Branches of study

In Denmark, second-cycle higher education now comprises several programme types. Within the university sector, second-cycle programmes include:

• Ordinary full-time Master’s programmes of 120-180 ECTS credits
• New full-time Master’s programmes of 75 ECTS credits
• Part-time Master’s programmes for employed students (erhvervskandidatuddannelser) of 75-120 ECTS credits.

University Master’s programmes are offered across the main academic fields, including humanities, natural sciences, social sciences, law, theology, health sciences, engineering and IT. With the university reform, the second-cycle landscape is being diversified through the gradual introduction of new 75 ECTS programmes and new flexible work-integrated pathways. The first new university programmes under the reform were approved in December 2025 and are being rolled out gradually towards 2032.

In addition, from 2026 Denmark has introduced Professional Master’s programme (professionsmasteruddannelser) as practice-oriented second-cycle programmes of 75 ECTS credits offered in the professional higher education sector and targeted at professional bachelor graduates within welfare professions.

Professionsmaster programmes constitute a separate second-cycle pathway outside the university sector. They are practice-oriented progression programmes for professional bachelor graduates in welfare professions and are designed to strengthen professional practice, professional development and applied knowledge creation. The first two professionsmaster programmes were approved in February 2026 for teachers and pedagogues. Read more about the reform of the professional bachelor’s education programmes in chapter 13.4 National reforms in higher education. 

As professionsmaster programmes are offered in the professional higher education sector and regulated outside the university framework, detailed rules may be described separately where relevant in the national description.

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

Length of the Master’s programme

The Master’s programme (second-cycle) is an independent advanced level programme following the Bachelor’s degree. Traditionally, Master’s programmes consist of 120 ECTS credits, corresponding to two years of full-time study. Some programmes, such as medicine, have a duration of three years (180 ECTS credits).

Following recent higher education reforms, the structure of second-cycle programmes in Denmark has become more diversified. In addition to the traditional 120 ECTS programmes, new Master’s programmes of 75 ECTS credits (corresponding to 1¼ years of full-time study) are being introduced. Furthermore, part-time Master’s programmes for employed students (erhvervskandidatuddannelser) are offered with a typical workload of 75–120 ECTS credits and are organised to be completed alongside relevant employment over a longer period.

In parallel, a new type of second-cycle programme, the professionsmaster, has been introduced in the professional higher education sector. These programmes are practice-oriented and have a standard duration of 75 ECTS credits.

Overview of branches of study for the Master’s programme

Second-cycle programmes in Denmark provide students with both a broad academic foundation and specialised knowledge within a specific field. Within the university sector, Master’s programmes are offered across all main academic disciplines, including:

• Humanities (history, languages, rhetoric etc.);
• Natural sciences (physics, biology etc.);
• Social sciences (economics, sociology, etc.);
• Law;
• Theology;
• Health sciences (medicine, biology etc.);
• Technical studies (engineering etc.);
• IT (software development, data science etc.).

The new Master’s programme formats, including shorter programmes (75 ECTS) and work-integrated pathways (erhvervskandidatuddannelser), are being introduced across several fields, particularly within areas of high labour market demand such as IT and STEM disciplines.

In addition, professionsmaster programmes constitute a separate second-cycle pathway outside the university sector. These programmes are targeted at professional bachelor graduates, primarily within welfare professions such as teaching and pedagogy, and focus on practice-oriented and professionally relevant competencies.

Admission requirements

Admission to university second-cycle programmes requires a relevant Bachelor’s degree or another Danish or foreign qualification at the same level. Universities may also admit applicants on the basis of other educational activities assessed as equivalent to a completed Bachelor’s degree.

The specific admission requirements for each Master’s programme are determined by the individual university and laid down in programme regulations. Universities are also responsible for determining application procedures, including deadlines, and publish relevant information on their websites. A completed Bachelor’s degree gives the student legal entitlement to admission to a qualifying Master’s programme. This entitlement applies provided that:

• The student is admitted no later than three years after completing the Bachelor’s degree;
• The Master’s programme is offered at the same university as the completed Bachelor’s programme;
• The programme is assessed as a relevant continuation of the Bachelor’s degree.

Admission to an erhvervskandidatuddannelse additionally requires relevant parallel employment. According to the 2026 admission order, applicants must hold an employment contract with a public or private employer, and the minimum weekly working time depends on the programme’s ECTS volume and normative duration. The admission order also allows conditional admission if documentation of employment is submitted no later than one month before study start.

If applicants do not have legal entitlement and the number of qualified applicants exceeds the available study places, universities select applicants based on criteria established in advance. The university can admit applicants who have not completed a Bachelor’s programme, if the university assesses that the applicant has completed other educational activities that can be given equal status as a completed Bachelor’s programme.

Professionsmaster programmes are regulated separately. Admission typically requires a relevant professional Bachelor’s degree and may include requirements concerning professional experience.

The responsible authority

In general, higher education institutions are responsible for determining the size of student intake at individual programmes, including the number of students admitted each year.

However, the overall admission capacity is also subject to national regulation through various dimensioning mechanisms that set ceilings on enrolment. These mechanisms are based on different models and political agreements and are used to align the supply of graduates with societal needs and policy priorities.

Dimensioning may take into account factors such as labour market conditions, including the risk of graduate unemployment, as well as geographical considerations and broader structural objectives for the higher education system. In addition, specific regulation may apply to certain types of programmes, for instance with regard to language of instruction or sector-specific priorities.

Within these nationally defined frameworks, the Ministry of Higher Education and Science sets binding limits on admission where relevant, while institutions retain responsibility for allocating study places across programmes and managing admissions at institutional level.

Curriculum

The responsibility for designing curricula differs according to the type of institution providing the programme. In Denmark, second-cycle programmes are offered both by universities and by university colleges, and are regulated within different institutional frameworks.

At universities, the institutions are responsible for drawing up the curriculum and programme regulations for each Master’s programme. This includes defining the aims, scope, duration, structure and content of the programme, as well as the organisation of courses and examinations. These elements are set out in the programme regulations.

Following recent reforms, university curricula are no longer limited to the traditional 120 ECTS format. Depending on the approved programme type, the curriculum may be organised as a 120–180 ECTS full-time programme, a 75 ECTS full-time programme, or a part-time Master’s programme (erhvervskandidatuddannelse) combining study with employment.

Universities may offer courses and entire Master’s programmes in English, with instruction and examinations conducted in English.

Professional Master’s programmes (professionsmasteruddannelser) are offered by university colleges and are regulated separately from university programmes. These programmes are defined as practice-oriented progression programmes based on research, development activities and professional practice. They have a standard scope of 75 ECTS credits, and the overall framework for their curricula is laid down in separate regulations.

Institutions offering second-cycle programmes may offer courses and entire programmes with curricula in English, with instruction and examinations conducted in English.

Teaching methods

Teaching methods in university second-cycle programmes vary by subject area

The course descriptions specify the teaching methods and include lectures, smaller class lectures, group work and project work. In addition, some Master’s programmes also include laboratory work and excursions. This applies for programmes such as molecular medicine, geology, biology etc.

In erhvervskandidat programmes, the programme structure is specifically designed to combine academic study with relevant employment, thereby strengthening the connection between higher education and labour market practice.

Progression of students

Rules for examination attempts

Students in Master’s programmes normally have three examination attempts. The institution may grant additional attempts in exceptional circumstances. Completion requirements and maximum completion periods are laid down in the programme regulations.

Completion of studies

The institutions can determine the period students are obliged to complete their studies within. This will appear from the programme regulations. Many universities have determined that students are to complete their Master’s programme of 120 ECTS within two and a half years or within three years.

For erhvervskandidat students, continuation in the programme depends on continued fulfilment of the employment requirement during the part-time phase. If a student no longer fulfils the employment requirement, the university must generally offer the student transfer to a relevant full-time Master’s programme. Where both 75 and 120 ECTS full-time Master’s routes are available within the field, transfer will generally be to the 75 ECTS route; students on the special combination model covered by section 34 are entitled to transfer to a 120 ECTS full-time Master’s programme.

Employability

Career guidance

Employability has become a more explicit organising principle in Danish second-cycle higher education. The university reform aims to create more flexible routes between study and employment through new 75 ECTS programmes and expanded work-integrated Master’s pathways. The first approved reform programmes include several IT and STEM-oriented programmes, and the long-term political ambition is that by 2032, 20 per cent of Master’s students will enter erhvervskandidat programmes and 10 per cent will enter 75 ECTS Master’s programmes.

Professionsmaster programmes are intended to improve retention and career development within welfare professions by enabling teachers, pedagogues and other professional bachelor graduates to continue their education at second-cycle level without leaving their professional field.

Universities are obliged to offer academic guidance to students and subsequent guidance on employment opportunities. The universities are free to choose their methods and the appropriate staff.

Project-based courses

During Master’s programmes, the students can study a semester abroad and/or participate in a project-based course. The project-based course is an unpaid learning course where the student is affiliated to a business or a public or private organisation. The project-based course can take place either in Denmark or abroad. The students put their knowledge at the business or organisation’s disposal and try out their theoretical and methodological competencies in practice. The individual university determines the academic requirements for the project-based course, including learning goals, guidance, and form of exam.

In addition, it is common for second-cycle students to have part-time jobs while studying, some of these being in work places which are relevant to the content of their study programme.

Student assessment

Assessment in university second-cycle programmes mainly consists of examinations at the end of each course, though participation requirements and continuous assessment may also be used. Student assessment consists of an exam/test at the end of each course. The student assessment can also consist of a participation requirement or ongoing tests during a course.

The Master’s programme must contain a variety of exam forms that reflect the content and working methods of the programme. The university determines the exam forms in the programme regulations.

The programme regulations determine whether internal or external examiners assess an exam. External examiners assess the Master’s thesis.

Student assessment is based on the Danish seven-point grading scale or a pass/fail assessment. Students must be assessed individually, regardless of whether the examination is conducted individually or as a group exam/test.

Certification

The university awards the certification for completing a Master’s programme. If a student discontinues his or her Master’s programme before completing it, the university issues documentation of the examinations passed at the student’s request.

The university issues a diploma for successfully completed Master’s programmes. The diploma must at least state:

• The name of the graduate and the Danish civil registration number;
• The name of the institution;
• The name of the education programme in Danish/Latin and English;
• The prescribed period of study indicated in ECTS credits;
• The courses in which exams have been taken or which have been documented in some other way. The courses’ scope is indicated in ECTS credits;
• Exams and tests awarded credit for;
• The examination language if the exam has been conducted in a foreign language;
• The achieved marks according to the seven-point grading scale and the equivalent letter according to the ECTS-scale;
• A competence profile that describes the education programme.

Diploma Supplement

In addition to the diploma, it is compulsory for all higher education institutions to issue a Diploma Supplement in English to all students obtaining a degree. The Diploma Supplement contains information on the nature, level, context, content and status of the qualification as well as a description of the Danish higher education structure.

References

Bibliography

Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science, 2026: Qualifications frameworks for higher education. [Accessed 5 January 2026]

Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science, 2026: Universities and education at Bachelor, Master’s and PhD level. [Accessed 5 January 2026]

Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science, 2023: Agreement on the framework for reform of university programmes in Denmark. [Accessed 13 April 2026] 

Legislation and official policy documents

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2024: Act on universities (the university act) (Bekendtgørelse af lov om universiteter (universitetsloven)), LBK no 391 of 10/04/2024. [Accessed 28 November 2024]

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2025a: Ministerial Order on access to university education programmes organised as full-time (Bekendtgørelse om adgang til universitetsuddannelser tilrettelagt på heltid), BEK no 1120 of 19/09/2025. [Accessed 24 November 2025]

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2025b: Ministerial Order on exams and tests at university programmes (Bekendtgørelse om eksamener og prøver ved universitetsuddannelser), BEK no 1121 of 19/09/2025. [Accessed 24 November 2025]

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2025c: Ministerial Order on part-time Master’s programme at the higher artistic education institutions under the Ministry of Higher Education and Science (Bekendtgørelse om erhvervskandidatuddannelse ved de videregående kunstneriske uddannelsesinstitutioner under Uddannelses- og Forskningsministeriet), BEK no 1123 of 19/09/2025. [Accessed 24 November 2025]

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2026a: Ministerial Order on accreditation of higher education institutions and approval of higher education programmes (Bekendtgørelse om akkreditering af videregående uddannelsesinstitutioner og godkendelse af videregående uddannelser), BEK no 311 of 12/03/2026. [Accessed 13 April 2026]

Legal Information (Retsinformation), 2026b: Ministerial Order on professionsmaster programmes at university colleges (Bekendtgørelse om professionsmasteruddannelser ved professionshøjskolerne), BEK no 309 of 12/03/2026. [Accessed 13 April 2026]