After submitting your application

Are you a new doctoral researcher at the University of Helsinki? Before you can start, you must accept the offered study place and enroll to the university. From this page, you will find information aimed at newly accepted doctoral candidates.
Timetable for decisions

After the admission decisions have been made, you will receive a letter announcing the decision by email to the address you indicated on the application form.

If your contact details change during the application process, please notify your prospective doctoral programme and Admission Services (phd-admissions(at)helsinki.fi).

If your application is accepted, please carefully follow the instructions provided in the letter.

f your application is rejected, grounds for the decision will be provided to you. If you feel that an error has been made in the admission process, you have the right to appeal.

  • The decisions on the application round in January 2024 will be announced by 15 March 2024, and the offered student places must be accepted by 2 April 2024. The right to study becomes valid on 1 May 2024.
  • The application enclosures for the application round in April 2024 must be submitted by 3 May. The decisions will be announced by 6 June 2024, and the offered student places must be accepted by 19 June 2024. The right to study becomes valid on 1 August 2024.
  • The application enclosures for the application round in July 2024 must be submitted by 8 August. The decisions will be announced by 23 August 2024, and the offered student places must be accepted by 6 September 2024. The right to study becomes valid on 2 September 2024.
  • The application enclosures for the application round in September 2024 must be submitted by 3 October. The decisions will be announced by 21 November 2024, and the offered student places must be accepted by 5 December 2024. The right to study becomes valid on 1 January 2025.
  • The application enclosures for the application round in November 2024 must be submitted by 4 December. The decisions will be announced by 22 January 2025, and the offered student places must be accepted by 5 February 2025. The right to study becomes valid on 1 March 2025.
Ac­cept­ing the place to study and en­rol­ment for new doc­toral stu­dents

When you are accepted as a doctoral student at the University of Helsinki you will receive an acceptance letter from your faculty. In the acceptance letter you will find instructions on how to accept your place of study and how to enroll for your first year as a doctoral student.

If you don't accept the place of study by the deadline given by the faculty, you will lose your right to study at the University of Helsinki.

Please note that a first-year student may register as non-attending for the first academic year for the following reasons only:

  • service under the Conscription Act (1438/2007), Non-Military Service Act (1446/2007), or Act on Women's Voluntary Military Service (194/1995);
  • maternity, paternity or parental leave;
  • the student cannot begin studies due to being incapacitated by personal illness or injury.

When your right to pursue a doctoral degree is registered in the student information system, your basic personal information is also registered. Also the information on which doctoral programme you belong to as well as the information on the activity of your studies, i.e. are you completing your studies full- or part-time, is registered in the student register.

If you have been granted a study right as a doctoral student already earlier, you can find more information on annual registration in the Instructions for Students.

One place rule

One place rule will be extended to cover all education leading to a university degree. This change will affect programmes that begin on August 1, 2016 or later. This rule of one study place per term concerns all degree programme application options.

The main points are:

  • If you are offered more than one study place at a higher education institution leading to a university degree starting at the same term, you may accept only one of them.
  • This change affects also postgraduate studies of the licentiate and the doctor.
  • A place of study granted through a university-to-university transfer within Finland is not governed by this rule.
  • Accordingly, you may be completing several on-going degree programmes simultaneously, but only if your admission to these programmes has been granted in different terms.
A certificate of student status

You can receive a certificate of student status after registering for attendance or non-attendance for the academic year. If you live outside Finland, we will post the certificate to you. Students living in Finland can print out a certificate of student status from Sisu after activating their user account. Detailed instructions on requesting a certificate of student status are available on the Instructions for Students.

The certificate indicates your right to study at the University of Helsinki and includes information on your registration for attendance or non-attendance.

For a residence permit application, you primarily need a hosting agreement.

Activating your user account

After accepting your student place and registering for attendance or non-attendance, your data will be stored in the University’s Sisu student records a few weeks after your registration. You will receive a notification after your data has been recorded. Please note that you cannot register for courses before activating your user account. Detailed instructions for activating your user account are available under instructions for new doctoral students on the Instructions for Students.

Re­lo­cat­ing to Fin­land

After accepting your study place, it's time to start planning on relocating to Finland. The University of Helsinki Uni Arrival Advisor is an electronic service that will help you find your way to information related to e.g. immigration, insurance, taxing issues, public transportation and other important things you need to take into account when moving to a new country. Through the service you will get a personal checklist that guides you through the process of arriving in Finland and settling in Helsinki step by step.

Im­mig­ra­tion and res­id­ence per­mits

  • Citizens of EU, Liechtenstein and Switzerland intending to reside and work in Finland for longer than three months must register their right to reside in Finland at the Finnish Immigration Service MIGRI.
  • Nordic citizens must register at the Local Register Office within one week from arrival in Finland in case their stay exceeds 6 months.
  • Citizens of other countries must apply for a residence permit if the intended stay in Finland is longer than three months. As a rule, all doctoral students apply for a residence permit for scientific research, independent of their source of funding. The residence permit needs to be applied for before arrival in Finland.
  • The residence permit is applied for from the Finnish Immigration Service MIGRI. You will need a hosting agreement from the University of Helsinki as a part of your residence permit application. You will find an example of the hosting agreement from MIGRI's site. 
  • If you need a hosting agreement, please contact the Doctoral Student Services of your home faculty. Contact information for Faculty Doctoral Student Services is available in the Instructions for Students.
  • MIGRI letter for new postgraduate students arriving from abroad (pdf, opens in a new window)
  • Requesting a Finnish Identity Code in the immigration process is recommended for all doctoral students.
Hous­ing

If you are moving to Helsinki, it's best to start looking for an apartment as soon as you've accepted the offered study place. Further information on where and how to start looking for housing is available in the Instructions for Students.