Surge in full-degree students to Copenhagen

The number of international full-degree students at the University of Copenhagen has almost doubled in five years

by Carina Elkott

The University of Copenhagen attracts twice as many full-degree students as five years ago. This is according to data from its Education Strategy Unit.

Read the article 'Media department attracts internationals' here.

While the university had 1,795 matriculated full-degree students in 2005, the number had increased to 3,463 by 2009. The increase can be seen in both Nordic as well as non-Nordic students from the throughout the world.

The University of Copenhagen now has around 25 official full-degree programmes offered in English, and gives wide leeway for students to arrange their own programmes. This attracts a large number of international students who want to bring home a master’s certificate, according to the University Education Services unit at the University of Copenhagen.

Improve the study environment

»In addition to an increased number of programmes, the faculties are successful in marketing the programmes offered in English, primarily through advertisement on the internet and through international media«, explains Hedvig Gyde Thomsen, senior consultant at the unit.

According to Hedvig Gyde Thomsen, full-degree students add an important international dimension in the classroom.

»We want to attract full-degree students to build an international study environment. The international students can challenge the Danish students’ presumptions, and the most talented of them can stay and apply for PhD’s«, says Hedvig Gyde Thomsen.

Focus on internationalization

University management has agreed with each faculty on guidelines for improving the facilities for full-degree students, and increasing the number of full-degrees coming from abroad.

The Faculty of Humanities has been particularly successful.

The faculty has attracted international fulldegree students with more courses and programmes offered in English, explains academic international officer at the student administration Helle Søgaard.

»The faculty receives a lot of inquiries from international students wanting to study here, and we have begun to focus more on them. The surge of full-degree students has led the Faculty to hire two international officers to help with inquiries and to arrange social get-togethers«, Helle Søgaard says.

The Faculty of Humanities continues to work for attracting even more full-degree students. But their next international priority will be to get more Danish students to go abroad, she adds.

uni-avis@adm.ku.dk

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