Admissions - Non-EU applicants

Applying for a bachelor's degree or AP degree programme at VIA is easy. The application process for non-EU citizens is described step-by-step below.

If you are an EU citizen or hold a Danish residence permit which grants you access to free tuition paid by the Danish state, go here for information on the application process.

Before applying:

  • Carefully choose the programme you want to study - We recommend that you make your decision based on your passions and desired future career wishes and that you research these before applying. See our full degree programmes here or get in touch with our study counsellors for questions about a specific programme here.
  • Consider finances - consider whether or not you are eligible for free tuition or not. If you are eligible for free tuition then you must attach a valid residence permit (front and back) along with the accompanying letter to your application. VIA only offers scholarships to students who have completed at least one year of studies.

Step-by-step guide

  •  

    Before starting your application, it is a good idea to have relevant documentation ready in pdf format, e.g., but not limited to:

    • Upper Secondary School Certificate and transcript of records
    • If you have not yet completed your Upper Secondary School at the time of application, you will be able to forward the final Diploma within a later specified deadline.
    • Documentation of English proficiency
      Find the requirements here
    • ID/passport

    Find an overview of international school leaving examinations that you can use as a guideline here. However, it is important that you check the specific entry requirements for the programme you are applying for and make sure that you enclose all required documentation. Find all study programmes here and see the enrolment tab of your chosen programme. 

    You can visit the website of the Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science to find help or to have your qualifications evaluated by the Ministry before applying. On the same site, it appears which upper secondary certificates meet the general entry requirements for Danish Professional Bachelor's and Academy Profession degree programmes and find information about entry qualifications from a number of countries as well as EB, IB Diploma, etc.

    Special criteria

    If you do not fulfil the admission requirements, but have other professional qualifications that can be equated to the missing entry requirement/requirements, you can apply for admission with special permission

    If you wish to apply for a standby place or wish to know more, please see here.

    If you have previously completed some parts or a full higher educational programme in Denmark or in another country, you have to apply for credit transfer

    If you hold a master’s degree when applying or you are going to complete one before study start, the master’s degree rule applies to you, read more here.

    If you have already been admitted to the study programme once before for which you are now applying, but not completed it, you may have to apply for readmission or re-enrolment. You can find information about readmission and re-enrolment here.

  • Go to the official Danish admissions portal optagelse.dk to apply. You will be able to apply for up to eight programmes. If you are applying through an agent or wish to do so, please read more here.

    You can sign in using MitID if you have a Danish CPR number or log in with an email address if you do not have one. At optagelse.dk, you will find complete instructions on how to fill in the application form, upload attachments and much more.

  • When applying without a Danish CPR number/MitID, VIA needs your signature to get access to and start processing your application. This means that you have to sign, print and send in a signature page for each of the programmes you are applying for.

    The signature page is a PDF document generated by the official Danish admissions portal optagelse.dk with a unique application ID, which VIA uses to identify your application. We must have received the signature page(s) before 15 March 12:00 noon. It is not possible to upload signature pages to optagelse.dk, but you can print the page, sign it, scan it and e-mail it to: apply@via.dk. Send one e-mail per signature page/programme. In the subject field of the e-mail, please indicate which programme the e-mail concerns.

  • When the application deadline is reached, all applications will be assessed.

    Once you have applied through the Danish admissions portal, you will be able to follow the progress of your application on nemStudie.dk, as well as receive and send messages from/to VIA about your application.

    You will receive a notification via email if you receive new messages from VIA on nemStudie. It is your responsibility as an applicant to keep yourself informed about your application through nemStudie. Notifications may end up in your spam filter, so make sure to check it.

    Some study programmes have admission tests. See each programme webpage for more information on admission tests.

     

  • When the assessment of your application has been completed and if you get a preliminary acceptance, you will receive a contract. After having read this carefully, you must return a signed copy of the contract to the Admissions Center.

    If you do not get a preliminary acceptance, you still have the possibility of getting a study place, if you fulfil the entry requirements, as your application will be assessed together with the total number of applicants to the programme in question.

  • If you get preliminary acceptance, you will be required to pay the tuition fee. Find more information on tuition fees in general here or go to the website of your study programme to find individual payment schedules and information.

  • Once the Admissions center has received your signed contract and payment of tuition fee, the application for a Student Visa from SIRI (The Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration) will be initiated by the Admissions Center.

    Once the application has been initiated you will receive a mail with a reference code that you need in order to fill in part 2 of the application form. This form must be filled in no later than 30 days after the initiation of the application.

    If further documentation is needed by SIRI, we advise you to send in all requested documents as soon as possible in order to speed up the process of the Student Visa application which must be ready before study start.

    For detailed information about the application process and requirements, please visit the website of the Danish Immigration service.

  • The final decision on your application will be sent on 28 July through nemStudie. However, if 28 July is a Saturday or Sunday, you will get your acceptance/rejection letter Friday.

    In case of available study places, these will be announced at our Available Places page as of 28 July, or on the Friday before, if 28 July falls on a Saturday or Sunday.

  • If you have been offered a study place through nemStudie.dk, it is very important that you confirm the offered study place within the stated deadline.

    If you do not confirm the offered study place within the stated deadline, the study place will be forfeited. 

Important dates

  • 1 February
    Optagelse.dk opens for applications
    Remember to send the signed signature page(s) generated at optagelse.dk to apply@via.dk (do not upload the signature page(s) to your application at optagelse.dk)
  • 15 March at 12.00 noon
    Application deadline (Make sure to register on time, even if there are still documents missing to complete your application). This is also the deadline if you are applying for a Danish language programme - more about applying for a Danish language programme with foreign exam results.
  • 15 May/1 June (animation programmes) pay tuition fee
  • 5 July at 12.00 noon
    Deadline for uploading documentation to the application portal
    Deadline for changing priorities at optagelse.dk
  • 28 July
    Official acceptance letter
    Confirm/decline offered study place(s)
    Available places opens for application at nemstudie.dk 
    (Note: if 28 July falls on a Saturday or Sunday, acceptance and available places will be announced the Friday before)

Further questions?

Get in touch if you need assistance with your application

  • Questions regarding filling in the application form, visit optagelse.dk where you can join live chat for international applicants and contact support.
  • For questions regarding admission requirements – contact our Admissions counsellors at studieservice.info@via.dk or chat with us here. We are usually available on the chat weekdays from 9-11 am. NB! On 13 and 14 March the chat is open from 9 am to 2 pm.
  • For study-related questions such as the content of the programme, internship, study environment etc. go to the relevant study programme's page or contact the student counsellor at the programme.
  • For questions after you have sent your application - go to nemStudie.dk where the Admissions Center will be able to assist you.

Learn more

Frequently asked questions about admission

  • The deadline for uploading your final diploma at optagelse.dk is 5 July at 12 noon. Other documentation needs to be uploaded with your application before 15 March at 12 noon. 

  • Apply for admission with special permission and enclose all relevant documentation comparable with the requirements missing. Read more about application with special permission here.

  • If you are a citizen in a non-EU country the application process is a bit different. Find our step-by-step guide for application for non-EU citizens here, where you can also find information on tuition fees.

  • A high school/secondary school diploma from most non-EU countries is enough for admission. But applicants from some countries need to add 1 year at university. If you have questions about this, contact our admissions counsellors at studieservice.info@via.dk or chat with us here. We are usually available on the chat weekdays from 9-11 am. NB! On 13 and 14 March the chat is open from 9 am to 2 pm.

  • VIA only offers a limited number of scholarships to existing students, who have studied for a minimum of 1 year/two semesters with us. There are no scholarships available to new students. Learn more about our scholarship here.  

  • Students from the EU and EEA countries are exempt from paying tuition fees in Denmark. Students from Non-European countries (unless they have a residence permit which gives them the right to study in Denmark) pay tuition fees, and the amount varies from study programme to study programme. Learn more about tuition fees, deadlines for payment etc. here. 

  • Upper Secondary School examinations and certain vocational examinations at Upper Secondary School level. Find information about entry qualifications for a number of countries here.  

  • The final decision on your application will be sent on 28 July at 00:01 am through nemStudie. However, if 28 July is a Saturday or Sunday, you will get your acceptance/rejection letter the Friday before. 

  • You can find VIA’s English proficiency requirements here.  

  • If you do not fulfil the set admission requirements or the specific admission requirements for the study programme you are applying to, you can apply for admission with special permission. VIA will then assess whether your documented professional qualifications may be equated to the missing admissions requirements. Learn more about admission with special permission here. 

  • A standby place means that you are on the waiting list for a place on the study programme you have applied to. If a vacant place turns up, e.g. if someone withdraws, it will be offered to the applicants on our standby list. Learn more about standby placed here. 

  • No, free tuition requires either a European passport or residence permit in Denmark.

  • If you are enrolled at an educational institution in Denmark at upper secondary level or higher, as an EU/EEA or Swiss citizen you can apply for a residence document as a student. You can be registered as a student when you have taken actual and real residence in Denmark. Learn more about visa and residence permit here. 

  • If you have completed parts of or a full higher educational programme, you can apply for credit transfer. Read about how to apply for credit transfer here.

  • When applying for one of our AP or top-up degrees at VIA Design in Herning, you need to complete an admissions assignment. Additionally, some applicants are called in for an (online) admissions interview. Learn more about the application process for VIA Design and find deadlines for admissions assignments here.

  • It is a good idea, as your documentation of instructional hours makes it much easier to assess whether you have the needed levels in the required subjects. If we are not able to assess this, we will ask for further documentation, and this will delay the application process. 

  • As you are applying without a Danish CPR and MitID (digital ID), VIA needs to get access to your application. This is done by sending us a signed signature page for each of the programmes, you are applying for. You will find it at Optagelse.dk and we must have received it before 15 March 12:00 noon.  

  • All written communication both from you and from the admissions office is through nemStudie.dk. Here you can also follow the progress of your application 

Special criteria

Relevant information