Challenges associated with an increasingly multicultural society are taken into consideration in the development of the Faculty’s teaching and education, with the goal of enhancing the ability of future graduates to observe changes in society and the ideological atmosphere as well as to seek solutions to topical challenges.
The Faculty takes an active approach to the development of teaching, with making the progress of studies increasingly smooth as one central goal. Students play a vital role in the development of teaching at the Faculty.
In 2020 the Faculty introduced a new system for personal study plan (PSP) supervision aimed at supporting student wellbeing and progress.
The Bachelor’s Programme in Theology and Religious Studies took part in the first stage (2017–2018) of the University of Helsinki’s digital leap project, while the Master’s Programme in Theology and Religious Studies did so in 2019–2020. The goal of the projects was to smooth out the progress of studies and support pedagogical diversity.
The projects produced a range of remote courses of high quality in terms of web-based learning, which supported the Faculty in facing the teaching-related challenges engendered by the coronavirus pandemic that began in 2020. Also after the pandemic, these courses form the framework of the Faculty’s online course selection.
Collaboration with the Open University is an important element of the digital leap taken by the Faculty of Theology. Basic courses as well as some intermediate and advanced courses are held online, which is the only method of completion for Open University students and an alternative option for degree students of the bachelor’s programme.
The course selection can be browsed on the Open University website:
In addition, the digital leap project for the master’s programme organised a discipline-specific online course for degree students of each discipline.
The existing digital learning environments at the Faculty of Theology continue to be developed and updated, in addition to which new learning environments are being designed.
The University of Helsinki Teachers’ Academy is a network of distinguished university teachers, the only of its kind in Finland. By investing in teachers, the University also invests in students and the quality of learning. Appointment to the Teachers’ Academy signifies special recognition for teaching merits and scholarship in the field of teaching. Read more about the Teachers’ Academy.