How to apply to international master's programmes

The international Master’s programmes at the University of Helsinki have only one application period per year. Please note that the online application form is available only during the application period. 

The application period for studies starting in autumn 2026 is from 2 Jan 2026 at 8:00 (UTC+2) to 16 Jan 2026 at 15:00 (UTC+2). To keep updated about the application dates and process, .

The academic year always begins on 1 August.

You can explore the  and visit their websites to learn more.

The admission criteria for each programme are available on .

To be eligible to apply to a master’s programme, you must have completed a first-cycle  (bachelor's) degree or an equivalent first qualification. 

If you complete your degree only after the application period ends, you can still apply as long as you fulfil the other admission criteria. If you are offered a student place, it will be conditional and you must submit proof of your graduation by the date given in the admission criteria. 

Please note that each master’s programme has its own criteria on what studies you must have completed previously. Your degree does not always necessarily need to be from the field of your prospective master’s programme, but you must have completed a sufficient amount of relevant post-secondary level studies. 

You must also meet the degree programme-specific language requirements. 

The admission criteria and other programme-specific application information is available in the Finnish national education portal Studyinfo.fi. You can find a direct link on the  or search for your prospective degree programme directly on .

When applying to an international master’s programme, you have to submit all the required attachments as instructed in the application instructions and admission criteria. You must also upload  documents for studies completed in Finland, including at the University of Helsinki. Please note that if you do not submit the required attachments, your application will be rejected.

During the application phase, it is enough to upload good quality copies of the required attachments to the application form. You do not need to submit officially certified documents during the application phase.

If the documents regarding your previous education are in a language other than English, Finnish or Swedish, you must also submit authorised translations into one of these languages in addition to the documents in the original language.

Please note that it can take a long time to obtain your language test result and educational documents. It is highly recommended that you start preparing these documents well before the application period begins.

The application to the international master's programmes must be submitted on .

The application period opens on 2 Jan 2026 at 8:00 (UTC+2) and end on 16 Jan 2026 at 15:00 (UTC+2). The application form must be submitted before the deadline. Late applications are not accepted. You cannot save the application as a draft, but you can to edit your submitted application up until the end of the application period.

You can only fill in one application form. You can apply to max three master's programmes with the same application form.

If you are liable to pay the application fee, it will be collected by the Finnish National Agency of Education in connection with filling out the application form. The fee must be paid or you must upload a document proving the exempted category. Otherwise, your application will not be processed. There are no application fee waivers.

If you are liable to pay tuition fees, you can apply for a scholarship at the same time when applying to an international master’s programme. There are no separate scholarship application forms. .

Attach all the required attachments to the application form.

You can supplement your application with the required attachments until 23 Jan 2026 at 15:00 (UTC+2) by uploading them to the application form on Studyinfo.fi. Late attachments are not accepted.

Please upload only the required attachments. Do not upload any extra attachments. Attachments that are not required are not taken into account in the evaluation and slow down the processing of your application.

After you have submitted your application and the required attachments, the application is processed as follows: 

• 
  Admission Services checks that your application and its attachments meet the predetermined minimum eligibility requirements.
• Academic assessment
  If your application meets the predetermined minimum requirements, Admission Services will send it for assessment by the relevant degree programme.
• 
  Admission results for this application round will be published at the latest on 15 Apr 2026.
• 
  If you are admitted, you must submit as officially certified or verified documents all those educational documents that you uploaded to the application form as unverified scanned copies when applying. If your previous bachelor's degree was already complete during the application period, the deadline for submitting the verified or officially certified documents is 29 May 2026 at 15:00 (UTC+3). If your previous bachelor's degree was incomplete during the application period, the deadline for submitting the official degree certificate and all other officially certified educational documents is 31 August 2026 at 15:00 (UTC+3).

Good luck with the application process!