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EDUCATION

These Danish university degrees lead to the best-paid jobs

University degrees within the fields of mathematics and natural sciences are at the top of the list of higher education fields that result in top-end wages.

Published: 29 July 2020 13:42 CEST
These Danish university degrees lead to the best-paid jobs
File photo: Keld Navntoft/Ritzau Scanpix

A summary by Danish free market thinktank Cepos shows the subjects with the highest average earnings for graduates.

A record number of successful applicants – 69,529 – were accepted to begin their studies at Danish universities in 2020 after intakes were announced earlier this week.

But a record number who met entry requirements have also been disappointed, according to a report by DR, with 10,686 qualified applicants rejected from their desired study programme.

The number of places at university was also higher this year after the government passed a bill providing funding for an extra 5,000 university spots as part of its response to the coronavirus crisis.

Despite the higher number of applications, acceptances and rejections, 373 courses still have places available, according to DR’s report.

Whether those correspond to lower earning potential is unclear.

 

However, Cepos calculations take into account salary, income from self-employment, shares and stockholdings and interest earnings, along with welfare benefits like unemployment insurance (dagpenge) and child support payments.

The highest-earning qualification is for students of Actuarial Science (Danish: Forsikringsmatematik), who go on to qualify as actuaries. This group has an average income of 1,383,000 kroner (185,800 euros) annually, according to the Cepos top 20, which was also reported by Finans.

In second place, accountants who qualified after taking relevant the Master’s degree stand to earn an average of 1,106,000 kroner (148,600 euros) per year.

The third-highest earning group by study background is Mathematics-Economics (Matematik-Økonomi), whose average annual income after graduation amounts to 1,103,000 kroner (148,200 euros).

Popular degrees Medicine and Law also fare well in the analysis, placing 7th and 10th respectively on the Cepos list.

Cepos head economist Mads Lundby Hansen told news agency Ritzau that women were more likely than men to study the subjects which gave lower salaries.

“Our calculations show that women are underrepresented in the top 20 and, in turn, overrepresented in the bottom 20,” Hansen said.

“There has been a tendency for more women than men to choose degrees which give jobs with lower wages,” he added.

The economist added that he expected this to change in future, citing upper secondary school (Danish: gymnasium) grades and changing gender roles in society.

“… girls get higher grades at upper secondary school than boys. I expect the girls to take advantage of this in future,” he said.

The lowest-ranking subjects for earning potential feature art and music, according to the Cepos analysis.

Top 20 degrees in Denmark for potential earning:

  1. Actuarial Science (Danish: Forsikringsmatematik)
  2. Business Economics and Auditing (Revisorkandidat)
  3. Mathematics-Economics (Matematik-Økonomi)
  4. Dairy Agricultural Science (Mejeribrugsvidenskab)
  5. Management Engineering (Virksomhedssystemer)
  6. Political Science (Statsvidenskab)
  7. Medicine (Medicin)
  8. Advanced Economics and Finance (Avanceret økonomi og finansiering)
  9. Business Economics and Mathematics (Erhvervsøkonomi og matematik)
  10. Law (Jura)
  11. Chemistry (Kemi)
  12. Civil Engineering (Civilingeniør)
  13. Dentistry (Tandlæge)
  14. Business Economics (Erhvervsøkonomi)
  15. Computer Science (Datalogi)
  16. Pharmacy (Farmaci)
  17. Civil Engineering with specialisation
  18. Forestry (Skovbrugsvidenskab)
  19. Energy Technology (Energiteknik)
  20. Business Economics with IT (Erhvervsøkonomi og informationsteknologi)

A guide to all Danish higher educational programmes can be found at Uddannelsesguiden.dk.

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EDUCATION

‘The cheapest in Europe’: A guide to international schools in Denmark

International schools in Denmark are renowned for being some of the cheapest in Europe. Here's a guide to the options available.

Published: 17 April 2024 15:51 CEST
'The cheapest in Europe': A guide to international schools in Denmark

In Denmark both public and private schools, including international schools are all subsidised by the state.

The average price in 2022 for an international school in Copenhagen was 4,138 euros a year (30,874 kroner), according to the International Schools Database, with one exception costing 17,468 euros per year. Their study also ranked Copenhagen as the cheapest city in Europe for international schools for the third time in 2023.

Free international schools

There are two free international schools in Denmark which are run by the local municipality. 

Lolland International School in Maribo is bilingual with Danish and English. The European School in Copenhagen is trilingual with Danish, English and French. Kalundborg Kommune plans to open an international school in the near future. There are no fees in these schools.

Curriculum

The first thing to decide is what curriculum you want your child to follow. The options are: International Baccalaureate, European Baccalaureate, International Primary Curriculum (Viking International), British, French (Lycée Français Prins Henrik) or German (Sankt Petri Schule) curriculum.

With International Baccalaureate, Danish can be taught as a second or first language but no other subjects are taught in Danish. 

Bilingual schools, such as Institut Sankt Joseph in Copenhagen are friskoler, so the school decides which subjects to teach in Danish and which in English/another language. Institut Sankt Joseph for example follows the British Cambridge International curriculum, as well as the “dansk fællesmål”;  and offers both IGCSE examinations and the Danish school leavers’ test in the final year. But some bilingual friskoler can be test-free.

If you want an international school that’s predominantly Danish, you can choose the Danish department of a bilingual or international school. International and Danish departments often mix together at the after school club (SFO). At Øresund Internationale Skole, the teaching language is Danish and offers two hours of mother tongue lessons per week if there are enough students with the same mother tongue.

International school age

Many international programmes run for 11 years, (roughly aged 5-16). The final year of international school is the equivalent of the Danish 9th or 10th grade. This is when pupils have tests to determine their next stage of education at gymnasium/high school. In some bilingual schools, these exams are offered in Danish too.

After this, students can go on to choose a gymnasium/high school for three years. If they have taken the Danish school leavers’ test, they can go on to a Danish gymnasium. 

Most international high schools in Denmark offer the IB Diploma Programme but there are also two Danish/German schools, one Danish/French school and one European Baccauleate. Some of these are fee-paying and others are free.

READ MORE: EXPLAINED: How does the school system work in Denmark?

Efterskole

Some pupils in Denmark choose to spend a year at a boarding school called efterskole, before starting high school, which is often specialised in certain subjects. There is an international efterskole in Vedersø and bilingual programmes at Odsherreds, Ranum or Skals.

Signing up

The earlier you sign your child up the better, as some schools have waiting lists of 2 – 4 years. There is usually a fee to join the waiting list. If a place becomes available, you are often invited for an interview, to see if the school is the right fit for your family. It is worth signing up to more than one school to keep your options open. You then pay a deposit when you accept your school place.

Examples of international schools in Denmark

There are 26 International Schools in Denmark according to the Danish Ministry of Children and Education. The international schools database lists them all, along with information about fees, class sizes, school bus availability.

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