Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science

What Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science does

The Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science operates as a sub-agency within Forsknings-, Uddannelses- og Digitaliseringsministeriet, the Danish government ministry responsible for higher education, research, innovation, and — following a June 3, 2026 merger — digitalization policy. Headquartered at Bredgade 40-42, Copenhagen, the ministry manages over 50 billion DKK annually in investments across the higher education, research, and innovation ecosystem and oversees a portfolio of operational units including Uddannelses- og Forskningsstyrelsen (the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science itself), SU (Statens Uddannelsesstøtte, student financial support), DFIR (international research cooperation), Grib Verden (internationalisation programmes), and Forskningens Døgn (national science festival). Its mandate covers policy development, regulatory framework-setting, funding allocation, and institutional oversight for universities, university colleges, professional schools, research institutions, and the space sector.

The ministry's business model is non-commercial: it is funded through national tax appropriations rather than pricing or product revenue, with no pricing models, no paying customers, and no headcount disclosed in the source data. Its 'distribution' operates through policy implementation, funding instruments, and direct institutional oversight rather than sales channels. The core technology footprint is described as digitalization infrastructure and research data management systems, but no proprietary AI/ML products, APIs, SDKs, or commercial platforms are offered — the ministry's digital presence is informational (ufm.dk plus social channels) and administrative. Revenue-equivalent scale is expressed in budget terms: 50+ billion DKK annual investment, 2.7 billion DKK earmarked for green research (2021), 135+ million DKK to ESA, and nearly 10 billion DKK drawn from Horizon 2020.

Strategically, the ministry is in an active expansion phase. It held the EU Council Presidency in H2 2025, coordinating European research, innovation, space, quantum, AI, and life science policy and convening major conferences (MSCA 2025, Space, Quantum Technologies, AI Summit). It has signed new bilateral cooperation declarations with Japan (quantum, January 2025) and reinforced agreements with China (climate, environment, agriculture, health), while co-launching the Into Change and Into Innovation Awards (May 2025) with Carlsberg Foundation, Novo Nordisk Foundation, Villum Foundation, and Innovationsfonden. The June 2026 merger with the Ministry of Digitalisation, under minister Christina Egelund, formally consolidates digitalization oversight with higher education and research policy.

Name

Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science

Legal name

Forsknings-, Uddannelses- og Digitaliseringsministeriet

Website

https://ufm.dk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Forsknings-, Uddannelses- og Digitaliseringsministeriet is the Danish government ministry responsible for higher education, research, innovation, and digitalization policy. It manages over 50 billion DKK in annual investments, oversees student financial support, and represents Denmark in EU and international research cooperation.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Education Administration

NAICS

Executive, Legislative, and Other General Government Support (921), Colleges, Universities, and Professional Schools (611310), Regulation, Licensing, and Inspection of Miscellaneous Commercial Sectors (92615)

SIC

International Affairs (9721), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Higher Education Regulators & Tertiary Education Commissions (EDADAAAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Science, Technology & Innovation Administration (National R&D Policy) (BPAIAAAK), Technical Committees, Working Groups & Expert Panels (BPADANAB), Higher Education Academic Standards & Degree Framework Authorities (EDADAEAG)

Keywords

• Higher education policy
• Research funding
• Student financial support
• Innovation policy
• International research cooperation

Headquarters

HQ city

Copenhagen

HQ country

Denmark

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

The Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science is a government ministry that formulates and administers Danish higher education, research, and innovation policy. It manages over 50 billion DKK annually in state investment, administers student financial support (SU), coordinates international research cooperation (including EU Horizon Europe and ESA programs), and provides institutional oversight for universities, university colleges, and professional schools.

Product overview

The Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science (Forsknings-, Uddannelses- og Digitaliseringsministeriet) is a government ministry, not a commercial product company. Its work encompasses policy development, oversight, and administration across higher education, research, innovation, and digitalization. It does not offer commercial products or services in the traditional sense. The ministry's online presence consists of informational web content covering its administrative areas, press releases, speeches, and public-facing pages about Danish education and research policy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Denmark ranked 2nd globally in EU Horizon 2020 participation
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor, core, regional and global.

• Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and TechnologymajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 January 2025Bilateral declaration on quantum research and technology cooperation, enabling enhanced collaboration across education, research, innovation, commercialization and industry sectors.
• Sino-Danish Centre (SDC)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 January 2025Joint university center between Denmark and China. Minister visits SDC during trips to strengthen bilateral cooperation in education and research.
• European Space Agency (ESA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpace research and satellite communication cooperation. Denmark invests over 135 million DKK in ESA programs focusing on technology development and space research in green transition, telecommunications and satellites.
• Chinese Ministry of EducationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBilateral cooperation agreements in education, research and innovation. Signed cooperation agreements on climate change, environmental protection, sustainable agriculture and global health.
• Chinese Ministry of Science and TechnologymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBilateral cooperation agreements focusing on targeted areas where Danish-Chinese collaboration provides mutual benefit.
• Japanese quantum research institutionsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeading Japanese quantum research environments for Danish researchers to collaborate with. Japan is third largest investor in R&D globally with strong quantum technology capabilities.
• Japanese space agency and research institutesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCooperation visits to Japanese space agency and applied research institutes during bilateral missions.
• European CommissionmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerKey partner during EU presidency 2025. Denmark coordinates European research, innovation and space policies as presiding country of the Council of the European Union.
• Danmarks Frie ForskningsfondcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEvaluates candidates for Into Change Award and presents recommendations to the international committee, which then recommends candidates to the Minister for final decision.
• Nordic cooperationregionalStrategic or Co-development PartnerNordic collaborations on research and education within the Nordic Council of Ministers framework.
• Global partnershipsglobalStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal research collaborations including Arctic research, bilateral agreements with various countries, and participation in international research infrastructures.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Others

• European Space Agency (ESA): Denmark is an ESA member state contributing ~135M DKK to space programs. ESA is a key counterpart organization, not a competitor, enabling Danish space research and satellite initiatives.

Direct peers

• UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology: UK government department for science, innovation and technology policy. Comparable in function as a national-level R&D policy and funding authority with international collaboration remit.
• Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet): Sweden's national research funding agency. Direct Nordic peer with comparable mandate to allocate public research grants, fund international collaboration, and steward national research policy.
• Innovation Fund Denmark (Innovationsfonden): Denmark's national innovation funding agency. Operational peer that channels public research and innovation grants; the ministry serves as its parent/policy owner.
• Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW): Netherlands ministry overseeing higher education and research. Comparable structure and mandate around funding universities, research institutions, and internationalization.
• French Ministry of Higher Education and Research: France's ministry for higher education and research. Comparable in scale and mandate across higher education policy, research funding, and European research coordination.
• Swedish Ministry of Education and Research (Utbildningsdepartementet): Sweden's ministry for education, research and innovation policy. Nordic peer with closely overlapping responsibilities for higher education policy and international research cooperation.
• Research Council of Norway (Norges Forskningsråd): Norway's national research funding body. Closely comparable in mandate, scale, and Nordic-cooperation footprint, including bilateral and EU framework program administration.
• German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF): Germany's federal ministry for education and research policy. Comparable in policy scope, national R&D budget authority, and EU/international research coordination role.

Broad incumbents

• European Commission DG RTD (Research and Innovation): EU-level R&D policy directorate. Not a direct competitor but the principal counterpart for Danish ministries coordinating Horizon Europe and EU presidency research priorities.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ufm_min
• Facebookfacebook.com/ufmdk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ministry-of-science-innovation-and-higher-education
• Instagraminstagram.com/ufm_min

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments1 record

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Frequently asked questions about Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science