Finances
The performance of Finnish universities is measured by, among other things, the number of degrees and publications produced. These numbers determine the amount of funding granted from the Government budget (i.e., core funding) to each university. To supplement its core funding, the University of Helsinki seeks external research funding from various sources.
The Uni­versity’s key fin­an­cial fig­ures

In 2020 the University’s operating result, or the result without taking investment activities into account, was €4.6 million in the black. The result generated by investments and fundraising was €70.1 million, making the University’s overall result €74.7 million in the black.

At the end of 2019, the number of employees was a little over 8,200, of whom more than 4,800 were teachers and researchers. Staff costs constituted almost two-thirds of overall expenses. Another considerable expense are the facilities required for studying, research and other activities.
University of Helsinki op­er­at­ing res­ult 2010–2021 and fore­cast for 2022–2023
University of Helsinki rev­en­ues and ex­penses 2021

In 2021 the University of Helsinki’s total income amounted to €714 million, an increase of €20 million compared to the previous year. The University’s total income is composed of core funding, external funding and the income from investment activities and fundraising.

The total expenditure of the University of Helsinki was €703 million. The largest expenditure items were personnel costs at €441 million (63 % of the total expenditure) and facility rents at €87 million (12 %).
Sources of ex­ternal research fund­ing 2021

The most important source of external research funding for the University is the Academy of Finland. The funding awarded by the Academy of Finland increased by approximately €11 million, totalling €116 million. The share of Academy of Finland funding of all research funding awarded to the University of Helsinki was 52 %. EU research funding was the same as the year before, totalling €30 million. The share of research funding awarded by foundations increased by €2 million totalling €33 million.
More about our financials