Universities Offering Danish Government Scholarships
Eight Danish universities take part. What each offers is completely different — coverage, deadlines, criteria and number of awards all vary. Here's the full breakdown for the autumn 2027 intake.
ScholarshipUnion Editorial
8 min read
Updated Oct 6, 2026
The Danish Government Scholarship is not a single programme with uniform terms. Each participating university receives an annual allocation and runs its own process with its own rules. This is the single most important thing to understand. Knowing how CBS handles it tells you nothing about how DTU handles it. They're effectively eight separate scholarships sharing a legal basis.
Jump to the comparison table, or check the official Study in Denmark scholarship page.
DTU — Technical University of Denmark
Kongens Lyngby — 15 minutes from Copenhagen
The DTU scholarship has one rule that trips many applicants: you must submit a separate personal statement explicitly requesting the tuition fee waiver. It is not automatic consideration. If you don't submit this document, you are not considered for the scholarship — period.
What DTU looks for in the personal statement
- Undergraduate academic achievements (GPA, class ranking)
- Research experience, publications, awards or competition results
- International experience
- Extracurricular activities (DTU also lists work and teaching experience)
Beyond the statement, DTU weights GPA heavily alongside the ranking of your bachelor's institution and research output. The waiver is for its MSc programmes (engineering, physics, mathematics, computing, biotech and other STEM fields), is granted only after you accept an offer of admission, and does not apply to PhD programmes.
DTU’s published MSc fee for non-EU/EEA students is EUR 7,500 a semester (EUR 30,000 for the two-year degree), and DTU says fees may be revised. A waiver covers this entirely, but you'll still need to prove DKK 7,426 a month (2026 level) in living funds for your residence permit.
UCPH — University of Copenhagen
Copenhagen
All admitted non-EU/EEA students are automatically considered — there's nothing extra to submit. Your admission application is your scholarship application. Decisions come with or after admission replies (UCPH aims to reply by 13 March for the September intake).
Coverage by faculty
| Social Sciences | Full tuition waiver + monthly grant, generally 2–3 awards a year (September intake only) |
| Science | Tuition + living costs for 22 months; very few. Only first-priority applicants with a bachelor's GPA above 90% are considered, and for second-year awards no more than three go to the same nationality. 2025 recipients had a GPA of at least 98%. |
| Health & Medical Sciences | Very limited; tuition and living costs or tuition only. About 2 second-year awards per year. |
| Theology | Partial tuition waivers only, fewer than 4 per year |
UCPH tuition depends on the programme (roughly DKK 100,000–130,000 a year by our estimate; check the programme’s fee on ku.dk). Copenhagen rent alone typically runs DKK 4,500–7,000 for a student room — the highest in Denmark. Even with a monthly grant, careful budgeting is essential.
AU — Aarhus University
Aarhus — Denmark's second-largest city
- Arts & Aarhus BSS: tuition waiver + monthly living grant.
- Natural & Technical Sciences: tuition fee waiver only — no stipend.
Offers arrive with your admission letter, with a very short acceptance deadline. Students who don't respond quickly lose the offer — when you get the email, respond immediately. Natural Sciences may make further offers up to 1 April (summer intake) or 1 November (winter intake).
Aarhus is roughly 10–15% cheaper than Copenhagen. Housing is generally easier to secure than in the capital.
CBS — Copenhagen Business School
Frederiksberg — effectively Copenhagen. Stipend: DKK 8,000 a month.
The DKK 8,000/month stipend is taxable under Danish law. With the personal deduction (DKK 51,600 a year at the 2025 level), the effective tax rate is modest in the first year. Take-home is approximately DKK 6,500–7,000 a month. Maximum duration is 22 months, starting 1 September. CBS’s 15 October 2026 winter round (February 2027 start) was its last; from then on, master’s admission is summer only.
CBS requires a personal statement (maximum 2 pages) uploaded in the application portal, and non-EU applicants must also pay the application fee by the deadline (unless they hold a Danish bachelor's degree). The statement must be “personal and specific” — not a template. It should address academic achievements, relevant work or life experience, and specific reasons for choosing your programme and CBS. A selection committee assesses the applications and in some cases interviews applicants. Offers are sent by 15 March at the latest.
CBS is in Copenhagen, so living costs are high. The DKK 8,000/month stipend covers basic Copenhagen expenses only with careful budgeting.
SDU — University of Southern Denmark
Sønderborg (engineering) & Vejle (tech/computing)
Eligible programmes — very specific
Electronics / Electrical Engineering; Mechanical Engineering; Mechatronics.
Artificial Intelligence; Computer Science; Interactive Technology Engineering; Software Engineering.
There is no separate scholarship application — you apply for admission. The SDU scholarship includes an online interview assessing motivation and technical capability: master's interviews take place between 19 and 27 February (invitations arrive at short notice after 15 February), and bachelor's interviews in early June once SDU has your uniTEST score. It doesn't require specific preparation beyond knowing your field. To keep the scholarship you must pass at least 30 ECTS per semester; the waiver covers 30 ECTS per semester.
SDU’s current pages describe a tuition waiver only, and the bachelor’s page says it does not cover living costs. Sønderborg has significantly lower living costs than Copenhagen, but you must fund them yourself.
AAU — Aalborg University
Aalborg (main), plus Copenhagen and Esbjerg campuses
AAU publishes the highest stipend of any Danish university: a tuition fee waiver plus DKK 11,225 a month (the 2026 rate for new students), paid for the four semesters of a master’s programme. It grants about 15 scholarships a year, for the September intake only, based on “strategic considerations and academic qualifications.” All non-EU master’s applicants are considered automatically, so you cannot apply separately. The non-EU deadline is 15 January 2027, and AAU informs applicants of the decision by early July at the latest. The stipend may be taxable, and it stops after two years if your studies run longer.
AAU is strong in engineering, social sciences, humanities and business. It is known for its problem-based learning approach — students work in groups solving real-world problems from the start. This is unusual in European academia and may be a strong fit for applicants with professional backgrounds.
Read the scholarship section of AAU’s master’s finance and fees page.
ITU — IT University of Copenhagen
Copenhagen
ITU participates in the government scholarship programme. Coverage details require direct confirmation from ITU. Programmes focus on IT and computing: software engineering, data science and digital innovation.
ITU is a specialised university. If your background and goals are in computing or tech, ITU is worth exploring alongside DTU and UCPH. Action required: contact ITU directly to confirm current scholarship terms and deadlines.
RUC — Roskilde University
Roskilde — 30 minutes from Copenhagen
RUC participates in the programme and is strong in social sciences, humanities and natural science. It uses a project-based and interdisciplinary approach. Action required: check directly with RUC for current scholarship availability, terms and deadlines.
University comparison
| University | City | Scholarship type | Stipend | Approx. awards | Deadline | Extra step? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DTU | Kongens Lyngby | Tuition waiver only | No | Very limited | 15 Jan | Yes — statement required |
| UCPH | Copenhagen | Automatic consideration | Some faculties | 2–4 per faculty | 15 Jan | No |
| Aarhus | Aarhus | Automatic consideration | Some faculties | 1–2 per programme | 15 Jan / 15 Sep | No |
| CBS | Frederiksberg | Waiver + stipend | Yes — DKK 8,000 | ~25 | 15 Jan | Yes — 2 pages |
| SDU | Sønderborg / Vejle | Tuition waiver | None listed | Not published | 1 Feb / 15 Mar | Interview |
| AAU | Aalborg | Waiver + stipend | Yes — DKK 11,225 | ~15 | 15 Jan | No |
| ITU | Copenhagen | Varies | Check directly | Not published | Check directly | Check directly |
| RUC | Roskilde | Varies | Check directly | Not published | Check directly | Check directly |
Which university should you apply to?
Each application is a separate pool. You can only hold one scholarship, but applying to several costs little extra — most universities use automatic consideration or bundle the scholarship with admission.
CBS publishes clear terms and offers approximately 25 awards a year, more than most Danish universities publish. SDU has a clear, structured process for a short list of programmes. Both are strong bets for actually receiving a scholarship offer.
DTU is highly prestigious but competitive and covers tuition only. SDU has a clearer process and covers specific engineering and computing programmes. If you meet SDU's eligible programme list, apply there.
The strongest option for business-focused applicants — a DKK 8,000 stipend, about 25 awards and a transparent process. The personal statement requirement is manageable; treat it seriously.
About 15 awards a year with DKK 11,225 a month (2026 rate) plus tuition, and no extra step: every non-EU master’s applicant is considered. Aalborg is also cheaper than Copenhagen.
Both use automatic consideration — your admission application doubles as a scholarship application, so there's no extra effort. Competition is intense at UCPH. Aarhus is slightly less saturated, more affordable and has better housing availability.
Each application goes into a separate pool. For automatic-consideration universities, you're already applying. Write one strong CBS statement if business applies to you; submit DTU's extra statement if you're STEM-focused. You can only accept one offer, but more applications mean more chances.
Next: check who can apply, then read how to apply and the deadlines.