Admission Requirements
5 important considerations
Before you start writing an application you need to consider the following:
- Relevance of prior studies
- Language qualifications
- Finding a supervisor
- Research qualifications
- Transfer of credits (in the 4 + 4 entry situation)
The first thing you need to do is to find out whether your qualifications meet the requirements. The relevance of your Msc/Bsc degree depends on the subject of your proposed PhD project. If you hold a foreign university degree, you will need to document that your qualifications are accepted as equivalent to a Danish degree. Danish Agency for International Education (formerly CIRIUS) can help assess your qualifications.
The requirements for admission to the PhD education programme at LIFE are described in details in the PhD regulations. There are a number of prerequisites for admission and criteria for assessing the candidate's qualifications.
Candidates with a MSc degree obtained in Denmark may adjust their average marks with credits for scientific publications and relevant work experience. The adjusted mark for evaluating the candidate is based on the candidate's weighted (by ECTS) average course marks for undergraduate and master's studies and credits for scientific publications. Also, relevant work experience after the MSc degree may be added. The average mark may also be adjusted on the basis of research or PhD courses completed at the time of application but this will result in a corresponding reduction in the period of study and the term of the scholarship. If the adjusted average mark is used in connection with an application for a LIFE scholarship, only activities and qualifications gained and documented by the application deadline may be included (the PhD office is currently preparing a document with a more detailed description of how applicants are evaluated. This document will be uploaded soon).
Here is a description of how the adjusted average is calculated.
If you apply for admission in connection with a scholarship that has been advertised (the normal procedure), you are in competition with other applicants and competition is significant. If you have your own funding and only apply for admission, the general rule is that the applicant is qualified if the adjusted average mark is 9 or above on the Danish 13-point grading scale and above 8.2 on the new 7-point grading scale.
If necessary please consider the alternative system, 4+4 entry, with enrolment for PhD studies one year before completion of a MSc degree, see section 2.2 of the PhD regulations.
For non-Danish students Danish Agency for International Education (formerly CIRIUS) must help assess your qualifications.
As foreign qualifications can be difficult to assess with respect to professional level and average mark etc., the mandatory interview between the PhD supervisor and the applicant will explore whether the applicant possesses adequate professional knowledge within the project’s subject area, and whether the applicant’s command of English is satisfactory. The application must always be accompanied by a summary of the interview prepared by the supervisor. Where possible, a statement on the educational institution’s professional and academic profile and recognition should be obtained from the Danish Centre for Assessment of Foreign Qualifications (CVUU) as regards qualifications from foreign institutions. This is the responsibility of the department, see Application Procedure for further details. Together with the applicant’s CV, the CVUU classification and interview summary will form the basis for classification in one of the three alternative categories “Super Qualified”, “Qualified” or “Not Qualified”.
English is the scientific language at LIFE. Therefore applicants must have good or even excellent skills within both spoken and written English. We recommend obtaining a IELTS or TOEFL(+TSE) official certificate, especially for candidates from countries where English is not the native language or commonly used. Please see the PhD regulations, section 2.1.
It is a precondition for admission that a professor or an associate professor at LIFE supports you and is willing to supervise you. The strategic scholarships already have a supervisor appointed, but if you apply for an ordinary scholarship or if you apply for admission with your own funding, you need to find a supervisor to support your application. Often the best way to find a supervisor is to contact the PhD coordinator at the relevant department. Alternatively, give a brief description of your area of interest and send it to and we will help you find a supervisor.
If you have either academic work experience or work experience relevant to the PhD project you are applying for admission to, you may get credit. The best way to demonstrate your research qualifications is if you have one or more scientific publications in international peer reviewed journals. Please ask your prospective supervisor or the PhD coordinator at a relevant department.
If you have passed PhD courses, this may provide you with additional credits. Please ask your prospective supervisor or the PhD coordinator at a relevant department.
You are now ready to move on to the final step in the Application Procedure.
Jeppe Berggreen Høj, - last update:30 June 2010