Overview
STX (almen studentereksamen) is Denmark's main general upper-secondary qualification, run under the Ministry of Children and Education. It is a three-year gymnasium programme that combines humanities, social science and natural science subjects, and its main purpose is to prepare students for higher education rather than for a specific trade. Students who complete it receive the studentereksamensbevis, the general entry qualification accepted by Danish universities and other higher-education institutions.
Who can apply
STX normally follows directly after Folkeskolen (compulsory school), so most students start around age 16 and finish around age 19. Students who complete 9th grade and want a direct right of admission to STX within two years of leaving 9th grade must, among other conditions, have an average of at least 5.0 across their final 9th-grade exams and the compulsory national tests, and must have been assessed as ready for further education. Students who do not meet this route can still be considered through an individual assessment carried out by the gymnasium they apply to.
Exam pattern
The programme opens with a grundforløb, an introductory term of about 12 weeks covering Danish, English, mathematics, social studies and a taste of possible study-direction subjects. At the end of the grundforløb, each student chooses a studieretning (study direction) of two to three further subjects, grouped under four broad areas: natural science, social science, languages, and arts. The chosen direction runs for the remaining two and a half years alongside a shared core of mandatory subjects.
Across the full three years, every STX student must study at least: Danish at A level, history at A level, English at B level, mathematics at B level, a second foreign language at B level, and, at C level, physics, physical education, religious studies, social studies, an artistic subject, and two of biology, computer science, chemistry or geography. Combined with the subjects chosen in the study direction, every student ends up with at least four subjects at A level in total, and the programme as a whole runs to a minimum of 2,585 hours of teaching.
The final studentereksamen is a single combined result built from:
| Component | Pattern |
|---|---|
| Continuous assessment | Standing grades (standpunktskarakterer) are given in every subject, typically two to three times a year |
| External exams | At least 10 exams with external assessment across the three years, split at least 3 written and at least 3 oral; a subject examined both ways counts toward both minimums |
| Final written assignment | The Studieretningsprojekt (SRP): written in the spring of the final year, usually across two of the student's subjects, over 10 school days, and defended afterwards in an oral exam of about 30 minutes; the written work and the oral defence are judged together as a single mark |
Marking and results
Every exam and standing grade is marked on the 7-point scale: 12 (excellent), 10, 7, 4, and 02 are passing grades, while 00 and -3 are failing grades. A student passes the studentereksamen overall only if the weighted average of all standing grades and exam grades reaches at least 2.0; this threshold is not rounded up, so an average just under 2.0 does not pass.
Students who take more than the required minimum of four A-level subjects get their published grade average increased under the Bonus A scheme: as of 2026, the average is multiplied by 1.03 for one extra A-level subject, or by 1.06 for two or more extra A-level subjects.
Important dates
The Ministry publishes a combined exam calendar each school year covering primary, lower-secondary and gymnasial exams. For the 2025/2026 school year, written and oral STX exams are held in the spring of each of the three years, with the main summer exam period for 3.g students running through May and June 2026; schools confirm each student's individual written and oral dates once the detailed exam plan is published that spring. Students who are ill or otherwise unable to sit an exam in the summer period normally get a supplementary sitting (sygeeksamen) the following August.
After the exam
Passing STX gives the studentereksamensbevis, Denmark's general higher-education entry qualification, with no subject restriction and no expiry date. The certificate is issued and stored digitally in the Ministry's Eksamensdatabase, and this digital record is what the national coordinated admission system for higher education draws on automatically when a graduate applies to a university or other higher-education programme. Admission runs through two quotas: one ranks applicants mainly on their STX grade point average (including any Bonus A uplift), while the other also weighs other qualifications alongside the grades. For programmes with more applicants than places, the exact grade average needed changes from year to year depending on demand.
Preparation tips
The final result is built from standing grades given right through the three years, not only from the exam fortnight, so classroom performance in every term counts toward the overall average.
Decide the study direction carefully at the end of the grundforløb: it fixes two to three subjects, and often the A-level subjects, for the remaining two and a half years.
Start planning the Studieretningsprojekt's two subjects and topic early in the final year, since the 10-day writing window and the oral defence both draw on work done well before that point.
Who can start STX?
Most students start straight after finishing 9th grade in Folkeskolen, usually around age 16. Students with at least a 5.0 average across their final 9th-grade exams and national tests, and assessed as ready for further education, have a direct right of admission within two years of leaving 9th grade; others can still apply and are assessed individually by the gymnasium.
How many exams does an STX student sit?
At least 10 exams with external assessment across the three years, with at least 3 written and at least 3 oral. One of the oral exams is the defence of the Studieretningsprojekt, the final written assignment written in the spring of the last year.
What counts as a passing grade on STX?
Denmark's 7-point scale runs from 12 (highest) down to -3 (lowest). 12, 10, 7, 4 and 02 are passing grades; 00 and -3 are failing grades. The studentereksamen as a whole is passed only when the weighted average of all standing and exam grades is at least 2.0.
How are STX grades used for university admission?
The studentereksamensbevis qualifies for higher education generally. Applications go through Denmark's national coordinated admission system, which uses the STX grade point average, including any Bonus A uplift for extra A-level subjects, as the main ranking factor in one of its two admission quotas; the other quota also takes other qualifications into account.