Information for new students

When moving to Denmark, you should check up on your insurances to make sure you have the coverage you need in case of an emergency, as insurance in Denmark may be different from what you are used to at home.

Learn more about insurance in Denmark here!

Whether you are an exchange student for one term or are taking a full degree at VIA, one of the first things you should do after you are admitted is to start looking for a place to stay. Read more about housing and the options in each of VIA's campus cities here.

It is also a good idea to find out how to get from your place of arrival (e.g. airport or train station) to your place of residence and from there to campus. 

When travelling to Denmark you need to have the right permits in place. Depending on how long you are planning on staying and where you come from, you may need a visa or a residence permit.

Learn more about residence permit and visa in Denmark here!

In addition, you also need to get a social security number - also known as CPR (central person register) number.

Find out how to get a CPR number in Denmark here!

Goin’ is VIA’s online community for international students going to VIA. Here, you can connect with other coming as well as current students in an online, social community, allowing you to expand your network before arriving at VIA. You can connect with other students from your study programme, campus, home country, etc. and join themed groups for e.g. housing, nightlife, or other joint interests.

Joining the Goin’ community will ease your transition to student life in Denmark and provide access to a peer-to-peer space where you can bond, find a place to stay, buy used books, and ask all your questions.

You will get an invitation link to Goin’ when you have confirmed your study place.

VIA’s Onboarding Camp takes place just before study start and is a unique opportunity to prepare for your studies, life and future career in Denmark. Join the camp for the best beginning to your new everyday-life in Denmark, get ahead academically, while getting to know your new city and fellow international students.

Read more here

Getting used to life in a new country can be hard. Everything is different - the language, the weather, the people - and you may experience culture shock. But if you prepare and keep an open mind everything will work out. We have collected all the practical information you need about Life in Denmark here!

We also recommend that you consider learning some Danish, as this will help ease your transition to life in Denmark and improve your chances of getting a student job. Learn more about your options of learning Danish.

Once you have accepted your offered study place in NemStudie, you are ready to become a student at VIA. Congratulations! We look forward to welcoming you.

We will welcome you with an e-mail sent to the e-mail address you used when applying at optagelse.dk or nemStudie. In this e-mail you will find your VIA ID, an autogenerated sequence of numbers and an instruction to complete VIA Start (start.via.dk).

It is important that you complete VIA Start, as this will give you access to VIA’s IT systems and services. More on how to complete VIA Start in the ‘Get access to VIA’s IT-systems and services’ below.

Study start August/September

Please note, that it may take as much as eight days from confirming your study place until you receive further information.

You will not receive a new mail regarding completing VIA Start if you have recently been enrolled in a programme at VIA, or, if you are enrolled at another programme at VIA at the present time. You will maintain the VIA ID that you have previously been issued. Once you start the programme, you will be assigned to your current programme at VIA's new study portal MitVIA (MyVIA).

To see information on your future study programme, do the following:

1. Go to the MyVIA study portal
2.  Login with your VIAmail address and the password you chose in VIA Start. Your VIAmail consists of your VIA ID + @via.dk. Example: 123456@via.dk.
3. When you are logged in, you will find the information relevant to your specific study programme.
4. Find information on study start under "Study start" in the menu.

To get access to VIA’s IT-systems, you have to complete VIA Start (start.via.dk).

You can log on with MitID. If you don’t have a Danish CPR number and Mit ID yet, or if you are experiencing problems when using MitID, you can ask for a temporary login the VIA ID in your VIA Start e-mail and your private e-mail address. Afterwards, you will receive an e-mail with more information.

During the process, you have to upload a picture for your student card, confirm that you have read the IT regulations, change your password and consider whether you want to allow VIA to send text messages to your phone.

Once you have completed VIA Start, you will have access to VIA’s IT-systems and services within 24 hours. You will e.g. have access to VIAmail, MyVIA (VIA's online student portal), Itslearning (VIA’s digital platform for teaching), OneDrive, download of the Office suite and much more. Your courses will be visible on Itslearning 30 days before study start. 

Not received an e-mail? Check your spam filter or the "unwanted mail" folder.

In need of further assistance?

If you need help getting access to VIA’s IT-systems, you are more than welcome to contact VIA’s IT department. Send an e-mail to viaservice@via.dk or call at +45 87 55 12 12. Opening hours are Monday-Friday 7.30 am to 3.30 pm.

MyVIA is VIA's primary communication channel to students. This is also where you find general information on e.g. exams, student counselling, international opportunities, study administrative rules, IT, canteen, library, facilities on campus and much more. Your campus and your study programme will also post news for all students at your campus and study programme here.

Study start, schedule etc.

The programmes at VIA have different dates of study start – most are around 1 September and 1 February.

See when to start at your programme 2024/2025 (pdf)

All other relevant information about your study start and programme you can find at MyVIA. This goes for e.g. when to meet the first day, introduction programme, books, schedules etc. Note! You cannot find this information anywhere else than at MyVIA. They will not be sent to you on e-mail. Therefore it is very important that you log on to MyVIA before study start.

How to log on to MyVIA

1. Go to the MyVIA study portal
2. Login with your VIA e-mail address and the password you chose when you signed on through VIAstart. Your VIA e-mail consists of your VIA ID + @via.dk. Example: 123456@via.dk.
3. Once you are logged on, find the information relevant to your specific study programme
4. Find information on study start under "Study Start" in the menu
5. Find information on your semesters under "Semester Overview" in the menu.

To get access to your VIAmail, log on to post.via.dk. Logon with your VIAmail-address and the password you chose in VIA Start.

The digital student card

To get a digital student card, you must order the student card online. It is free.

You will subsequently receive an e-mail from ISIC. In the e-mail, you will be guided to create your profile for use in the app "ISIC" from ISIC Global.

Student discounts

VIA cooperates with ISIC, which means that you always have an internationally recognised discount card/study ID at hand. If you order a digital student card, as described above, you will have access to online and local student discounts with your smartphone via the app.

At VIA the academic year varies slightly from study programme to study programme, but generally consists of two semesters. The autumn semester begins in late August/early September. The spring semester begins in late January/early February.

A semester typically consists of three parts – teaching and project work, followed by 3-4 weeks of exams – but this varies according to study programme. Exam periods are usually placed in January and June, respectively.

Holidays and breaks

Holidays and breaks with no scheduled teaching have variations depending on your study programme, but follow a general pattern:

• Autumn break, 1 week, October
• Christmas break from handing in your semester project to the first week day in January
• Winter break, 1 week, February
• Easter break, three days up to the Easter holidays
• Summer break July-August

Summer re-exams are conducted in the latter half of August. 

Practical workshops, Onboarding Camp and other introduction activities may also be scheduled in August. 

Find specific semester plans for each of our study programmes at VIA’s study portal MyVIA under Semester Overview. Use the education picker at the top of the page to choose which study programme and location you want to see.

SU stands for Statens Uddannelsesstøtte, which is the Danish State Educational Grant and Loan Scheme. It is a financial aid program that provides financial support to eligible students studying at institutions of higher education in Denmark.

Normally, you must be a Danish citizen to qualify for SU. In some cases, international students are eligible for SU specific conditions are fulfilled.

Read more about SU for foreign citizens.

If you are a Danish citizen, you can read about SU here.

You can apply for SU one month before you begin your programme at the earliest.

Have questions about SU?

Fill in the contact form or call VIA's SU counsellors at 87 55 10 45, office hours: Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 AM to 12 noon.

Students at VIA need to bring their own computer. 

You will need your computer at class and when writing assignments. If you are about to buy a new computer, we recommend that you wait until after you have started your programme. This way, it will be easier for you to make sure that your new computer has the needed capacity to run e.g. study-related software. 

We recommend that you buy a laptop with a long battery life. 

Please note, the technical programmes at VIA may have specific demands regarding hardware. Check your programme's website for more specific information.

Contact your student counsellor or the IT department at your campus if you have questions about hardware or software. 

Special educational assistance (Danish acronym SPS) is support intended to ensure that students suffering from a physical or mental disabilities are able to get an education on an equal footing with other students at VIA University College. 

Frequently asked questions about SPS

In order to apply for SPS, please contact the SPS-responsible at your campus and ask for a meeting.

Find contact information for VIA's SPS counsellors here.

Are you an elite athlete and want to study too? VIA Elite Sports supports students performing sports at elite level to enable them to pursue an education while following athletic ambitions and careers.

VIA Elite Sports has contact persons at all of VIA's campuses who helps study programmes ensure that the students/athlete fulfils the needed requirements, as well as helping them schedule their training and competitions to make room for exams and other study activities.

Examples of how VIA Elite Sports helps:

• Putting together a study plan based on clear and realistic goals for both academics and sports
• Administrative assistance, e.g. in relation to moving to a new address, changing an exam, dispensations, merit etc.
• Personal support or establishing additional teaching

Go here for guidelines and contact information on VIA Elite Sports

The study start course is a help for you to prepare yourself for the life as a student. There are 4 online modules and you can take one or more depending on what suits you. It is completely voluntary.

Module 1: Becoming a student
This module is about a safe transition to becoming a student at a higher education.

Module 2: Study life and study habits
This module is about habits and study techniques and what works for you.

Module 3: Sustainable motivation
This module is about what motivates you and how you can build and maintain motivation.

Module 4: Collaboration and the learning community
This module is about what you can do to be part of creating a well-functioning community.

If you need help to gain access to VIA's IT systems or if you have any questions regarding the above, you are welcome to contact us. 

Send an email to viaservice@via.dk or in urgent cases please call +45 87 55 12 12. 

You can contact us Monday to Friday from 07:30 a.m. until 03:30 p.m.

Do you need social and psychological aid or counselling? You can contact the Student Counselling Service (Studenterrådgivningen):

Student Counselling Service

T:  70 26 75 00. (Open Monday to Friday 9 AM -12 noon)
Learn more at www.srg.dk

You can get help from the Student Counselling Service at all VIA's campuses

Contact your local student counsellor (therapist), if you need help during your time as a student.

• Campus Aarhus N. E: viaaarhusn@srg.dk
• Campus Aarhus C. E: viaaarhusc@srg.dk
• Campus Viborg. E: viaviborg@via.dk
• Campus Holstebro. E: viaholstebro@via.dk
• Campus Herning. E: viaherning@via.dk
• Campus Randers. E: viaranders@via.dk
• Campus Silkeborg. E: viasilkeborg@via.dk
• Campus Horsens. E: viahorsens@via.dk

'Alliance for a good student life' - free expert counselling

Four organisations who offer free counselling to students at institutions of higher education have formed the Alliance for a good student life. The aim of the organisation is to help students who feel that covid-19 have made it harder to cope with their student lives. The four organisations each offer free counselling to make the lives of students easier during hard times.

Read more about the free offer at the organisations' own websites:

• www.headspace.dk
• www.sr-bistand.dk
• www.ventilen.dk
• www.srg.dk

If you as a student wish to file a complaint concerning an exam, test or anything else related to your studies, you can do so by following VIA's complaint guide.

Find the complaint guide here (PDF).