Did you know that there are almost as many bikes in Denmark as Danes? And that 40% of Copenhageners ride their bikes to work every day? Denmark’s cycling culture is a world-class reference and it is the first country in the world to have its own Cycling Embassy to promote biking in all its forms. Denmark is a flat country in its geography, which makes it a paradise for bike lovers, but it is also a lot more. For students seeking to study in a nation that merges the historic with the modern, the European with the Scandinavian, and the natural with the metropolitan, they need look no further.

Located on a peninsula of Northern Europe, surrounded by the North and Baltic Seas and composed of 443 islands, Denmark is the smallest of the Nordic countries. Its key location between Scandinavia and Central Europe makes it a great destination for students anxious to explore the rest of the continent, and though many study abroad students enthusiastically tackle the Danish language, study abroad programs most often offer courses in English. The Danes themselves also have a high English proficiency. 

Denmark has a prestigious higher education system, characterized by active study environments, high academic standards, project-based activities and interdisciplinary studies. The University of Copenhagen was founded in 1479 and is one of the most prestigious research and education universities in Northern Europe. In addition to the University of Copenhagen's 37,000 students, Copenhagen is home to a number of other universities and colleges, such as the Technical University of Denmark and the Copenhagen Business School, making it an ideal study abroad destination. Copenhagen is easy to navigate with a convenient public transportation system and prominent church steeples which serve as easy landmarks. Many of the city's primary attractions are within walking or biking distance.

But Copenhagen is not the only study abroad destination in Denmark!

Aarhus, the second-largest city in Denmark, is home to Aarhus University, Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus School of Engineering  , The Danish School of Journalism, the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, among others. Each year, Aarhus hosts several festivals and concerts, including Aarhus International Jazz Festival and the Aarhus Festuge, the biggest arts and culture festival in Scandinavia. The University of Southern Denmark (with campuses in Odense and other cities) is an institution with deep regional roots. Aalborg University and Roskilde University will offer you a liberal education through interdisciplinary and experiential curriculums, group-oriented methods and project assignments. 

With a diverse range of historical and modern, local and international, natural and urban, Denmark is home to approximately 45 universities and colleges that will make your study abroad experience in Denmark the perfect fit for your academic, cultural and travel interests.

The country has a free market economy, universal health care, and a social welfare system that produce limited social inequality and yield low poverty and crime rates. A member of both the European Union and NATO, Denmark is heavily involved in peacekeeping and development programs worldwide. With competitive private industry, excellent research, a sophisticated service sector, and quality agricultural exports, Denmark has the third largest per capita income in Europe. It is governed by a parliamentary democracy, characterized largely by compromise and consensus, a dynamic necessitated by the large number of political parties and the frequent participatory opportunities afforded to Danish citizens.

As a leader in clean technology, Denmark strongly advocates environmental protection and is the world's largest producer of power-generating windmills. About 20% of Danish electricity needs are covered by wind power. Through national and international partnerships, the Danish government recently adopted a strategy on how to achieve independence from fossil fuels by 2050. The Island of Samsø already demonstrates that it is possible to be fossil fuel free with creativity and community involvement!

Danish design is highly prestigious worldwide due to its sleekness and functionality. If you are interested in design, your mind will be stimulated in museums, galleries, trendy shops, award-winning restaurants, Danish homes, as well as welcoming public areas with diverse forms of street art.

Students studying abroad in Denmark return to the U.S. raving about their experience and the Danes' "hyggelig" culture. Pronounced hew-ger-li, this Danish idiom loosely translates as an amalgamation of comfortable, friendly, cozy, warm and nice and is the foundation of Danish mentality and lifestyle.

 Kom og studér i Danmark! (Come to study in Denmark!)

Resources

Government of Denmark: http://www.denmark.dk

Embassy of Denmark, Washington: http://www.ambwashington.um.dk/en

Study in Denmark: http://www.studyindenmark.dk/

University of Copenhagen: http://www.ku.dk/english/

Aarhus University: http://www.au.dk/en/

Aalborg University: http://www.en.aau.dk/

Roskilde University: http://www.ruc.dk/en/

Copenhagen Business School www.cbs.dk/en/

The University of Southern Denmark www.sdu.dk/en/

The Tecnical University of Denmark www.dtu.dk/English.aspx

Danish Institute for Study Abroad: http://www.dis.dk/

Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program: http://www.iie.org/gilman

National Security Education Program: http://www.iie.org/NSEP

Cycling Embassy of Denmark: http://www.cycling-embassy.dk