At age 6, Danish children begin their formal schooling. The most popular ground-school option in Denmark, is best characterized as public school. It’s free to sign your children up here and is usually from grade 0 to grade 9. The educational approach in Denmark avoids class rankings and formal tests; instead, children work in groups and are taught to challenge the established way of doing things. Teachers are called by their first names. The emphasis is on problem-solving, NOT memorization. Contrary to many other countries in the world, the public school in Denmark does not require their students to wear a uniform. This adequately describes the somewhat informal environment that the Danish ground-schools have compared to many other countries.

All children in Denmark have access to tuition-free government Folkeskole, until they are 16 years old, but some parents choose private schools because they are smaller, or because they have a particular educational approach.

If you want to know more about the Danish Folkeskole click the blue button below, which will take you to the website of the Ministry of Children and Education, who have written extensively on the subject.

After Folkeskole, and the first 10 years of school, the educational journey continues. There are multiple ways to fill the years immediately following the ground-school.

Two ways stand out, and those two ways, we have described in more depth in the section below.

Apart from the most popular ways of continuing from the Folkeskole, there are also the Frie Fagskoler, which translates into free vocational schools. Many of them have a specific subject that they teach within.

These schools can be useful if you, at an earlier age, have a specific interest which you want pursue skills within. It does not offer a license within the subject you are studying, but the Fri Fagskole can be useful for young adults, who want to test the waters of an interest, who want to specifically better themselves or young adults who want to know if their specific interest is something that they want to employ themselves with in their future.

The period from 14 to 18 years of age entails many things. One of the things that most Danes go through, is having to realize and act on account of your immediate and future interests. The public school represents a broad introduction to education in general, whereas the opportunities presented to the public school graduates, make it possible to independently choose which road you want to go down in the future.

There are many different ways to spend the years after ground-school. In this section of the newsletter, we will introduce the ones that set the Danish education system apart from others.

After the ground-school you have the opportunity to continue from the 9th grade to the 10th grade. Many students can continue in 10th grade at the school in which they are already enrolled. Others choose to spend their 10th grade at an after-school. Here you can also spend the 9th grade if you so choose.

Efterskole, meaning "after-school" in direct translation, is a unique Danish residential school for students aged 14 to 18. Each Efterskole is a self-governing independent institution, and they all deal with both the educational and personal evolution of their students. They embrace a common educational focus on enlightenment for life, general education, and democratic citizenship. Compared to public schools the Efterskole offers substantial freedoms compared to other age-appropriate educational offers, both in Denmark and around the world. The choice of subject, the teaching methods and educational approach are some of the areas in which the Efterskole creates a unique environment for the young people attending. The students usually live in dorms or houses, where they can create and shape their own home for the duration of the schoolyear. Going to Efterskole in the year directly following Folkeskole, has been the most popular option. However, going to the Efterskole in 9th grade is also a viable option, and one that many young people choose as well.

This year 2022/2023 over 30.000 students have attended one of the 241 schools throughout Denmark. The popularity of these institutions has been on a steady rise in the last century, and more than a fourth of the ground-school graduates, choose Efterskole as a steppingstone in their further education. As the Efterskole is a self-governing independent institution, they require user-payment to survive and thrive. This payment is based on the income of the child's parents. The parents are not alone in paying the bill though. They are offered state aid to help the cover their financial deficit.

The schools are open to people from abroad as well, which creates a unique opportunity for children worldwide to come and experience a wholly different way of being a young adult.

As such, many young people use this opportunity to get to know themselves and their interests.

Most people attending Efterskole leave the school, having garnered lifelong friends, a new sense of direction, and thus an idea of how they want to shape their future.

If you want to know more about what Efterskole is, locations or how to enroll; click the blue button to the left below.

From the Folkeskole or the Efterskole or the like, you continue your journey through the world of education. There are different ways of doing so. Below we describe three options available in Denmark.

This term covers a handful of specialized educations for younger generations in Denmark. The academic gymnasium (short; STX) is one of them, and the term gymnasium is a term in various European languages for a secondary school that prepares students for higher education. Besides STX (the higher general education programme), the main ones are HHX ("Higher Commercial Examination Programme"), HTX ("Higher Technical Examination Programme"), and HF ("Higher Preparatory Examination Programme"). In an earlier edition (May) of our newsletter, which we encourage you to read if you haven't already, we described the very unique way that graduation from these schools is celebrated, the famous "studenterkørsel".

The vocational education and training system, also called the VET-system offers more than 100 different types of vocational educations. You can become many things. From a carpenter to a hairdresser, the VET-system offers the opportunity for you to indulge in both your personal and career-oriented interests at a younger age. It offers the opportunity to get access to a career as a skilled worker in Denmark. Access to professions which are in demand in the Danish labour market. You are however not required to be a young person to enroll at a VET. People above the age of 25 have access to VET-programmes designed specifically for adults based on prior learning and experience.

Each of the educations can lead to a number of vocational specializations and the majority of the VET-programmes is practical training in an approved company or organization. This means that you will have a foot in the door of your chosen industry from the start of your education. Furthermore, all VET-programmes provide full or conditional access to higher education programmes and further adult education programmes

The Danish VET-system offers a VET-programme, which combines a general upper secondary education and vocational education and training. This programme is called EUX and is one of the most popular VET-programmes. EUX qualifies students for jobs as well as giving them direct access to higher education in a wide range of programmes.

To read more about the VET-system, the admission requirements, and the programmes in-depth, click the blue button in the middle below. This will take you to a comprehensive guide on the website of the Ministry of Children and Education

Denmark is a great place to study. This is also true if you come from a different country. Throughout Denmark and catered to different age-groups there are many educational offers available to English-speaking people. One of these offers is the International Baccalaureate (IB).

Just like Gymnasium (High-School), the International Baccalaureate (IB) is an upper secondary school. This means that it must meet the Danish standards for education and must be able to provide access to higher education. It is a school which is designed to give students an international diploma, that can be used throughout the world as an entry to further education.

The IBs mission is to develop inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who will help to create a better and more peaceful society through education that builds intercultural understanding and respect.

The IB is present in over 150 countries worldwide and one of those is Denmark. This education provides an opportunity for people to receive education in English, whilst still enjoying the educational standards that Denmark have to offer.

If you want to know more about IB, how to apply, locations and so on; click the blue button to the right below.

In Denmark there are three major types of higher education.

These three categories each play a vital role in evolving and sustaining the Danish society.

The business academies offer higher education and further education related to regional areas of the country. They are independent institutions, with the main aim of offering and developing higher education in the region where the business academy is located. Like the university college they have a strong relation to practice. The business academies however focus more on the area of technical and mercantile educations.

They are to ensure a broad geographic coverage of educational programmes throughout the country and thereby helping to fulfill the political objective that at least 50 percent of 30-year-old people in Denmark have achieved a higher education.

The business academies offer academy profession programmes and certain higher educational programmes like the professional bachelor.

If you want to know more about the business academies, click the middle blue button at the end of the section. This will take you to the website of the Ministry of Higher Education and Science, describing the business academies in-depth.

The university colleges in Denmark are independent institutions with the main aim of offering and developing higher education with a strong relation to practice. University college educations should meet both different students' interests in a variety of subjects and the need for a qualified workforce in both the private and public sector. Furthermore, the university colleges must ensure that the curriculum and teaching of the education is profession-based as well as development-based.

The university college offers professional bachelor programmes, which are professionally oriented, qualifying as higher education. They are offered at a level corresponding to that of university bachelor programmes but with a stronger focus on professional practice. Professional bachelor's degrees also give access to further studies (masters, etc.) within the same field.

If you want to read more about the university colleges in Denmark, click the blue button in the bottom left of this section. This will take you to the website of the Ministry of Higher Education and Science, describing the university colleges in-depth.

Denmark has eight universities which offer research-based higher educations at Bachelor, Master's (candidatus) and PhD level. Furthermore, the universities are responsible for the majority of all public research in Denmark.

The universities in Denmark are state-funded, autonomous institutions, and as key institutions in society, universities must also participate actively in the exchange of knowledge and skills with the wider community.

Apart from the universal degree-levels, the universities and a few additional university level institutions offer part-time degree programmes and single academic courses. One of these is called erhvervskandidat (business master), which allows you to combine studying with employment in a corporation.

Soon, most university students in Denmark will start a new semester after a - for probably all of them - well needed summer break. At many Danish higher education institutions it is common practice to introduce the first-year students to the university through an introduction-week containing a lot of different particularly Danish traditions.

The introduction week is mostly arranged by the senior students, who organize themselves in what is called a tutor-group. The group of tutors will take time out of their hard-earned summer vacation to organize and plan the week for the new students, so that they will have the best possible start to their foreseeable future. The specifics of the introduction week may differ between the different institutions, but there are however specific parts of the week that recur throughout the different introduction weeks. One of these events is called "rustur".

The "rustur" is an introductory trip for new students at the higher Danish educational institutions.

The trip usually lasts a couple of days and is focused on group activities for the new students. The "rustur" has the purpose of creating the basis for a good network in life as a student. It also introduces the way of the institution and the specific subject on a general level.

The "rustur" is organized by the tutors. By now it is customary to educate the tutors, so that they are aware of their responsibility and role on the "rustur". Furthermore, there is a focus on acquiring knowledge of group psychology, leadership and communication, so that the tutors can handle different situations should they arise on the trip.

The word "rus", which can be translated into intoxication, actually has nothing to do with alcohol and the like. In turn it pertains to the last part of the word 'depositurus', which entails leaving something behind. In this case it focuses on the old notion that the first-year student left their peasantry behind and started their academic journey.

The opportunities for international students to come to Denmark are a plenty, and not only does the educational system offer a lot of options for internationals, but it also ensures that you get an education of a high standard.

Politically the focus on education has also become more international. In June 2023, the Danish government and four other political parties in the Danish parliament (Folketing), agreed on implementing a reform settlement that will influence the higher educational system in general, but also specifically.

The involved parties will work towards boosting the availability of the Danish educational system for foreigners. This means creating room for 2500 new international students by the year 2029.

If you want to read more about opportunities for an international in the Danish education system, how to enroll, etc. click the blue button below to the right, which will take you to the website of the Ministry of Higher Education and Science.