The programme admits new doctoral researchers twice a year: once in the spring and once in the autumn.
The spring 2026 application period is from 1 April 2026 at 09:00 AM EEST until 16 April 2026 at 03:00 PM EEST:
The autumn 2026 application period is from 2 September 2026 at 09:00 AM EEST until 15 September 2026 at 03:00 PM EEST:
A doctoral study right can only be gained through the admissions process. Applying to the programme outside the set admission periods is not possible.
In addition to the
For instructions on how to find supervisors, see Doctoral Programme's website, under "Contacts & supervision".
Only applications meeting the formal criteria for eligibility continue to scientific evaluation in the doctoral programmes.
The doctoral programme accepts applications for the following target degrees:
Applications for the right to complete a Doctor of Philosophy in Education -degree are accepted from individuals who have completed advanced studies in education. Applications for the right to complete a Doctor of Theology degree are accepted from individuals with a Master of Theology degree awarded by a Finnish university, or an equivalent foreign qualification.
Your supervisory arrangements must be appropriate to your target degree and faculty, and include at least one supervisor with a permanent or long-term appointment in the degree-awarding faculty.
On the application form, you must select the field of your research and enter keywords for your research. A list of research fields can be found below under "Decision-making."
Doctoral researchers must have at least two supervisors, and both must have completed a doctoral degree. At least one supervisor must hold the title of docent or possess equivalent academic qualifications, and at least one must have a permanent or long-term employment contract with the degree-awarding faculty.
Applicants must submit a supervision agreement when applying. These agreements are not binding at the application stage and only take effect if the right to complete a degree is granted. At the application stage, supervision agreements must confirm that the supervisors have approved the applicant’s research plan and agreed to supervise the thesis.
The programme’s assessment of the applicant at this stage includes consideration of the sufficiency of supervision and the quality of the supervisory environment, as set out in the application.
Professors involved in doctoral programmes can simultaneously supervise up to twelve (12) full-time doctoral researchers. Lecturers, docents, assistant professors and holders of similar positions can simultaneously supervise up to six (6) full-time doctoral researchers. The quotas are not absolute. They depend on how many full-time and part-time doctoral researchers a supervisor is in charge of, the supervisor’s previous performance in that role, as well as his or her research duties and other responsibilities in the University community.
In addition to supervisors, each doctoral researcher needs to have a coordinating academic, who may also serve as one of the doctoral thesis supervisors. The coordinating academic must be a professor, tenure-track associate professor or docent employed by the faculty and familiar with the University of Helsinki’s guidelines for doctoral education and degrees.
In assessing the quality of applicants’ research plan, the programme considers
Admissions criteria include previous academic performance and the relevance of previous studies to the prospective doctoral programme.
No initial study plan is required at the application stage.
Acquainted with the selection criteria and all set to apply? Great! Now go back to the
The doctoral programme decides on admissions in accordance with the University’s general doctoral admissions guidelines and the detailed programme-specific criteria set out on this page.
Applications meeting formal eligibility requirements proceed to an academic assessment. The programme’s steering group is responsible for the academic assessment and may, if necessary, request expert statements.
The programme defines its disciplines in its profile. Applicants select the discipline relevant to their research and enter the corresponding keywords on the application form.
The disciplines available for selection:
The final admission decision is made by the faculty awarding the applicant’s target degree, based on a proposal by the programme steering group.
During admissions, doctoral researchers are assigned a doctoral degree title, a doctoral programme and a minimum of two supervisors with doctoral degrees, at least one of whom must hold a permanent or long-term appointment in the degree-awarding faculty. Each doctoral researcher is also assigned a coordinating academic.
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