Overall description / Legal basis

In Denmark speech and language therapy is a public service, provided by either the local authorities (to children age 0-18) or by the regional authorities (to adults).

The obligation to provide the service is regulated by –

1. the Act on Public Schools (Folkeskolen), including regulations concerning children with special educational needs encompassing also speech and language therapy;

2. the Act on Special Education for Adults, encompassing all sorts of speech and language therapy/pathology for adults.

Organisation of SLT in the country

Age 0 to 18:  The so-called Pedagogic Psychological Counselling Office is responsible for providing the speech and language therapy. SLTs are employed by the local authority and allocated to the Counselling Office. The SLT usually has independent responsibility for all children in need of therapy in one or two schools and a number of day care centres in the area. The overall responsibility of the therapy given is that of the head of the Counselling Office, usually the leading psychologist.

Adults:  In each county of Denmark there is a 'Speech Therapy Centre' or 'Communication Centre' responsible for providing speech and language therapy services to adults in the county. SLTs are employed by the centre and provide therapy on site. Some of the SLTs work at hospitals or in other places outside the centre. In general, the SLTs are working quite independently, under the responsibility of the manager of the centre.

Public obligation / private practise

Due to the fact that public authorities are obliged to provide the treatment any citizen may need, free of charge for the individual, there is no agreement with social security or insurance companies about reimbursement of speech and language therapy.

Over the last years few speech and language therapists (SLT) have established private practises. Clients/patients who choose to have therapy under private management will have to pay the full cost themselves.

Formally, they are both regular full academic educations, offered by the Human Arts faculty, with a prescribed length of study of 5 years. In both cases it is possible to stop after 3 years, being granted a Bachelors degree in logopaedics. Most students complete their education, though, obtaining the Danish cand. mag. degree.

Authorisation / license / requirements for CE

Danish SLTs are considered authorized by the diploma / degree, which is granted by a governmental authority, viz. the university.

As (nearly) all SLTs are employed, working under the responsibility of some leader in charge (head, manager or the like), there is no system of licensure.

Equally, there are no regulated requirements for continuing education. It is considered the responsibility of the employing authority to ensure that employees are taking relevant and necessary courses to keep them professionally updated.

Recognition of professional qualifications obtained abroad

The employing authority has the right and the power to judge the qualifications and to decide if they can be considered sufficient. However, it is recommended to address CIRIUS (the authority within the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation responsible for supporting the internationalisation of education and training in Denmark) to get an official assessment of qualifications. If relevant, this assessment will include recommendations of additional training, and how and where to obtain this.

In most cases a 3 to 4 year study at university level will be considered recognizable. 

Linguistic competences: To obtain employment it is, of course, necessary to master Danish at a high level. Usually, the judgement of linguistic competence will be performed by the employing authority during an interview. Formal testing may be performed, too.

Status of the profession and the professional + income/salary

Speech and language therapy has been acknowledged a profession for more than a hundred years, in the sense that the first 'speech therapy centre' was established in 1898, as a public institution financed by the state.

In Denmark speech and language therapy is considered a pedagogic profession, rather than a paramedical one. Although the latter is the more general opinion in Europe, Danish logopaedics is in full accordance with the professional profile of CPLOL, saying that "The speech and language therapist is the professional responsible for the prevention, assessment, treatment and scientific study of human communication and related disorders".

Today, speech and language therapy is broadly recognized by the public as well as by different authorities. Nevertheless, there are no specific legal regulations concerning speech and language therapy. The profession is considered part of 'special education'.

SLTs are employed in SLT positions, carrying the salary of a teacher + various increments. In 2008 the annual salaries vary from DKK 295.000 to DKK 360.000 by seniority (equivalent to app. €39,600 / 48,325).

Professional association(s)

The main professional association in Denmark, only admitting individuals with a recognized SLT diploma, is Audiologopædisk Forening (ALF) (Danish Speech Language Hearing Association). Originally, the association was founded in 1923, thus being the world's oldest, still existing association of logopaedists/SLTs.

There are two other associations also admitting only SLTs. They have some limitations of admittance, though, as to where the SLT is employed and from where she graduated.

The three associations have a non-competitive collaboration on certain matters.

For further information the links below may be of interest.

CIRIUS - for assessment of foreign qualifications

The Danish education system

The SLT education in Copenhagen, at the Department of Scandinavian Studies and Linguistics, University of Copenhagen.
Contact: mendoza@hum.ku.dk / Tlf.: +45 35 32 83 14

The SLT education in Odense, at the University of Southern Denmark.
Contact person: Ole Lansø, Secretary

Speech and Language / Communication Centres in the counties (the de facto employing authorities concerning SLT for adults). These regional centres may also advise on local employment.

Danish Speech Language Hearing Association - ALF

Author / reference    

Bent E. Kjaer

Chief Executive, Center for Rehabilitation, Region of Southern Denmark

External lecturer, University of Southern Denmark

Representative of ALF to CPLOL

General Secretary, CPLOL

March 2004