Teacher Training

Teacher training

1. Pre-primary education teachers
2. Primary and Lower Secondary School teachers
3. General Upper Secondary School teachers
4. Technical and commercial upper secondary education (hhx and htx) teachers
5. Vocational Education and Training (VET) teachers
6. Higher Education teachers


1. Pre-primary education teachers

Training of social educators for nurseries, kindergartens and the pre-school class is provided in the form of a unified training system. The course takes 3 ½ years and is provided at educator training colleges.

See also: 

Medium-cycle professional higher education qualifications.

The subjects taught encompass: Education studies and psychology (30%), Social studies and health education (20%), Danish media, music, movement and P.E., arts, craft, drama, environmental studies, and other activities (40%) and Communication, organisation, and management (10%).

The training of social educators in Denmark includes a total of 3 placements: The preliminary placement of 12 weeks and 2 periods of 6 months each. One of these placements can take place abroad.

Students can specialise in various areas relating to children, adolescents and adults.

In the third or fourth year, students are required to submit an extended essay/project (nominal duration: 10 weeks), which is then assessed through an individual examination.

Before 1992

The social educator programme was established in 1992, replacing three programmes: social pedagogy, kindergarten pedagogy and leisure-time pedagogy.

Social pedagogy: Students followed a 3-year course (30 months). The course included 20 months of theoretical training and 10 months of practical experience and the writing of an extended essay in the final year. The programme prepared for employment in nurseries as well as in various institutions or schemes, e.g. for handicapped people. 

Kindergarten and leisure-time pedagogy: Students followed a 3-year course (119 weeks). In addition to theoretical training, the course included three placements lasting a total of 27 weeks and the writing of an extended essay (nominal duration: 8 weeks) in the final year. The kindergarten pedagogy programme prepared for employment in kindergartens and pre-school classes. The leisure-time pedagogy programme prepared for work with school-age children and adolescents. 

2. Primary and Lower Secondary School teachers

Training of teachers for the Folkeskole is provided in the form of a unified training system at colleges of education. The programme is of 4 years’ duration including teaching practice at a school for a total of 24 weeks.

See also:

Medium-cycle professional higher education qualifications.

The programme includes the following subjects:

Common core subjects: Theory of education, psychology, general didactics, school and society (70% of one year’s workload), religious studies and philosophy (20%), teaching practice (60%), thesis (15%).

Main subjects (linjefag): The student must choose Danish or mathematics (70%) and three further main subjects (each 55%). The four main subjects must be chosen so that at least two of the following three areas are represented: humanities, natural sciences and practical-aesthetic subjects.

In theory, a teacher’s certificate qualifies the graduate teacher to teach all subjects to all forms (1st-10th forms), but in fact the teacher is generally considered competent to teach the 1st to 10th forms in the four main subjects taken. In practice, the authorities responsible for the appointment of teachers (i.e. the municipalities, including the school board and the head teacher of the individual school) take the final decision with regard to the question of competence.

Before 1998

The course was divided into two parts, each one of 2 years’ duration.

Part 1 included the following subjects: Theory of education, psychology, Danish, rhetoric, arithmetic/mathematics, religious studies and the subject areas natural sciences and history/social studies. Furthermore, students chose two of the subjects music, sports and arts.

In Part 2, students specialised in two main subjects (linjefag). In addition they studied general didactics.

Approximately 20 weeks of teaching practice included in the course and students were required to submit a pedagogical thesis.

The Danish University of Education

The Danish University of Education (Danmarks Pædagogiske Universitet) was founded on 1 July 2000. The objective of the university is to carry out higher educational research, as well as to offer postgraduate studies, M.Ed. and PhD study programmes. 

The Danish University of Education combines in one institution all the activities of the former institutions: the Royal Danish School of Educational Studies, the Danish National Institute for Education Research and the Danish School of Advanced Pedagogy, as well as the newly-established Learning Lab Danmark.

Colleges of Education

Teachers at colleges of education may have three different kinds of qualifications:

1. A university degree (Master’s level) in humanities or in natural sciences subjects,
2. An academic degree (Master’s level) from the Royal Danish School of Educational Studies/The Danish University of Education.
3. A Folkeskole teacher qualification supplemented with in-service training (mostly in non-academic subjects such as textile design, wood/metalwork etc.).

See also:

“Det Nødvendige Seminarium” – Factsheet about the teacher training programme offered at the Necessary Teacher Training College, Tvind.

3. General Upper Secondary School teachers

In order to obtain permanent appointment, teachers in general upper secondary education are required to have a Candidatus (Master’s) degree, normally in two subjects (major/minor) and to have completed a 2-year supplementary course (pædagogikum) which includes further studies in the minor of the two university subjects, educational theory and in-service teaching practice.

4. Technical and commercial upper secondary education (hhx and htx) teachers

Teachers in the hhx and htx programmes are required to have a Candidatus (Master’s) degree and have completed a teacher training course in addition to qualifications depending on the type of subjects they are to teach. Teachers of specialised subjects must have a minimum of 2 years’ relevant work experience.

5. Vocational Education and Training (VET) teachers

Teachers who are to teach general subjects, must have a level of education at least comparable to a Folkeskole teaching qualification or a bachelor’s degree.

Teachers who are to teach specialised subjects must have completed a VET programme in the relevant vocational field and, normally, further education in the same field, such as a short-cycle higher education technician’s qualification. Furthermore, they must have a minimum of 5 years’ relevant work experience.

All VET teachers are required to have at least 2 years of relevant work experience. If they have not already taken a teacher training course, they must also complete a special pædagogikum course for vocational college teachers. This is a sandwich-type course of a duration corresponding to 18 weeks of full-time studies: 14 weeks of theory and 4 weeks of practice.

In addition, they must have (or acquire within 3 years of employment) qualifications at vocational upper secondary level including two subjects at the highest level from among the subject areas Danish, foreign languages, natural sciences, social sciences, business economics, marketing and information technology.

6. Higher Education teachers

Teachers in higher education institutions are required to have a degree at least equivalent to the level at which they are to teach. In addition, they must have qualifications for teaching the subjects in question, which may be earned, for example, through research work, professional experience or foreign study periods.