What is legal right of admission?
Legal right of admission gives you as a bachelor’s student the assurance that you can pursue a particular master’s programme in the same or related field if you apply for admission within a certain period.
Students with legal right of admission are graduates or students pursuing a bachelor’s degree that provides legal right of admission for a particular master’s programme.
You only have legal right of admission at the University of Copenhagen (UCPH) if you have passed your bachelor’s degree at UCPH.
Master’s reform
A national reform of the universities’ master's programmes is currently in process; it will take effect for admissions to master’s programmes in 2028.
See what this means for UCPH’s master’s programmes and for you
Do I have legal right of admission?
Find answers to your questions about legal right of admission.
Legal right of admission mean that you have the right to be admitted to a particular master's programme at UCPH if:
- the master’s programme is the natural continuation of your bachelor’s degree from UCPH.
- you apply for the master's programme before the application deadline.
- your claim has not expired or previously spent.
See which master’s programmes your bachelor’s degree provides legal right of admission for
You have legal right of admission to a master’s programme if you apply for admission with your legal right of admission within three years of completing your bachelor’s degree at UCPH.
The three-year legal right of admission period is calculated from the first possible admission after completing your bachelor’s degree.
Examples of the calculation of legal right of admission:
- If you complete your bachelor’s degree in June 2026, your legal right of admission applies until the study start in September 2029, if the master’s programme only offers study start in September.
- If you complete your bachelor’s degree in January 2027, your legal right of admission applies until the study start in February 2030, if the master’s programme also offers study start in February.
- If you complete your bachelor’s degree in January 2027, and the master’s degree only offers study start in September, your legal right of admission will apply until September 2030.
If you do not use your legal right of admission in time, your claim expires.
The legal right of admission can only be used once. If you agree to a study place where you have legal right of admission, you have used your legal right of admission.
You will not use your legal right of admission if you have not actively accepted your legal right of admission study place. This can be the case, for example, if you have said no to your study place or you have missed the deadline for accepting your study place .
You will also not use your legal right of admission if you have agreed to your legal right of admission study place, but do not pass your bachelor’s degree.
Your legal right of admission also apply if you are admitted to a master’s programme other than the one you have legal right of admission for. Please note that once you have completed a master's degree, you may be subject to the master’s degree admission rule.
Yes, it is a good idea to apply for your master's degree while you are about to complete your bachelor's degree, as the application deadline for the upcoming master's programme start is typically 6 months before the study start.
UCPH must receive proof that you have passed your bachelor’s degree by 20 September (study start in September) and 20 Februar (study start in February).
Documentation for your application
If you are applying for a master’s programme for which you have a legal right of admission, you must upload all required documentation when submitting your application.
If your documentation is not ready, you may upload a brief explanation instead. You can only proceed in the application process once you have uploaded the requested information.
Mandatory for all applicants
You do not need to upload your transcript or diploma yourself, if you allow us to obtain your data directly.
Otherwise you need to upload your official transcript or bachelor's degree diploma from the programme you are currently enrolled in or have completed.
You can only select one programme as qualifying in your application.
The transcript must include:
- your full name
- your date of birth
- the title of the bachelor’s programme
- the titles of courses and exams
- date or term of passed courses
- grades and information about the grading scale used
- ECTS or other credit systems transcript of records without a stamp or signature
We need to be able to verify your academic transcript. We therefore need to be able to verify the document in one of the following ways:
- An official stamp and signature from your university
- Online via a link, a QR code, a digital signature or similar.
Ask your university what options are available.
Academic transcript in a language other than Danish
We only accept an official translation of your academic transcript into Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, or English. If your academic transcript is not in one of these languages, you must have it officially translated into one of them.
The translation must be stamped and signed by your educational institution or by a certified translator.
This requirement is automatically fulfilled if you apply using MitID (MitID is the official national electronic identification (eID) system in Denmark).
If you are not applying with MitID, you must upload a copy or scan of your valid passport or national ID. If you do not have a passport or national ID, upload a statement about when you expect to receive it.
Your passport or national ID must be valid and contain:
- Your full name
- Your date of birth
- Your nationality
- Expiration date
A copy of your health insurance card or driving licence is not sufficient. It must be your passport or national ID card.
Have you passed master's courses?
You must upload supporting documents if you have passed courses or exams as part of a previous, uncompleted master’s programme. We use the documentation to assess whether you are eligible for credit transfer for the courses you have passed.
You are also required to state whether you have previously completed a master’s degree.
Master’s students at a Danish university
We recommend that you authorise data sharing so that we can automatically retrieve your documentation. You therefore do not need to take any action to provide evidence of your ongoing or completed master’s degree. Please check that the documents are correct after you have completed the data-exchange.
This only applies to you if you have studied at a Danish university: KU, AU, AAU, SDU, RUC, ITU, DTU or CBS.
Master’s students at international universities
If you are, or have been, a master’s student at a university outside Denmark, you must upload proof of this. The supporting documentation may be either a copy or a scan of one of the following:
- Your official academic transcript
- A degree certificate listing all the courses/exams you have completed as part of your previous master’s programme
The documentation must include:
- Your full name
- Your date of birth
- Title of your bachelor’s degree
- Date of graduation (only relevant if you have completed the degree)
- An official stamp
- A signature from your university
Transcript of records without a stamp or signature
We need to be able to verify your academic transcript online, for example via a link, a QR code, a digital signature or similar. Ask your university whether this is possible.
Academic transcript in a language other than Danish
We only accept an official translation of your academic transcript into Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, or English. The translation must be stamped and signed by your university or by a certified translator.
Do you have citizenship outside the EU, EEA, or Switzerland?
You must pay an application deposit to apply for a master’s programme at the University of Copenhagen if you are not a citizen of the EU, the EEA, or Switzerland.
You do not need to pay the application deposit if you have completed or are expected to complete a bachelor’s degree in Denmark, or if you hold a residence permit that exempts you from payment.
As part of the application process, you must upload a receipt confirming that you have paid the application deposit. If you are exempt from paying the application deposit, you must instead upload proof of your exemption.Read about the application deposit
Apply for admission with legal right of admission
When you have collected all the necessay documentation, you can start your application. All applications must be filled in and submitted via the online application portal.
It is imperative that you know the deadlines and apply well ahead of time.
You can read more aobut the application procedure and other important details on our webpage about admission.
If you experience problems with the application portal during the process, you can find assistance in our guide to the application portal.
Read about important deadlines and dates