Information for new exchange students

This page contains important information which may help ease your transition to life as an international exchange student at VIA University College. You can find information relevant in the time before your arrival and during your stay.

Before you arrive

  • 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. However, if you are staying in Denmark for less than 3 months, you do not need a residence permit or CPR number.

    Learn more about residence permit and visa 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 exchange 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 via e-mail before study start.

  • 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!

  • You should start looking for accommodation as early as possible. VIA offers housing guidance to exchange students at some of our campuses/programmes. You will receive more information after admission.

    Note that most student accommodation in Denmark is unfurnished, so make sure to check your lease or ask the landlord before arrival – even if you have seen photos of a furnished apartment.

    However, some dormitories offer furnished rooms/apartments or have furniture that you can rent or borrow. Even though you are renting a furnished room or apartment, you usually must acquire e.g. kitchen utensils, bed sheets, pillows, and the like yourself. Affordable housing supplies can be found in IKEA, Jysk and similar stores. Secondhand shops are good places to find kitchen utensils.

    Go to our housing page for more information on housing options near all of VIA's locations

    Fees

    As per definition, a student exchange is tuition free, however you may have to buy books or print texts for your study programme. The cost of books and texts varies depending on study programme.

    Living expenses

    To learn more about living costs in Denmark and to see an example of a budget for an international VIA student go here.

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

    Student card from your home institution

    You must bring your student/study card from your home university. You will receive a digital student card here, but perhaps not right away. You can use your student card to get discounts at some stores, for events etc.

  • 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. Learn more about your options of learning Danish.

Access to VIA

  • Once you have been enrolled at VIA, you will receive an acceptance letter from your exchange programme along with information on study start and introduction programme.

    Approximately 2 weeks prior to study start at VIA University College you will receive an automatically generated mail containing your VIA ID 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, such as our study portal MyVIA, Itslearning and VIAmail, where you will find important information about your study start. More on how to complete VIA Start in the ‘Get access to VIA’s IT-systems and services’ below.

  • 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 MitID yet, or if you are experiencing problems when using MitID, you can ask for a temporary login using 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 on how to log on.

    During the process, you must 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 with important information related to your study programme 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.

    If you have not received an email approximately 2 weeks before study start, you can 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

    MyVIA is VIA's primary communication channel to students. This is also where you find general information on e.g. exams, student counselling, social life on campus, 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.

    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

    Important notice for exchange students

    Once you are logged on to MyVIA as an exchange student, you will see the content relevant to the full degree/bachelor’s degree programme that your exchange programme is offered by. This means that there is some content that may not be relevant to you, e.g. information on international opportunities and internships and the info on study start you will find here is for full degree students. See more about study start for exchange students below.

    In case your exchange programme is connected to one of our Danish language programmes, you may be sent to the Danish version of MyVIA when logging on. Change to English by opening the main menu in the upper right corner and choosing “English” at the bottom of the menu.

    Itslearning

    When it comes to academic information regarding your study programme, it can be found at Itslearning. This goes for e.g. meeting schedule and required materials such as books and you will also find messages from your lecturers and the like here.

    How to log on to Itslearning:

    Go to Itslearning.com and log on with your VIAmail address and the password you chose in VIA Start. Your VIAmail is your VIA ID + @via.dk. Example: 123456@via.dk

  • VIAcard

    At VIA, we use digital student cards, e.g. to gain access to your campus and for printing/copying.

    You can order a digital VIAcard here. Ordering a VIAcard is free.

    You can read more about the VIAcard on MyVIA.

    Student discount

    VIA collaborates with ISIC, which means that, if you order a digital student card, you will always have an internationally recognised discount card/student ID on hand. The card gives you easy access to both online and local student discounts with your smartphone. You can also bring the student card from your home institution, this provides access to the same discounts.

    If you would like a digital student card, just order it online. It’s free.

    Order a digital student card through ISIC here.

On arrival

  • We can not wait to welcome you to campus and our exchange programmes have planned study start activities to make sure you will get the best start to your studies at VIA. During study start, you will be introduced to your lecturers, fellow students, and new campus. Specific activities vary depending on which programme you are attending, but usually contain academic as well as social activities.

    Exchange students will receive information on study start on e-mail from the international coordinator at your programme. Note that the information on study start you can find at MyVIA is meant for full degree students.

  • Find information on social events and life on campus at MyVIA. The events posted here are open to all students – exchange and full degree a like. Also check out the section Communities and student life.

    Information about events especially for exchange students and study start will be sent to you via e-mail from your study programme.

Help and guidance

Next step