Admissions frequently asked questions

We have collected some frequently asked questions and their answers on this site. Please acquaint yourself with these questions and answers.

Bachelor’s programme: University of Helsinki offers one Bachelor’s programme in English, Bachelor's programme in Science. In the other undergraduate degree programmes, the language of teaching is Finnish and/or Swedish.

Master’s programmes: At the University of Helsinki, you can choose from over 30 International Master’s Programmes in English.

Doctoral programmes: University of Helsinki offers 33 doctoral programmes.

You can find all our degree programmes in the degree finder.

Bachelor of Science programme: For the English-language Bachelor's Programme in Science, there are two admission groups in the application.

For studies starting in fall 2025, the application period for admission group 1 will be 2 ─ 16 January 2025, and for admission group 2 it will be 11-25 March 2025.

Master’s programmes: Please note that the University of Helsinki only has one intake per academic year. The next application period is 2 ꟷ 16 January 2025.

Check out the list of our International Master's Programmes and visit their websites for more information.

Doctoral programmes: 

The University of Helsinki Doctoral School has 33 doctoral programmes. Doctoral study rights are applied to from the programmes. Study rights are applicable 2–5 times a year, depending on the doctoral programme.

Please check the website of the doctoral programme you are applying to, as different programmes have different application periods.

Bachelor's programme in Science: there are two admission groups in the application.

Applicants who do not hold a Finnish matriculation examination, an IB or EB examination, or an RP or DIA examination administered in Finland apply in admission group 1.

Those who have completed a Finnish matriculation examination, an IB or EB examination, or an RP or DIA examination administered in Finland apply in admission group 2.

You can only apply in one admission group based on your previous education.

Please see further information on how to apply to the Bachelor's programme in Science here

Master’s programmes: You must have a Bachelor's degree or equivalent to be eligible to apply. Your Bachelor's degree does not always have to be exactly in the same field, but you must have completed studies that are relevant for the Master's programme you are applying for. Please see the individual programme's website for more information.

You can apply to a Master’s programme even if you are in the middle of the last year of your undergraduate university studies. Please see question "I have not yet gradu­ated. Can I still ap­ply?" for more information.

Doctoral programmes: When applying for doctoral studies, the main rule of eligibility is that you must hold either a Finnish Master’s degree or a foreign degree that is roughly comparable to a Finnish Master’s degree. A foreign degree is, as a rule, considered comparable when it makes you eligible to apply for doctoral studies in the country where you have completed the degree. Acquaint yourself both with the general rules of eligibility and with the possible additional, doctoral programme-specific rules well before applying.

When applying to degree programmes conducted in English at any level, you must meet the English language requirements. Please see question "How can I prove my English language skills?" for further information on the language requirements.

There are no age restrictions. Anyone fulfilling the eligibility requirements can apply.

Bachelor's programme: You can apply to the Bachelor's programme in Science even if you graduate after the application period. Please see further information regarding applying to the Bachelor's programme in Science here

Master's programmes: You can apply if you have not graduated before the application period. In such case, you do not need to submit your degree certificate during the application period. If you are admitted, your admission will be conditional, and you must graduate and submit your degree certificate by the end of August.

Bachelor's programme: See the required documents when applying to the Bachelor's programme in Science

Master's programmes: See the required documents when applying to Master's programmes

Doctoral programmes: See the required documents when applying to Doctoral programmes

Please note that there are country-specific requirements that must be followed when submitting the documents.

In addition, you must meet the English language requirements. Please see question "How can I prove my English language skills?" for further information on the language requirements.

Please note, that we cannot make any advance assessments on your documents or their eligibility. All documents need to be submitted according to the given instructions, documents cannot be handed in personally to the Admission Services.

It is always the applicant’s responsibility to make sure that the application documents reach the University of Helsinki by the given deadline. The University of Helsinki does not process any application documents that have arrived after the deadline.

From January 2025 onwards there is going to be an application fee of 100 euros. The application fee is collected for applicants from countries outside EU/EEA seeking education leading to a degree in higher education, excluding licenciate or doctoral degrees. There is no application fee for Finnish or EU citizens.

Any questions regarding application fee can be addressed to Finnish National Agency for Education.

Please note that the language requirements may vary according to which degree programme you are applying to.

Bachelor's programme: When applying to the Bachelor's programme in Science, you must prove your English language skills. Please check the instructions for proving your English language skills for the Bachelor's programme.

Master’s programmes: When applying to Master’s programmes in English, you must prove your English language skills. Please check the instructions for proving your English language skills for the Master's programmes.

Doctoral programmes: When applying to a doctoral programme, you must prove your language skills in either English, Finnish or Swedish. Please see the instructions for proving your English language skills.

If you believe that the admission decision is incorrect, you may lodge an appeal. Follow the instructions included in the decision.

Bachelor's programme: The Bachelor’s programme in Science carries tuition fees for students coming from outside the EU/EEA. The yearly fee for the programme is 13 000 euros.

Master's programmes: One academic year in the University of Helsinki’s International Master’s programmes costs between 13 000 and 18 000 euros for students coming from outside the EU/EEA.

The fees are only charged for English-language programmes, not programmes offered in Finnish or Swedish.

More information on the tuition fees

Check here to see if you are required to pay tuition fees

Our scholarship programme is for students who are applying to the University of Helsinki. These scholarships are intended for excellent students from outside the EU/EEA who want to do a Master’s programme at the University of Helsinki. When applying to an International Master’s Programme, you can at the same time apply for a scholarship on the same application form. There are no separate scholarship application forms.

Doctoral programmes: There are no tuition fees in doctoral programmes, but taking care of the costs of living is your responsibility. There are many options for finding funding for your doctoral studies. Before applying, you should familiarise yourself with different funding options and make a preliminary plan on how to fund your studies. See more information on funding here.

 

Cost of living and financial matters