read the amount for your own case before you budget.

UCPH charges an application deposit to master's applicants who are citizens from outside EU/EEA or Switzerland (DKK 1,120 (app. EUR 150)), but that rule is stated for master's programmes only.

Living costs and rent

UCPH estimates EUR 1,280-1,800 per month for living in Copenhagen. It warns that accommodation is very expensive, with rent ranging from 4,000 to 10,000 DKK a month and higher. It is also common practice in Denmark to pay 3 months' rent in advance, typically saved as the rent for the last three months, plus a deposit equal to three months' rent. Books are an extra cost: the Law page tells you to expect about 3.500 kr. on books each semester (a dot separates thousands in Danish).

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) offers no scholarship for foreign bachelor students: its bachelor admission page says it does not offer financial support or scholarships to foreign students. The main Danish scholarship it runs is for master's applicants only, and the Danish state grant SU requires equal status with Danish citizens, a CPR number and MitID.

For scholarship information UCPH sends you to the Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education. Plan a bachelor in Copenhagen as self-funded unless you qualify for the state grant or for an outside scholarship tied to your own country.

Danish Government Scholarship: master's only

The Danish Government Scholarship is granted as full or partial tuition fee waivers and/or an amount that covers basic living expenses. To be eligible you must be a citizen of a country outside the EU, EEA or Switzerland admitted to a master's degree programme at the University of Copenhagen. It does not apply to a bachelor, so it is useful only if you plan to continue at UCPH for a master's degree after the bachelor.

SU, the Danish state education grant

SU is monthly financial support from the Danish state to cover living expenses, and a loan is available on top. As a non-Danish citizen you must apply for equal status with Danish citizens, meeting specific requirements under EU law or Danish rules. To apply and receive SU you must have a Danish civil registration number (CPR number) and MitID.

UCPH adds two limits. If you start your degree programme on 1 July 2025 or later, the new rules apply to you, and you receive a maximum of 58 months of SU for your degrees; UCPH says those rules take effect in January 2027. You can work while receiving SU, but you are subject to an earnings ceiling calculated monthly and annually.

External scholarships

UCPH points to a list of scholarships for full degree students. An example is the Fulbright Commission, whose scholarship covers all graduate degree levels and all fields of study for American citizens. Check the level of each scholarship before you plan around it.

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) warns that accommodation in Copenhagen is very expensive, with rent from 4,000 to 10,000 DKK a month and higher. The squeeze is hardest in July, August and September, so start the search as soon as you are admitted.

Housing Foundation Copenhagen is an independent organisation that helps international students enrolled at the University of Copenhagen find housing. Its automatic offer is for exchange students: all exchange students automatically receive an invitation to apply for accommodation through it. A degree student should not assume the same invitation.

Rent, advance payment and deposit

Danish rental practice asks for cash up front. It is common to pay 3 months' rent in advance, typically held as the rent for the last three months of the contract, plus a deposit equal to three months' rent. Together that means the first payment can be several times the monthly rent, so budget for it before you book a flight.

How to search, and how to avoid scams

Housing is hard to find, especially in July, August and September. Look at areas outside the centre, such as Vanløse, Brønshøj, Rødovre, Hvidovre, Sydhavn, Ydre Amager and Søborg. View the property before you sign a rental contract, and transfer the deposit and rent via your bank and never pay in cash.

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) describes 5,500 international students out of a student body of 37,000, and the city around it runs on bikes: 62% of residents ride a bike daily to work or school, according to UCPH. Bachelor teaching is still in Danish.

Engraving of King Christian I founding the University of Copenhagen in 1479

The 5,500 figure covers all international students at UCPH, and UCPH's own wording is a strong international environment. It does not say how many are on a Danish-taught bachelor. The university's 2025 internationalisation table is more specific: 4,369 foreign students on full degrees, of whom 990 were fee-paying. Both are context for scale, not a count of bachelor applicants.

Life in Copenhagen

UCPH tells new students they will join the 62% of the city's residents who ride a bike daily to work or school, and notes that only 9% drive. Winters are cold, about 0 to 5 degrees Celsius, often with snow. Other Danish cities are close: UCPH says the train between Copenhagen and Aarhus takes less than three hours.

Onboarding and support

New students are invited to an orientation when they begin, with practical information and tools for the academic, cultural and personal side of the move.

To study at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) you must have a valid residence permit for studies in Denmark; without a valid permit you cannot enrol or continue your studies. UCPH states that rule first and then splits it by citizenship: Nordic citizens need no permit; citizens of a visa-free non-EU/EEA/Nordic country need a residence permit to stay more than 90 days, and citizens with a visa requirement may need both a residence permit and a visa.

Citizens of countries outside the EU/EEA and the Nordic countries

UCPH says the residence permit process typically takes two to three months, and you must pay an application deposit fee. Citizens of a visa-free country need the permit to stay more than 90 days. If your nationality has a visa requirement, you may need both a residence permit and a visa, depending on the length of your stay.

Plan the timeline backwards. Admission answers come on 28 July, the permit takes months, and classes start in September, so a non-EU/EEA applicant should be ready to return documents quickly. Read the fee amount, any visa fee and your work-hour limit on the Danish immigration authority's own pages.

Work rights while studying

Nordic and EU/EEA and Swiss citizens do not need a work permit for student jobs. For everyone else, the permit tells you how many hours a week you may work, and you are typically only allowed to work for a limited number of hours during the semester. Take the hour limit from your own permit.

The University of Copenhagen (UCPH) suits an applicant who can document academic Danish, because all bachelor programmes are taught in Danish and require the highest level in Danish or documentation for academic language skills in Danish. If you cannot meet that requirement, UCPH's bachelor is not the right door, and its English-taught master's programmes may be.

Who it suits and who it does not

• It suits applicants who can pass Studieprøven or otherwise document Danish, who have a diploma that fits a route, and who are comfortable studying, reading and writing in Danish. UCPH makes Dansk A an admission requirement for all bachelor programmes and requires every applicant to document Danish.
• It does not suit an applicant who wants an English-taught bachelor, because UCPH has none, or who cannot document Danish by the requirement dates.
• Your diploma decides your route. UCPH states that the country where you have completed your education, and not your nationality or citizenship, determines what rules apply to you. With an upper secondary education from a non-EU/EEA and non-Nordic country, you are only able to apply through quota 2.
• Your citizenship decides your cost. 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, and UCPH does not offer financial support or scholarships to foreign students.

Next steps for entry in autumn 2027

Enrolment then happens once a year, in September. Check each date on UCPH's own pages when you apply, because the dates on the pages carry no year and UCPH can change them.

What UCPH points to instead

UCPH tells bachelor seekers who cannot meet the Danish requirement that it offers a wide range of master's degree programmes taught in English, and its pages count 54 master's degree programmes and more than 500 courses taught in English. If an English-taught bachelor is what you need, search other universities' programmes; this report covers only the University of Copenhagen.

Official pages of University of Copenhagen, UCAS, gov.uk and the ranking publishers. Applicant reports, where shown, are self-reported and labelled.

Profile and history – University of Copenhagen · Facts and figures – University of Copenhagen · What is student life like at the University of Copenhagen? · Students – facts and figures – University of Copenhagen · Admission Requirements for Non-EU EEA and Non-Nordic Countries · Admission requirements for a bachelor's degree programme at UCPH · Kvote 2-vurdering og -resultater - Københavns Universitet · How Much Are Tuition Fees? Costs for Master’s at UCPH · Admission Requirements for EU-EEA countries · Quota 1 and 2: How to apply for a bachelor at UCPH · Rankings – facts and figures – University of Copenhagen · Optagelsesstatistik 2026 på KU's bacheloruddannelser · Kvote 1, standby og adgangskrav - Københavns Universitet · Statistik og tal - Københavns Universitet · Quota 2 - University of Copenhagen · Kvote 2 på KU - forstå processen og få hjælp til din ansøgning · Bachelor: Frister og vigtige datoer - Københavns Universitet · Bliv klar til kvote 2-prøven på Københavns Universitet · Gik du videre fra kvote 2-prøven? Læs om kvote 2-interview på KU · Bachelor i musikvidenskab - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Ansøgning og optagelse - Sådan søger du ind på en bachelor på KU · Preliminary assessment of your diploma at the University of Copenhagen · Dansk A og danskkvalifikationer – bliv klar til optagelse på KU · Admission requirements for IB and other international diplomas · Skal du supplere for at opfylde adgangskravene på KU? · Bachelor i økonomi - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i psykologi - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i datalogi-økonomi · Bachelor i engelsk - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i historie - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Economics - Study Programmes on University of Copenhagen · Bachelor i medicin (København) - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i matematik-økonomi · Bachelor i sociologi - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i machine learning og datavidenskab - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i veterinærmedicin · Bachelor i farmaci - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i molekylær biomedicin - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Læs en bachelor i fysik på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i kognitions- og datavidenskab - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i filosofi - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i asienstudier (kinastudier) - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Professionsbachelor i tandpleje - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Bachelor i odontologi - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Study Structure - University of Copenhagen · Bachelor i statskundskab - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Career and job options · Housing - University of Copenhagen · Bachelor i jura - uddannelser på Københavns Universitet · Find scholarships to fund your studies at the University of Copenhagen · State Educational Grant - University of Copenhagen · Living in Copenhagen – housing, costs and student life at University of Copenhagen · Onboarding at the University of Copenhagen · Danish residence permit - University of Copenhagen

Photos: University of Copenhagen buildings on Amager: photo Rasmus81 at Danish Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 2.5, Wikimedia Commons · Students at the Maersk Tower, University of Copenhagen: photo News Oresund, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons · Engraving of King Christian I founding the University of Copenhagen in 1479: photo Statens Arkiver - Danish State Archives, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons