Bachelor - admission and requirements

Find answers to your questions in our FAQ

Is a specific grade point average required to apply for admission?

There is no required quotient for your qualifying exam in the quota 2 admission process. You must simply have passed. 

Can I apply via quota 1 and quota 2 both?

You can definitely apply via quota 1 and quota 2 both. When you apply via quota 2, you also automatically apply via quota 1, if you have a qualifying exam. Remember that the deadline for applying via quota 2 is 15 March at 12 noon. Please be aware that you must choose the same study programme when applying for quota 1 and quota 2. You cannot select different programmes.

Do I need to take the entrance exam if I apply via quota 1?

If you apply via quota 1, you are not part of the entrance exam and you will not need to send your portfolio and CV. You will be assessed exclusively based on your grade point average from your qualifying exam. 

Do I have a qualifying exam?

The following exams are recognised as qualifying degrees for admission to Kolding School of Design:

- A-Levels/Upper Secondary School Leaving Examination (in Denmark: STX)

- Higher Preparatory Examination (in Denmark: HF)

- Higher Commercial Examination (in Denmark: HHX)

- Higher Technical Examination (in Denmark: HTX) 

- Qualifying Vocational Examination (in Denmark: EUX)

- Faroese Upper Secondary School Leaving Examination, Greenland’s Upper Secondary Education, Faroese Higher Preparatory Examination, Faroese Higher Commercial Examination, vocational upper secondary education for Higher Commercial Examination from Greenland, Faroese Higher Technical Examination, vocational upper secondary education for Higher Technical Examination from Greenland and examination from Duborg-Skolen or A. P. Møller Skolen

- Special Programme for Foreign Language Students (in Denmark: GIF)

- Danish/French Baccalaureate (DFB), European Baccalaureate (EB), International Baccalaureate (IB), International Option Baccalaureate (OIB) and Danish/German Upper Secondary School Leaving Examination (DIAP)

- Foreign examination approved by the Danish Agency for Higher Education and recognised as equivalent to a qualifying examination

Exemption application?
If you do not have a qualifying exam, you must apply for exemption from the admission procedure for quota 2. If you are granted an exemption, it means that you can follow the admission procedure on an equal footing with the other applicants. If you are not granted an exemption, you are not eligible for a spot.

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Still not sure if you have a qualifying exam?

You can search for your foreign exam in the examination handbook (only available in Danish) or contact the school's Study Administration.

I will not be passing my qualifying exam until the summer. What should I do?

If you will not be passing your qualifying examination until the summer, you should still apply via optagelse.dk by 15 March at 12.00 for quota 2 applicants (5 July for quota 1). Once you've passed your exam in the summer, you must submit proof that you have passed your qualifying exam by 5 July at 12.00.

I have been granted exemption before. How should I apply?

An exemption applies to the year in which you were granted an exemption and the following two years. Therefore, you do not have to make a new application every year. This means that if you have been granted an exemption in 2022 or 2023, this still applies to application in 2024.
Application should be made via optagelse.dk. Tick the box entitled “No basis for admission”, and later in the procedure you can indicate that you have exemption. You must also specify a file number. The file number for your application for exemption at Design School Kolding is your birthday (DDMMYY).

Can I apply for exemption from the qualifying exam if I'm applying via quota 1?

You cannot apply for exemption from the qualifying exam if you're applying via quota 1.

I have a Nordic exam. Can I still apply?

Nordic applicants (from Sweden, Norway, Iceland and Finland) may apply for admission on the same terms as Danish applicants.

Apply via optagelse.dk without Danish CPR number. Follow the admissions guide from Kolding School of Design.

In order to be eligible to apply for admission to an education programme, you must have successfully passed a qualifying examination.

- Sweden: a 3-year upper secondary school education or equivalent.

- Norway: achievement of general higher education qualification through a 3-year diploma from an upper secondary school or equivalent.

- Iceland: A 4-year Studentsprof (Matriculation Examination) with at least 140 einingar (credits) or equivalent

- Finland: both Ylioppilastutkintotodistus (Matriculation Examination) and lukion päättötodistustus (General Upper Secondary School Certificate)

Please note that the application deadline for Nordic applicants is 15 March at 12.00 noon. This applies for both quota 1 and quota 2. 

I have a non-Danish exam. Can I still apply?

Please go to Do I have a qualifying exam?

Please note that the application deadline for non-Danish applicants is 15 March at 12.00 noon. This applies for both quota 1 and quota 2. 

How do I upload my portfolio and CV?

No later than 21 March 2024 you will receive an activation email from our digital submission platform Wiseflow. Then you will receive a message from Wiseflow with a link for submitting your portfolio and CV. Please note that there might be a time gap between the two emails. From the time you receive the activation email, it might take a day for the email with the link to arrive. Remember to save your activation email, and remember to check your spam filter. 

Do I have to be present in Kolding for the test and the interviews?

The practical test will take place online on the weekend 13 and 14 April 2024. If you are not able to attend due to illness, please contact us so we can work something out. If you produce a good portfolio and obtain a satisfactory result on your practical test, we will invite you for an interview. The interview will be held in Kolding.

The practical test is online, so you work from home (or where you prefer). 

I passed the admission procedure. Why didn't I get in?

Unfortunately, Kolding School of Design has fewer available spots than applicants who have passed the entrance exam. So only the quota 2 applicants with the highest score in the admissions procedure are offered a spot.

On Monday 19 August and Wednesday 21 August 2024, you are welcome to contact Prorector Lone Dalsgaard to receive general feedback on your application. Her number is +45 20 29 07 89, and she can be reached between 9 am and 3 pm.

I didn't pass the quota 2 entrance exam. Is there still a chance for me to be accepted via quota 1?

If you have applied via quota 1 and quota 2 both, but you haven't made the next step in the admission process for quota 2, this will not affect your quota 1 application. Your quota 1 application will be assessed exclusively based on your grade point average, and we will NOT look at how you did in the quota 2 admission process. 

I will not be in Denmark when the admission interviews are held. What should I do?

We can always arrange for you to attend online.

What do you mean by language test?

Foreign applicants whose qualifying examination does not have a Danish component must successfully pass a test in Danish language proficiency. Scandinavian applicants who are fluent in Danish, Swedish or Norwegian, or foreign applicants who have Danish citizenship are exempt from this regulation. Kolding School of Design requires foreign applicants to pass the ‘Studieprøven i Dansk som 2. sprog’ (Higher Education Examination of Danish as a Second Language, known as ’Danskprøve 2’ prior to 2004). The applicant must have passed the test in all subjects.

If, by the application deadline, you are signed up for Studieprøven, but have not yet passed it, you must submit documentation for the passed test by 12 noon on 5 July.

What is a standby spot?

Kolding School of Design has reserved a small number of standby spots (waiting list spaces) for which you can apply when you seek admission to the school. The standby spots are awarded to applicants whose admission score (quota 2) or grade point average (quota 1) is not quite high enough for admission. If an admitted applicant decides not to accept his or her spot, it is offered to the applicant awarded a standby spot.

If you are awarded a standby spot but do not receive an offer of acceptance, your standby spot is automatically converted into an offer of acceptance for admission the following academic year to the department and line of study to which the application was accepted. You must, however, still apply for admission the following academic year.

You apply for a standby spot when you complete your online KOT application. So you cannot solely apply for a standby spot.

If you are awarded a standby spot, you will receive an email from us on 28 July, and you must be ready to accept the offer of a vacant study place right up until 8 August 2024.

If you turn down a standby spot, you will lose the place and leave the standby system and the admission system.

Please be aware that this means that if you are offered a standby spot with an undertaking to start the next academic year, you will NOT be offered a study place at any of your lower priorities in this academic year.

What does study programme mean?

The study programme is the programme you wish to follow. At Design School Kolding, you have the following study programmes:

- Accessory Design

- Communication Design

- Fashion Design

- Industrial Design

- Textile Design

Industrial Design and Accessory Design have a joint admission process and joint teaching for 1 semester. After that you decide, which direction is right for you.

I have applied to Kolding School of Design. Why haven't I received an email from you on 28 July?

You always get only one answer on 28 July, regardless of how many programmes you have applied for. Kolding School of Design sends an email to the applicants to whom we offer a spot or a standby place. Other applicants will either receive a notification from another degree programme that you have been admitted to, or you will receive a rejection from the Coordinated Enrollment if you have not been admitted to any degree programme.