How we allocate exchange places
Our goal is to give as many students as possible the opportunity to study abroad. We usually have places and grants for all.
Often, however, the demand for places is not equal to the actual offer. Many students tend to apply for the same few places although we have hundreds of exchange places. We strongly recommend that you apply for more than one place if your first priority is a place that is popular among other students. We always try to comply with your wishes, but to have a better chance of going abroad, make sure you have one or more "back-up" places.
All incoming applications are assessed according to the following criteria:
You must have passed 30 ECTS at SDU or another university to apply for an exchange place. If you are a 1st semester bachelor student you can apply during your second semester.
You must have a grade point average of minimum 2.0.
We rank applicants according to grade point average.
When we allocate places, we start with the applicant with the highest grade point average score and assess if the priorities can be approved. Then we move on to the applicant with the second-highest score, and so on.
The score is calculated by using:
- grades obtained at SDU (if available)
- grades obtained at SDU in combination with grades from your bachelor’s degree
- grades from your bachelor’s degree (if no SDU grades are available)
We calculate a simple GPA (= the ECTS weigh of each grade is not considered).
If you have the grade U/absence from an exam it counts as -3. If you have passed the re-exam at the time of the application deadline, the grade from re-examiniation will be used instead.
International grades are converted into Danish grades, in order to equal comparison of all applicants.
Some exchange partners have a minimum grade average for accepting students. If you have applied for such a spot and do not meet the GPA requirement set by the partner, you will not be considered for this specific exchange spot.
We aim to make optimum use of our exchange places. We therefore expect that you take a full semester load abroad - ideally being able to transfer 30 ECTS.
In case you cannot transfer 30 ECTS, we accept that you transfer (down to) 20 ECTS without special approval.
If you intend to obtain less than 20 ECTS, you can still apply. However, you must inform us about the reasons for not carrying out a full semester load.
We do reserve the right to reject applications or later withdraw exchange place offers if you have given incorrect information or if you do not have a valid reason for taking less than 20 ECTS.
So, always confer with us in case there are changes to your study plans.
If you have previously been on exchange, you may be given a lower priority (regardless of your grade point average score) if other students apply for the same place.
For example: you went on exchange overseas during your bachelor degree and apply to go again during your master degree.
As we have a lot of students interested in overseas destinations we might prioritise sending a student who have not been on exchange overseas, in order to give as many students the opportunity to experience the most popular destinations.
Other specific requirements may apply from e.g. the Erasmus+ programme, the partner university, general study requirements, etc. Most of such specific requirements will be noted in the lists of exchange places.
Please note that a nomination from SDU is not a guarantee that you will be admitted to the host university. All partner universities reserve the right to assess exchange applicants on their own.
If you and one or more fellow students have requested to go together to the same exchange destination, we will evaluate your applications based on the lowest grade point average (GPA) among the group.
E.g. if one student has a GPA of 6 and another has a GPA of 8, both applications will be assessed with a GPA of 6.
Exchange place offer
When we have assessed all applications, you will receive our decision on your application to your SDU student e-mail address. The offers are usually sent out 4-6 weeks after the application deadline.
If you are offered an exchange place, you will need to actively accept this offer – or decline if you don’t want to go abroad after all.
If you decline the exchange place offer, you will be able to re-apply for a new place in the same academic year in the next application rounds. If you accept the offer and later decide to cancel, you will not be able to re-apply for a new place in the same academic year.
After this, we will contact the host university and nominate you as an exchange student to the partner university. You will then need to apply for admission at the host university. Please note that a nomination from SDU is not a guarantee that you will be admitted at the host university.
Later we will send you an e-mail with information about your grant.
