Fewer engineers are costly for society. That is one of the main conclusions of a new report made for DTU by HBS Economics.
By 2035 DTU will have to educate 4,200 fewer engineers. Sector resizing alone will reduce Denmark’s GDP by up to half a billion DKK annually once the reform is fully phased in, the report shows.
“I believe this economic loss should give us pause. It makes no sense to continue with something that creates negative growth,” says DTU President Anders Bjarklev.
He urges a future government to abolish the SVM government’s sector resizing — and instead open the door for more young people to pursue an engineering degree.
“DTU has the capacity to educate many more engineers, and society needs that. There is a massive shortage of engineers in the business sector, and that will only continue,” says Anders Bjarklev.
Engineering Shortage in Critical Sectors
This message is supported by the latest forecast from the Danish Society of Engineers IDA, which shows that by 2035 there will be a shortage of 16,500 graduates in the IT, technology, and engineering fields.
The shortage will be particularly acute in socially critical growth sectors that attract significant political attention, such as the green transition, critical infrastructure, and life sciences.
“We cannot afford to lack engineers in the fields that drive development in Denmark. Engineers are found where growth is strong, the level of innovation is high, and significant societal value is created,” says DTU President Anders Bjarklev.
Among highly educated professionals working in the green transition, 17.7% are graduates of DTU. In the life sciences industry, the share is 18%, and in critical infrastructure, it is 10.4%, according to the new report.
A Good Investment
If a future government chooses to educate more engineers, it will result in significant economic benefits.
According to calculations, a civil engineer from DTU contributes an average of 41 million DKK to Denmark’s GDP over the course of a full working life. Of this amount, their tax and duty payments—minus expenses for education, health, and welfare, for example—represent a net gain of 20 million DKK.
According to DTU’s President, this underlines the need for action.
“Engineers are a good investment for Denmark in every way, and young talents are lining up to contribute. This calls for politicians to take far better advantage of the situation than they do now,” he says.
In the summer of 2025, DTU had to reject 789 qualified first-choice applications due to a lack of available study places. This was partly a result of the political decisions.
In the most recent application round for DTU’s diploma and BSc programmes, there was a 12 percent increase in the number of first-choice applications, from 1,985 to 2,222 applicants. This is the highest increase in the country, where applications for STEM programmes have risen by 2 percent overall.
