Last updated: August 2026
The University of Southern Denmark (SDU) runs one of the more practical tuition-relief scholarships available to non-EU/EEA students in Europe: the Danish Government Scholarship, aimed at highly qualified international applicants to specific engineering Master’s programmes in Sønderborg (and, more recently, a set of tech-focused Bachelor’s programmes in Vejle). It’s not the flashiest scholarship on paper, but a full tuition waiver at a well-ranked Danish university is a genuinely significant saving — and it’s worth understanding exactly what’s included before you plan your budget around it.
This guide breaks down eligibility, what the scholarship actually pays for, and how to apply — including a correction on a benefit that’s still being widely advertised online but no longer appears on SDU’s own official terms.
Application Status Right Now
Master’s applications for the current cycle needed to be submitted no later than 1 February, with scholarship interviews held between 19 and 27 February. If you’re reading this after 1 February, that window has closed for the upcoming autumn intake — the Bachelor’s-level deadline (for the Vejle programmes) runs separately and later, by 15 March.
This is an annual scholarship, so if you’ve missed the Master’s deadline, the next call will open on a similar schedule the following year. Bookmark SDU’s official scholarships page (linked below) and set a reminder for December/January to be ready in good time.
What Is the Danish Government Scholarship at SDU?
Funded through the Danish Ministry of Higher Education and Science, the scholarship is SDU’s way of recognizing the investment non-EU/EEA students make by studying in Denmark. It isn’t a separate scholarship program you apply to independently — instead, it’s automatically factored in when you apply for admission to one of a specific list of eligible programmes.
Eligible Master’s programmes (Sønderborg campus):
- MSc in Engineering – Electronics/Electrical Engineering
- MSc in Engineering – Mechanical Engineering
- MSc in Engineering – Mechatronics
Eligible Bachelor’s programmes (Vejle campus):
- BSc in Artificial Intelligence
- BSc in Computer Science
- BSc in Interactive Technology Engineering
- BSc in Software Engineering
If your intended programme isn’t on this list, this particular scholarship doesn’t apply — SDU limits it to these specific Vejle and Sønderborg programmes rather than offering it institution-wide.
Who Can Apply?
- You must be a non-EU/EEA citizen.
- You must apply for admission to one of the eligible programmes listed above.
- Important exclusion: if you’re eligible to receive the Danish State Grant (SU), you cannot be considered for this scholarship — the two are mutually exclusive.
- If you apply to more than one SDU programme, you’ll only be considered for the scholarship under your highest-priority choice.
- Master’s applicants must submit their admission application by 1 February — this applies even if you already hold a Danish residence permit.
- Your application must be complete at the time of submission. SDU is explicit that it should not need to come back and ask for missing documents — an incomplete file is effectively a missed deadline.
What the Scholarship Actually Covers — And a Correction Worth Knowing
Here’s where it’s important to be precise, because there’s a discrepancy between what SDU’s own current terms say and what a lot of scholarship listicle sites are still advertising.
What SDU’s official page confirms: the scholarship is a full or partial tuition fee waiver.
- A full waiver covers tuition for the entire programme — two years for Master’s, three years for Bachelor’s.
- A partial waiver, where awarded instead, covers tuition for the second and fourth semesters only, meaning you’d pay tuition yourself for the first and third semesters.
- The waiver covers a standard course load of 30 ECTS per semester. Courses beyond that load aren’t covered.
- To keep the scholarship, you need to maintain satisfactory academic progress — in practice, completing enough credits each semester (guidance suggests roughly 30 ECTS, though don’t fall below what your programme confirms as satisfactory). Falling short risks losing the waiver for the following semester.
What you’ll widely see claimed elsewhere, but that no longer appears on SDU’s official terms: a monthly living-cost grant of DKK 3,000 (before tax). This figure circulates across a large number of scholarship aggregator sites, and it may reflect how the scholarship was structured in a previous cycle — but SDU’s current, official scholarships page describes the benefit strictly as a tuition fee waiver, with no mention of any living stipend. If a monthly stipend matters to your decision to apply, don’t take it as guaranteed based on older listings — confirm directly with SDU’s admissions office before you factor it into your budget, since planning around a stipend that may no longer exist could leave a real gap in your living costs.
Either way, you should plan to cover your own living expenses, accommodation, travel to Denmark, and health insurance, since none of those appear as guaranteed benefits under the current terms.
How to Apply
There’s no separate scholarship application form — you’re automatically considered for the scholarship when you apply for admission to an eligible programme.
For Master’s applicants, your application must include:
- Application deposit fee receipt
- Official Bachelor’s transcripts and diploma, in English, Danish, Swedish, or Norwegian, including grades and ECTS/credit values for each course
- Verified course descriptions matching your transcripts
- A completed self-assessment form (a specific version exists for the Electronics and Mechatronics programmes)
- Proof of English language proficiency
All documents must be uploaded directly to your online application — SDU does not accept documents sent by email.
Selection process for Master’s applicants:
- Submit your admission application, with all documents, by 1 February.
- If shortlisted, you’ll be invited by email (sent after 15 February, often with short notice) to an online interview.
- Interviews take place between 19 and 27 February, covering a few technical questions related to your programme’s entry requirements — no special preparation is required.
- Scholarships go to the best-qualified candidates based on your Bachelor’s GPA and interview performance. If you applied to more than one eligible programme, your interview covers your top-priority choice only.
For Bachelor’s applicants (Vejle programmes), the process is similar but runs on a different track: applications close 15 March, selection is based on your score in SDU’s online admission test (uniTEST) plus an interview held in early June, with interview invitations sent out in late May.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to submit a separate scholarship application? No. Applying for admission to one of the eligible programmes automatically puts you in consideration for the scholarship — there’s no extra form.
Can I apply if I already have a Danish residence permit? Yes, but the 1 February Master’s deadline still applies to you regardless of your residence status.
Does the scholarship cover living costs? SDU’s current official terms describe the scholarship as a tuition fee waiver only. Many third-party scholarship sites still advertise a DKK 3,000/month living grant, but that benefit does not appear on SDU’s current scholarships page — confirm directly with SDU before relying on it.
What happens if I don’t maintain good academic progress? Your fee waiver can be discontinued for the following semester if you’re not considered to be making satisfactory progress — generally understood as completing the expected course load each term.
Can I apply to multiple eligible programmes at once? Yes, but for scholarship purposes, you’ll only be considered under whichever eligible programme is your highest priority, and you’ll only be invited to one interview.
This guide is based on the University of Southern Denmark’s official scholarships page. Eligible programmes, benefit terms, and deadlines can change between cycles — always confirm current details directly at sdu.dk before applying.
