Master in Security Risk Management

The MSc in Security Risk Management at the University of Copenhagen is a two-year, full-time master's degree taught entirely in English. It is 120 ECTS and ends with an independent master's thesis on a topic you choose. The programme trains you to understand, anticipate and act on the threats and crises facing governments and organisations: cyberattacks on critical infrastructure, hybrid warfare, AI-powered disinformation, climate collapse and international conflict.

What you study

Year one builds your analytical core through six compulsory courses and two electives. The compulsory courses are:

• Security Studies (7.5 ECTS)
• Risk Analysis (7.5 ECTS)
• Organization and Risk (7.5 ECTS)
• Knowledge and Methods (7.5 ECTS)
• Risk and Uncertainty in a Connected World (7.5 ECTS)
• Risk Regulation and Governance (7.5 ECTS)

You also take 15 ECTS of electives in the second semester. In year two you take 30 ECTS of electives in the third semester and then write your 30 ECTS master's thesis in the fourth semester. The electives let you specialise in the areas of security and risk that matter most to you.

How the programme is organised

Teaching goes beyond the lecture hall. You work through research-based seminars, crisis communication simulations, policy assessment exercises and real-world case studies drawn from current events. Practitioners from government, security agencies and the private sector join as guest lecturers, so you see how risk decisions are made under pressure.

You can replace elective elements with an academic internship of 15 or 30 ECTS at a government agency, private company, NGO or other organisation working with security issues. The internship ends with an academic paper assessed by a supervisor from the department. You can also study abroad and transfer up to 30 ECTS from another institution in Denmark or abroad, as long as the courses correspond to the MSc programme and replace electives.

Who it suits

The programme suits you if you already have a bachelor's degree with at least 90 ECTS in social science courses within political science, sociology, anthropology, or organisation and governance, plus at least 15 ECTS in qualitative or quantitative research methods. Several Danish bachelor's degrees meet the academic requirements automatically, including Political Science, Sociology and Anthropology from the University of Copenhagen; International Business and Politics and International Business from Copenhagen Business School; and named degrees in political science, social science, sociology, anthropology and public administration from Roskilde University, the University of Southern Denmark, Aarhus University and Aalborg University. If your degree is from another Danish or international university, the admission board assesses whether it qualifies.

You need English at the level of English B. The programme has a limited number of seats. If there are more qualified applicants than places, selection is based on your general grades in the qualifying bachelor's degree, the proportion of relevant courses measured in ECTS, and your grades in particularly relevant courses. Relevant courses are those within the field of security risk management, theoretically, methodologically or empirically.

Admission, language and next steps

You apply through the University of Copenhagen's application portal. The deadline for applicants from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland is 15 January at 23:59 CET, and you receive a reply by 13 March. The deadline for Danish applicants and applicants from within the EU, EEA and Switzerland is 1 March at 23:59 CET, with a reply by 15 May. Students from the EU, EEA and Switzerland study free of charge. Other students pay a tuition fee set by the institution and an application deposit.

You upload a transcript of records, course descriptions for current and passed courses, a self-assessment form, proof of language proficiency and a copy of your passport or national ID card. Applicants with another Danish or international degree also upload a description of the grading scale and credit system. The university does not offer pre-assessment of your educational background.

This two-year programme admits its final cohort in 2027. From 2028 it becomes a focused one-year MSc as part of the University of Copenhagen's new master's degree options. The 2026 intake had 53 available places.

Master’s applications go straight to University of Copenhagen, not through optagelse.dk, and the institution sets its own deadline. The register shows 15 January 2027 as the next deadline for this programme. Intake, as the register states it: Starts 1 September 2027 (apply by 15 January 2027). Entry requirements and language tests are set by the institution, so start from the official programme page. Our guides cover tuition fees, residence permits and housing.