Branches of study

Students in Denmark obtain a master’s degree through a master’s programme (MSc/MA) of 120 ETCS. They usually include one or two of the major fields of study of the bachelor programme. Independent research activities and a master’s thesis of at least 30 ECTS are required. The master’s programmes qualify students for a professional career and for scientific work.

The Qualifications Framework for Danish Higher Education gives following overview of the programme:

Length of master’s programme

The master programme in Denmark is a two-year programme leading to the Candidatus-degree, corresponding to 120 ECTS. In branches such as medicine, the two-year programme is extended to three years.

If the student combines two different specialisations, for example History with Physics with the aim of obtaining qualifications to teach in the upper secondary school, the studies will be prolonged with 30 ECTS.

From 2018 a limited number of part-time Master's degree (MA/MSc) programmes alongside relevant employment will be offered. The lengths of the part time programmes are 4 years.

Overview of branches of study for the master’s programme

The master’s is research-based and provides students a theoretical knowledge. More than the bachelor’s programme, the master focuses on combining theory with the ability to apply it practically. Another characteristic is that the master programme often is more specialised than the bachelor and, thus, the programmes give knowledge to students based on the highest international research within more narrow areas.

The master programmes can be taken in a wide variety of different branches e.g.:

• Humanities (history, advanced migration atudies, African studies)
• Natural sciences (physics, statistics, etc.)
• Social science (economics, business economics, sociology, etc.)
• Law
• Theology
• Health sciences (medicine, human biology, etc.)
• Technical studies (engineering etc.)
• IT (software development, digital innovation and management, etc.)

Admission requirements

Admission to a master's program is a qualifying bachelor program or other relevant Danish or foreign education on the same level. The admission requirements are stipulated in the study program by the universities. Universities cannot admit students at the master programmes before the previous bachelor programme has been completed and passed.

Alternative access routes

Universities can admit students on a master's programme on another basis than the above mentioned if the applicant has corresponding professional qualifications and the university believes that the applicant will be able to complete the programme.

Responsible authority

In general, the universities are responsible for regulating the size of the student population themselves, including the specific number enrolled at each master's programme.

The Ministry of Higher Education and Science can, however, dimension the number of student places available of educational programmes if the programmes have been assessed as having high unemployment rates among graduates for long periods.

Curriculum

Universities have a significant degree of academic freedom and autonomy with regards to the curriculum of the master's programmes.

According to the Act on Universities, the Director of Studies and the universities' Study Boards are responsible for the practical organisation of teaching and assessments forming parts of the exams. The Study Board shall ensure the organisation, realisation and development of educational and teaching activities, including aims to:

• Assure and develop the quality of education and teaching and follow-up on evaluations of education and teaching
• Produce proposals for curricula and changes thereof
• Approve the organization of teaching and assessments forming part of the exams
• Handle applications concerning credit transfer and exemptions
• Make statements on all matters of importance to education and teaching as presented by the Rector or the person authorized by the Rector to do so.

In general the curricula must provide the student knowledge of one or more subject areas which, in selected fields, is based on the highest international research within a subject area.

The master level is generally finalised with a master’s thesis of 30 ECTS. The thesis may, if it has an experimental character, be extended up to 60 ECTS.

In the master’s thesis, the students must document skills in applying academic theory and methods to a specific academic subject.

Curricula in non-national language

In Denmark, a large number of master’s programmes are offered in English with all examinations being conducted in English. These programmes are open to both Danish and foreign students.

Teaching methods

The universities may lay down provisions in the curriculum to the effect that the students are obliged to participate in the teaching.

Teaching can consist of class room teaching, lectures, one-to-one consultation, group work and seminars. Teachers can choose their own teaching methods and materials.

Teaching at master’s programmes is a combination of lectures and smaller group/class teaching. The teaching must encompass methods, which can develop the students’ independence and ability to create innovation.

Teaching style characteristics

• Student-centred learning and open debate during class
• Close collaboration between students and teachers
• Traditional lectures combined with project work with the teacher as a consultant
• Active participation and problem solving rather than passive listening
• Focus on turning new knowledge and learning into innovative solutions

The teaching aims to make the students understand and, on a scientific basis, reflect on the knowledge of the subject area(s) as well as be able to identify scientific issues. It is furthermore aimed that learning on master level must make students able to manage work situations and developments that are complex, unpredictable and require new solution models.

Students on master’s programmes must be able to independently take responsibility for their own professional development and specialisation.

Progression of students

The universities can determine the period students are obliged to complete their studies within. Several universities have determined that students, as a minimum, need to complete 45 ECTS Point within one calendar year.

The educational institutions can make exceptions from the last possible completion date if it is due to unusual reasons.

Rules for examination attempts

First-year students at universities must sit the tests, which the curriculum stipulates are part of the first-year examination before the end of the first year of a programme, in order to continue with the programme. Students who fail this examination may register for a new attempt in August. The tests at the end of the first year must be passed by the end of second year if the student is to continue with the programme.

Students can as a maximum register for this examination three times. The institution may permit enrolment for a fourth and fifth time, if unusual circumstances warrant it. A passed test cannot be retaken by the student.

Employability

Career guidance

There are well established career guidance centres in almost all the universities and university colleges. These offer career guidance to all students and graduates.

Labour market access during study programme

Several master’s programmes on university level encourage for project-based internships as part of the study programme.

The goal of the internship programme is for the student to put the theoretical and methodological qualifications that he/she has acquired throughout the study programme to use in solving assignments on the highest professional level and take on professional functions in a company or institution that is of relevance to the courses the student has taken throughout the study. The internship programme qualifies the student to reflect on and discuss the practical application and implications of these theories.

Besides internships, it is very common for master students to hold part-time jobs while studying. Some of the academic institutions have online job banks or career centres that assist the student in finding a relevant job.

Student assessment

The main objective of examinations and tests are to assess whether, and to what extent, the students’ qualifications comply with the objectives, competences and academic requirements. The master thesis must reflect the skills and competencies, which have been built up during the previous two years of studying on the master's programme.

Examinations in University master’s programmes

Tests have to be individual. Programmes have to contain a variation of different test formats, which have to reflect the content of the teaching and methods. These can be:

• Oral, written and practical tests
• Participation in teaching, courses, practical experiments etc.
• Project oriented courses, perhaps linked to areas outside the university in Denmark, or abroad

In almost all studies, the master thesis is a large report written at the end of the programme. In some fields the hand-in of the thesis must be followed by an oral defence but it varies from study to study.

In the case that two or more students write a paper together, the assessment has to be individual and it has to be evident who has written what part of the paper.

In programmes, which are offered in Danish, tests have to be in Danish, unless it is part of the test's purpose to document the student's skills in a foreign language. However, the tests can be done in Swedish or Norwegian instead of in Danish, unless it is part of the test's purpose to document skills in the Danish language.

If the teaching in a subject has been carried through in a foreign language, the tests also have to be in this language, unless it is part of the test's purpose to document the student's skills in another language. Universities can disregard this rule.

The assessments are based on the seven-point grading scale or a solely pass/fail assessment. All grades attained for the different courses are included in the final degree certificate.

Certification

On completion of the education, the higher education institutions issue a diploma, which indicates the examinations taken and the marks obtained as well as the title/degree awarded. The diploma must contain a description of the programme with an account of its subject-composition.

Students who leave a programme without having passed the final examination are entitled to documentation of the examinations passed.

The university issues certificates for successfully completed programmes. Graduates must receive their certificates within two months of the last test being completed and the result published.

In addition to the graduate’s name and the name of the university, the certificate must at least state:

• The title graduates are entitled to use in Danish and English
• The number of ECTS of the entire programme
• The subjects in which tests have been taken, or which have been documented in some other way, including the number of ECTS
• Tests for which credits have been transferred
• The examination language if the test has been taken in a foreign language
• The assessment obtained and if appropriate, the overall average examination result
• A profile, which describes the programme

Diploma supplement

In an annexe to the certificate, the institutions issue a Diploma Supplement in English, which in accordance with the standard model developed by the European Commission, the Council of Europe and UNESCO/CEPES describes the competence provided by the programme, the contents, level and aim. Also, the Diploma Supplement provides information about the institution, the place of the institution and the programme in the Danish education system.

References

Retsinformation, 2022. Bekendtgørelse om adgang til universitetsuddannelser tilrettelagt på heltid [Order on access to Master’s programmes on universities]. [Online] Available at: https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2022/35 [Accessed 24 June 2022].

Retsinformation 2019. Bekendtgørelse af lov om universiteter (universitetsloven) [Order on Act on universities (the university act)]. [Online] Available at: https://www.retsinformation.dk/eli/lta/2019/778 [Accessed 08 December 2017].

Retsinformation, 2017. Bekendtgørelse om eksamen og censur ved universitetsuddannelser [Order on exams and censorship at university programmes]. [Online] Available at: https://www.retsinformation.dk/forms/R0710.aspx?id=183445 [Accessed 24 June 2022].

Optagelse DK, 2017. Søg videregående uddannelse [Apply for higher education]. [Online] Available at: http://www.optagelse.dk/videregaaende/index.html [Accessed 08 December 2017].

Study in Denmark, 2017. Study Options. [Online] Available at: http://studyindenmark.dk/study-options/study-options [Accessed 16 November 2017]

Study in Denmark, 2017. Teaching Style in Denmark. [Online] Available at: http://studyindenmark.dk/study-options/the-danish-way-of-teaching-1 [Accessed 16 November 2017]