Is it possible to work in Denmark knowing very little Danish? (life, country)

[Trimac20]

Though I've never been, I'm in the love with the idea of visiting or even living in Copenhagen, Denmark. The picturesque setting, quaint, historic architecture, the fairy-taleish vibe (the association with Hans Christian Anderson of course), the high quality of life, proximity to other parts of Europe and, I'm told, one of highest rates of English speaking in Europe.

I'm considering doing a working holiday overseas soon - and one of the countries that has an agreement with Australia is Denmark. In Denmark, however, the holiday component is emphasized, and you're only allowed to work a total of 3 months out of a 12 month stay. So I'm guessing I'm going to need savings anyway. There might be options to work longer.

So I'm wondering if anyone has lived in Denmark before, or even travelled there, or is a Dane, is it possible to live and work there knowing very little Danish? I'd try to learn as much as I could, but don't really plan to become fluent, although if that happens great.

Would it be much better than say Italy/France in terms of actually working? Or is pretty much any non-English speaking country a bad idea for someone who only knows English? Unless, of course, I teach English but I'm not sure if that is part of the working holiday programme. I might do this after I'm 30 (the working holiday is for under 30) anyway.

[Kayloh]

90% of Scandinavians (Danes, Swedes, Norwegians and Finns) are able to speak/understand English almost fluently. You will not have problem, however it sucks not being to understand the signs everywhere.

Denmark is a small country in Northern Europe. Remember it gets dark early during wintertime (3 pm), but summertime it stays light outside until around 10 pm. Summers are comfortable (Usually low 70s/20 - 22 Celsius) and wintertime slightly below freezing point with mainly cloudy skies.

Danes, along with other Scandinavians are more on the quite side. They are not that friendly as Americans/Canadians/Australians. They usually do not like to talk to people they do not know. However quality of life is great. To be honest you get bored after a while, but nice experience.

[Stiggie]

Living here shouldn't be a problem, 86% speak english. Among younger people and people in Copenhagen I'll be surprised if that number isn't very close to 100%. But I think alot of people are unsure about their English, even though it might be brilliant. So it will definately be easier to socialise if you speak the language.

In regards to work, it really depends on what your looking at. Teaching in primary school or high school could be difficult for certain obvious reasons . Whereas in other fields it might even prove to be an advantage, e.g. Within large companies I don't think it would be any noticable disadvantage.

I personally have several friends who speak little Danish and still are able to have jobs, so they are definately out there. So I can only encourage you to try it. But wait a little bit, I need to find a job before you can come here .

[Gudra]

Check out foreigners in denmark. Not allowed to post links.

[DginnWonder]

As I understand it, Denmark has one of the strictest Immigration and work permit laws and processes in the world! Very arduous processes, and one I highly doubt will give you the result you desire. Still, no harm in trying! Also, try and learn some Danish if you can, it opens up Scandinavia to you, as their languages are *somewhat* similar and are in the same family. It will also help if you wanna learn German too.

Good Luck!

[tomahawk19]

I know there is quite an Australian community in Denmark, and there is even an Australian bar in central Copenhagen.

Perhaps you can get some ideas if you contact these guys from facebook twitter etc. ?

[Avrupa]

Danish people are generally very 'cold' to foreigners. If you do not look "Danish", I do not recommend you moving there.
Sweden is overall better country.

[tomahawk19]

Originally Posted by Avrupa

Danish people are generally very 'cold' to foreigners. If you do not look "Danish", I do not recommend you moving there.
Sweden is overall better country.

I have lived and worked in 3 Scandinavian countries. Denmark, Sweden and Norway.

I feel Denmark offers a better life, and much better connection to the rest of Europe. But if someone likes Sweden or Norway better, it is not a big shock, I dont see a huge difference. They are all nice countries.

However, I dont think Swedes are especially warm to foreigners? I think it is common in all Nordic countries to be distant and isolated from others.

So if one is in search of extensive social life and contacts, Denmark is not the place for him. Sweden is not the place either.

[Avrupa]

Originally Posted by tomahawk19

I have lived and worked in 3 Scandinavian countries. Denmark, Sweden and Norway.

I feel Denmark offers a better life, and much better connection to the rest of Europe. But if someone likes Sweden or Norway better, it is not a big shock, I dont see a huge difference. They are all nice countries.

However, I dont think Swedes are especially warm to foreigners? I think it is common in all Nordic countries to be distant and isolated from others.

So if one is in search of extensive social life and contacts, Denmark is not the place for him. Sweden is not the place either.

Swedes are not that much better, but Sweden has a much larger immigrant population and much more diverse than Denmark and Norway.
Sweden is also the largest country in Scandinavia both population and size-wise, and more widely known. The only pros with Denmark is being closer to continental Europe.

Originally Posted by Trimac20

Though I've never been, I'm in the love with the idea of visiting or even living in Copenhagen, Denmark. The picturesque setting, quaint, historic architecture, the fairy-taleish vibe (the association with Hans Christian Anderson of course), the high quality of life, proximity to other parts of Europe and, I'm told, one of highest rates of English speaking in Europe.

I'm considering doing a working holiday overseas soon - and one of the countries that has an agreement with Australia is Denmark. In Denmark, however, the holiday component is emphasized, and you're only allowed to work a total of 3 months out of a 12 month stay. So I'm guessing I'm going to need savings anyway. There might be options to work longer.

So I'm wondering if anyone has lived in Denmark before, or even travelled there, or is a Dane, is it possible to live and work there knowing very little Danish? I'd try to learn as much as I could, but don't really plan to become fluent, although if that happens great.

Would it be much better than say Italy/France in terms of actually working? Or is pretty much any non-English speaking country a bad idea for someone who only knows English? Unless, of course, I teach English but I'm not sure if that is part of the working holiday programme. I might do this after I'm 30 (the working holiday is for under 30) anyway.

Going from Perth Australia to Copenhagen Denmark would be quite a dramatic impressive move!

I think you would enjoy it, especially if that is for a relatively short term, but there would be a lot to adjust to! Copenhagen is a different type of city from Perth and much more dense, more crowded, faster paced, different types of architecture and social/diversity demographics etc. Copenhagen has 800,00 people which is less than Perth’s population but it might still appear bigger.

Also, the weather is very different. Copenhagen’s summer is sort of like Perth’s winter and it never really gets a Perth summer. Copenhagen is much colder, and cloudier year round than Perth. Ironically, Copenhagen gets less annual rain than Perth even though it is a lot cloudier. I think it would be fun short term to experience such a difference in annual weather.

The quality of life, intrigue/appeal, desirability, and excitement for places comes from other things much more that has no relation to weather. Weather is very overrated related to that. The interest I had in weather is gradually diminishing and that is because I find many other characteristics much more important than weather.

Most people (80% to 98% of the population) in Denmark have fluency in English and know at least 3 languages, so you would have no problems in language. However, I think it would still be beneficial to try to learn the local language a bit. Some Danish people might actually look down on people that know only one language.

Denmark does have plenty of qualities but it is a type of country where most of that just seems localized in the capital city (in this case Copenhagen). I don’t know much about the other geographic locations in Denmark so maybe other areas of Denmark could be as inspiring as Copenhagen.

What are all of the other countries that Australia has working holiday overseas agreements? If Australia has that with France, and Italy I think those two options would be even better than Denmark for the situation.