Study in Europe in 2019: When to apply? - Deadlines
Big Ben - London by Norbert Reimer, CC BY-SA 2.0, modified
If you want to get a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Europe in 2019, it is important to do your research early. In some countries, you may have to submit your applications up to 9 months before the start of term.
This article is regularly updated with the relevant university application deadlines.
We have compiled an overview of university application deadlines in Europe - check out the table below. These application dates apply to the majority of universities in the respective countries. Some study programmes, or some private universities, may have different application deadlines before or after the entries in the table. Be sure to do your research early so that you won’t be caught in a hurry.
| Country | Common application deadlines |
|---|---|
| Austria | June to September 2019 (varies by university) |
| Denmark | 15 March 2019 (Bachelor degrees); varies for Master degrees |
| Estonia | between March and June 2019; deadlines for non-EEA citizens are usually earlier |
| Finland | January 2019 (most universities); March/April 2018 (some UAS) |
| France | between February and April 2019 for most universities |
| Germany | 15 July 2019 (most universities/programmes) |
| Ireland | 1 February 2019 (online) or 1 May 2019 (late paper applications) |
| Latvia | May/June 2019; varies by university |
| Lithuania | June 2019 |
| Netherlands (Holland) | 1 April 2019 or 1 May 2019 for most universities |
| Norway | 1 December 2018 for non-European students, 1 March 2019 for students from EU/EEA; might be different for some universities |
| Poland | varies by university; but generally from July to August |
| Sweden | 15 January 2019 |
| United Kingdom | varies by university; some accept applications until the summer; some popular courses are full much earlier |
The application closing dates in the table above usually mean that by then you must have submitted your complete application. Check with the universities for the details - but in general, applying for a Bachelor or Master means you have to submit the following documents:
In some cases, some of these documents can be supplied after the actual application deadline - so long as you began your application before that date. Make sure to read the admissions guidelines to know exactly what documents are needed when.
It is definitely recommended to apply by the official application deadlines - and in some cases it is even technically impossible to apply later, because the websites through which you would have applied are shut down. However, many universities in many countries allow late entries when there are still places available. If you realise that you have missed the deadline, call or e-mail the university that offers the programme, and ask if they will accept a late application. You may just be in luck!
Universities in some countries require you to send your applications very early, for example Sweden or Finland, where closing dates are usually in January. However, it is common that you can send in late applications for a second admissions round. This could be successful if the courses you apply to did not otherwise get enough applicants.
Otherwise, some countries generally have very late application deadlines. In the Baltic countries - Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania - you can usually apply to university until June. German public universities commonly accept applications until mid-July. In Austria and Poland, you can sometimes send in your application until shortly before the start of the semester.
This article was last updated on 8 Feb 2019.
