Danish News Round-Up: Higher education admittance numbers just short of new record

Elsewhere, a child infected with the corona virus has died in central Jutland

On Wednesday, 67,425 students received the news that they had been accepted onto a higher education course. Compared to last year, the number of new students has fallen by 3 percent, but it is still the second highest ever.

Of the new students, 80 percent were accepted onto their first choice of course.

New study places
“There are a lot of young people who wish to get an education and that’s a good thing,” said Ane Halsboe-Jørgensen, the minister of higher education and science.

In the summer of 2020, Parliament decided to earmark further funding for higher education, so 5,000 new study places could be established.

The funding boost was approved because a lot more young people were expected to opt for higher education in light of the COVID-19 pandemic reducing travelling and work options.

Some 20.000 rejected
Some 20,000 prospective students, meanwhile, received the news that their applications had been rejected.

“The young people who received a rejection need to know that it’s okay to be disappointed, but it’s not the same as not being able to get an education. You can get one, if you want one,” said the education minister.


Child infected with COVID-19 has died
A young child has died after being infected with COVID-19. The death, which occurred in central Jutland, was revealed in the daily accounts of COVID-19 related deaths published by Statens Serum Institut. SSI cannot give any further details because of GDPR laws, but the child was no older than nine. It is the second time that a child infected with COVID-19 has died in Denmark. In the first case, the child had an underlying decease that made it particularly vulnerable to the virus.

Police seek witnesses after rape of 18-year-old woman near Valby Station
The police are seeking witnesses in connection with a reported rape of an 18-year-old woman on the morning of Wednesday July 28 between 06.45 and 07.15 near Valby Station. The incident took place on Hønsebroen, the bridge that runs across the train tracks between Gammel Jernbanevej and Lyshøjgårdsvej. The perpetrator has been described as a 30 to 40-year-old overweight man with light-brown hair. The police urge any potential witnesses to contact the authorities. “If you have seen a person fitting the description around that time, you can contact police by calling 114,” said the head of the investigation, Baris Tuncer.

Danish YouTube-star Albert Dyrlund has died
One of Denmark’s most popular YouTubers, Albert Dyrlund, has died while on vacation in Italy. According to Ekstra Bladet, the 22-year-old fell from a cliff, while filming a video for his channel. Dyrlund was one of the biggest Danish YouTubers with 160,000 subscribers. He also had the leading role in the 2018 movie ‘Team Albert’.

Police arrest two 17-year-olds after car chase in Brønshøj
For four minutes, the police chased two 17-year-old boys driving a white BMW 320 recklessly through Brønshøj on Thursday night. Police managed to stop and arrest the boys after they crashed the car into a bicycle rack. None of the two boys had a driver’s licence, and the owner of the BMW has not yet been identified. The police have confiscated the car with the intent of having it seized. The two 17-year-olds were both released on Friday morning.

Denmark’s outlook deemed ‘negative’ by Standard Ethics agency
The Standard Ethics Agency has downgraded Denmark level of compliance in relation to international laws and guidelines. As a result, the outlook of Denmark has been changed from ‘stable’ to ‘negative’. The change happens in the wake of a recent law, passed on June 3, making it possible for Denmark to transfer asylum-seekers to a third country. The law was met with international criticism and was judged by the European Commission to be incompatible with current EU rules. “Successive Danish governments seem to be orientated towards anti-migration policies and regulations that are not compatible with the current rating levels attributed by Standard Ethics,” the agency wrote in a press release.