Materials Science Engineering

About the Materials Science Engineering study programme

• Structure and content

  Language: The programme is taught in English.

  Curriculum: See the current curriculum (pdf) 

  See the executive order (only in Danish)

  See the study activity model

  See average grades and statistics of VIAs programmes (only in Danish)

  What is a professional Bachelor's degree?

  The programme provides you with a broad knowledge of materials and processes. Progressing with the problem will lead you from basic material knowledge and understanding to expert knowledge of new and innovative materials, such as those that can make textiles last longer and adjust to body temperatures.

  Each semester has an overall theme that shows you different perspectives within the beautiful world of materials. You will also gain insight into modern processing technology so you can help optimise techniques, product design, innovation, business development, financial considerations and production and supply chain consideration in manufacturing companies.

  Each subject helps you develop a deeper understanding of the challenges of the particular theme. Each semester concludes with a semester project, enabling you to work with the theme in companies all over the world.

  1st semester: Innovation

  The first semester will give you the necessary basic skills regardless of your field of practice. Courses include basic subjects as chemistry, mathematics and statistics but Innovation is the key area. The theme of the semester is supported with cultural understanding and cross-cultural communication.

  2nd semester: Quality and Environmental Management including Sustainability

  This semester will build on the previous semester’s subjects, guiding you into the area of Quality and Environmental management as well as CSR and sustainability. 

  3rd semester: Future materials

  In the third semester, you will explore new potential areas within the world of materials supported by budgeting, investment and finances and further knowledge of materials, such as dyeing and processing. You will be challenged to integrate this knowledge into new ways of achieving goals or solving real life problems.

  4th semester: Innovation and Business Development

  You will study advanced courses within innovation and business development, logistics and project management as well as strategic management. The scope and complexity of the courses will enhance your unique value in the field of Materials Science by broadening your business understanding.

  5th semester: Internship

  During this semester, you will do an internship in your mentor company in Denmark or abroad. The internship provides you with the opportunity to acquire invaluable work experience in a challenging environment and to put the knowledge you have gained during your studies into practice.

  6th semester: Elective and Specialisation

  You choose from different electives courses depending on your interests and line of specialisation. Courses will delve deeper into your specialisation area as you start preparing for your final project – the bachelor project – during the last open project.

  7th semester: Bachelor Project

  The bachelor project should reflect your skills within Materials Science. Your project should also reflect your ability to combine the various disciplines, which you have learned during the programme.

  More information

  See the VIA Materials Science Engineering course cataloque

  See course overview (pdf)

  Information about computer requirements

  We recommend that you acquire a PC with the the appropriate specifications before starting at VIA.

  Read about computer requirements before your programme start (pdf)

   

• Enrolment

  NB: The programme will not be created for the 2020 intake due to an insufficient amount of applicants.

   

  Admission requirements

  • Upper secondary school leaving certificate/high school exam or
  • Danish Admission course for Engineering programmes or
  • The International and the European Baccalaureates

  General admission requirements

  • Mathematics equivalent to a Danish B-level (min. 250 hours*) and
  • Physics equivalent to a Danish B-level (min. 200 hours*) or geoscience equivalent to a Danish A-level (min. 375 hours*) and
  • Chemistry equivalent to a Danish C-level (min. 75 hours*) or biotechnology equivalent to a Danish A-level (min. 375 hours*)

  *1 hour = 60 minutes. Study hours during the final three years in upper secondary school.

  Applicants must have passed the above-mentioned subjects with a minimum average weighted grade of 02. If you are applying with a foreign exam, your grades will be converted into Danish grades. 

  Non-Danish applicants must include a copy of the original exam certificate and a transcript of records plus a state-authorised translation of their transcript of records in either Danish or English.

  Admission with special permission

  If you do not fulfil the entry requirements, you can apply for admission with special permission. Read more here. 

  Verification form

  Applicants who hold a non-Danish entry qualification must fill in the verification form in order to verify the hours of instruction of every needed subject during the final three years of upper secondary school as well as last received grade. This helps us convert your qualifications to Danish levels. The verification form must be stamped and signed by your previous school in order to be accepted. The form must be submitted with your application at optagelse.dk.

  Download Verification form (pdf).

  You can visit the website of the Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science to find help or to have your qualification evaluated by the Ministry before applying.

  English proficiency certificates

  All applicants will have to document English equivalent to a Danish B-level with a minimum average weighted grade score of 3.0 (min. 210 hours, 1 hour = 60 minutes during the final three years in upper secondary school). Use the verification form for this. The grades from the applicant’s High School Diploma will be converted into Danish grades.

  Please note: In cases where applicants cannot meet the Danish B-level requirement or grade conversion is not possible, the applicant may provide other documentation. Please find an overview of accepted language test certificates and test scores here.  

  Maths syllabus

  Applicants with non-Danish entry qualifications must also fill in the mathematics form by ticking off the topics included/not included in your previous studies.
  If your secondary school mathematics syllabus does not include all topics listed, you may be required to participate in a two-week compulsory mathematics course at VIA University College before study start. Please find more information in the course description (pdf). 

  Download Mathematics form (pdf)

  You can visit the website of the Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science to find help or to have your qualification evaluated by the Ministry before applying.

  Conditional acceptance

  Conditional acceptance means that you can apply for admission to the programme even though you do not fulfil the admission requirements at the time of application. Contact the student counsellor for more information.

  Assessment of your application

  All applications will be evaluated individually. In addition to good exam results from your previous studies, we will also take in to account other qualifications, such as:

  • Stays abroad
  • Work experience
  • General motivation

  Credit transfer 

  Students who have completed relevant study activities at an institution of higher education may be allowed to transfer their credits to VIA, which may exempt the student from exams/courses of a study programme.

  Read more about credit transfer at VIA University College. 

  NB: We reserve the right not to create classes in the event of too few applicants.

• How to apply

  The programme begins in September. 

  Apply online through optagelse.dk. The application portal opens on 1 February every year.

  Fill in the application form and upload any relevant documentation to optagelse.dk. 

  Please note that applicants applying without a Danish Civil registration number must send a signature page from optagelse.dk by e-mail to apply@via.dk before 15 March at 12:00 noon. 

  The area code for the programme is 49205. 

  Application deadlines

  15 March, 12:00 noon

  • All international applicants
  • International and Danish applicants applying on the basis of a vocational education
  • Danish applicants applying on the basis of an international or foreign entry qualification
  • Danish quota 2 applicants and applicants applying for any kind of exemption

  5 July, 12:00 noon

  • Only Danish quota 1 applicants

  Response to your admissions request

  You will receive an answer to your admissions request on 28 July. 

  Should the 28 July fall on a Saturday or Sunday, you will receive an answer to your admissions request the Friday before.  

  Available study places

  Any available study places will be published on VIAs webpage “Available study places” on 28 July.

  An application form can be found on VIAs webpage “Available study places” on 28 July. Applications for available study places will be handled manually. 

  Fee for Non-EU applicants

  Applicants from outside of the EU/EAA who do not hold a valid Danish residence permit, are required to pay a 100 euro application fee before their applications can be processed. The fee is to be paid at the time of application.

  Please visit the Admission site for further information about how to apply, the application fee, residence and work permits and how to follow your application. 

• Fees and tuition

  Listed below is an overview of who is eligible for free tuition and who has to pay for tuition themselves. Are you a foreign applicant outside the EU membership, residing in Denmark and already have a Danish residence permit you must attach both your residence card (back and front) as well as your residence letter to your application on optagelse.dk. We need this in order to assess whether you must pay for tuition fee yourself or not. 

  Who is eligible for free tuition?

  • Applicants of a country that is a full member of the EU 
  • Applicants of Norway, Iceland, or Liechtenstein (EEA countries) or Switzerland
  • Applicants living in Denmark either with a permanent residence permit issued in Denmark or a residence permit with the possibility for permanent residence - noted as “MMF. varigt ophold” on front of the residence card
  • Applicants with a Residence permit as the accompanying child of a non-EU/EEA parent holding a residence permit based on employment (§9a and §9m of the Danish Aliens Act) 
  • Applicants with a temporary residence permit as a refugee on the grounds of family reunification (accompanying child) (§7. subsection 1, and subsection. 2, and § 8, subsection. 1 and 2, of the Danish Aliens Act)
  • Applicants with a temporary residence permit based on the Danish Aliens Act § 9.1, or § 9 c. 1, on the grounds of family reunification to a non-EU/EEA citizen with a residence permit (§ 7, subsection 1 or 2, or § 8, subsection 1 og 2,) 
  • A student on an exchange programme as part of a bilateral agreement with VIA University College

  When do you have to pay for tuition?

  • When you are a foreign applicant, living in Denmark with a temporary residence permit (with no possibility for permanent residence - noted as “MMF. varigt ophold” on the front of the residence card)
  • When you are a foreign applicant with residence outside of Denmark and need a Danish residence permit based on study
  • When you are an applicant with a temporary residence permit as a refugee based on §7, subsection 3 of the Danish Aliens Act

  Open the below pdf to learn more.

  Payment schedule and Terms of Payment (pdf)  

  The prices are fixed for the official duration of your study programme. If you exceed the official duration of the study programme, the following semester payments will correspond to the tuition fee at that time. 

  VIA University College reserves the right to change tuition fees every year in October or whenever conditions necessitate such changes. 

  If tuition fee is required, you will always be invoiced directly from VIA University College. No partners are entitled to charge fees on behalf of our institution. 

  If you are asked for additional payments by a VIA University College partner, please let us know. 

  Application fee

  Application is free if you are from a country that is member of the EU. Applicants from all other countries are required to pay an application fee of 100 euro. The application fee must be paid in full when applying for the programme.

  Learn more about the application fee and how to pay

  Terms and agreements

  Terms and agreement between partners and VIA University College can be seen in the different contracts under:

  • Code of Conduct (pdf)

  Applying for a visa

  When applying for a visa, remember to include a copy of your admission letter.

• Internship

  As something new and very exciting, you will become part of a mentor company from the 4th semester, giving you the golden opportunity to use your acquired knowledge of theory in practice. The mentor arrangement is an intense collaboration with the industry during the different projects and during the internship. 

  At least one day per week will be spent at your mentor company during the 4th and 6th semesters. During the 5th and 7th semesters, you will be placed more or less full time at the mentor company, while continuing your studies and simultaneously being an employee, learning and acquiring work experience during the study programme. 

  The mentor company will assign a mentor to you and, as a mentee, you will learn on the job and get a feel for being an engineer within the industry.

  You will do a six-month internship at a company during the 5th semester (full-time employment).

  Doing an internship is a great way to obtain first-hand work experience and gain access to the best graduate jobs. 

  As this is a professional Bachelors of Engineering programme, you are required to do an internship in the 5th semester. This will allow you to apply any theory learned to real-world business tasks while practicing a number of valuable skills as well as gaining insight into your coming working methods and processes as an engineer. 

  Benefits:

  You will benefit from working in a real-life environment and gain professional experience relevant to your future career as a Material Science specialist, Quality Manager, Technical Purchasing Manager, etc.  

  The internship combined with the mentor arrangement also makes you more employable. When they are looking for graduates to fill vacancies, employers prefer candidates who are ready to work and “plug and play”. 

  The internship and the mentor arrangement have a dual purpose. You will become familiar with your professional future while you still preparing for it, and you will make good contacts with employers within your field of study. 

  VIA helps you to arrange your internship and mentor arrangement

  You can do your internship in Denmark or abroad, and we can help you to arrange it. If your mentor company is part of a global company, you might have very good opportunities to go abroad within the mentor company. 

  The internship ends with a report in which you relate your practical experience to the theoretical knowledge gained during your studies.

  Duration: 

  The minimum period allowed for an internship is 20 weeks of full-time work.

  Below you will find examples of companies that have received interns:

  • Danfloor
  • Thygesen & Birk Fabrics
  • Beirholm
  • Trademark
  • Grundfos
  • Fibertex Care

• Career guidance

  After successfully completing your studies, you will be able to work as a textile engineer, plastics engineer, within innovation and new product development, quality and environmental management, purchasing or something else entirely. 

  As a material engineer, you will have the skills to enter a wide range of careers.

  For instance, you can work with innovation, product development, quality and environmental management, research and development on new materials, purchasing new materials and products and consultancy on materials and processes.

  Further education

  With a full Bachelor of Engineering (BEng) programme in Materials Science Engineering, you will have the chance to continue with further studies at other universities either in Denmark or abroad.

  Our student counsellors are very happy to guide you on this.

  For instance, you may choose to continue your studies with an MSc in Engineering (Technology Based Business Development) programme at Aarhus University or Materials Technology at Aalborg University.

• International opportunities

  To enrich the study experience and nurture cultural diversity on campus, we encourage our students to study abroad and welcome foreign students from partner institutions. 

  VIA University College has an agreement with approximately 200 institutions in 33 countries in Europe as well as overseas. 

  This means that you have the opportunity to choose to study for a semester at one of our partner institutions in another country. 

  You may also choose to do your internship in an international company in another part of the world. Both possibilities give you the opportunity to experience the way of life in another culture. 

  Today's business world is a global marketplace, and so having a study abroad experience can be positive for your CV. 

  Contact our international coordinators.

• Contact

  Do you need further information regarding the programme?

  For more information about the programme please contact:

  Anne-Louise Degn Hansen
  E: aldh@via.dk (Herning)

  Anna Bro Lake 
  E: abrl@via.dk (Horsens)

  You are welcome to contact us if you have any questions.

  VIA University College
  Birk Centerpark 5
  DK- 7400 Herning
  T: +45 87 55 05 00
  E: herning@via.dk

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