Doctoral Programme in the Humanities

The Doctoral Programme in the Humanities (HUM-DP) brings together all research areas in the humanities represented at the University of Helsinki. The programme offers an exceptionally broad research community that examines the full spectrum of human culture and society from different parts of the world and various eras, from prehistory to the present day and even into the future.
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The programme’s doctoral researchers investigate aspects of human reality from a wide range of perspectives, including language and linguistic interaction, cultural and social phenomena, historical change, the essence of values and knowledge, the nature of art and artistic expression, literary fiction and non-fiction, as well as gender and sexuality.

In addition to basic research in the humanities, the programme supports multidisciplinary research where humanistic perspectives and approaches interact with other disciplines, including theology and the educational, natural and social sciences.

By fostering disciplinary expertise and promoting interdisciplinary dialogue, the programme empowers doctoral researchers to explore transformative ideas and make meaningful contributions to the humanities. 
The University of Helsinki scores highly in international comparisons of research and teaching in the humanities: it is among the leading Nordic and European universities and close to the top 50 in the world.
Key research areas

The Doctoral Programme in the Humanities encompasses all research areas represented at the University of Helsinki:

  • Area studies and cultural studies: Asian studies, African studies, Indigenous studies, area and cultural studies, archaeology, ethnology, European cultural and area studies, folklore studies, Eastern European studies, cultural heritage studies, Latin American studies, Middle Eastern and Islamic studies, ancient Near East studies, museology, North American studies, Nordic studies, French-language culture, art history, study of religions, Russian and Eurasian studies
  • Art studies: film and television studies, aesthetics, theatre studies, musicology
  • Digital humanities: digital humanities, phonetics, language technology, cognitive science
  • Gender studies
  • History
  • Language studies: Asian languages, African and Middle Eastern languages, Baltic philology, English philology, Spanish philology, Germanic philology, Italian philology, Greek language, translation studies, Latin language, Scandinavian languages, Portuguese philology, French philology, Romany language and culture, Sámi studies, Slavic philology, Finno-Ugrian language studies, Finnish language, Finnish language and culture, Hungarian language and culture, Russian language, interactional linguistics, general linguistics
  • Literary studies: literary studies in the language disciplines, Finnish and Scandinavian literature, non-fiction studies, comparative literature
  • Philosophy: philosophy (in Swedish), practical philosophy, theoretical philosophy
Events and activities

The Doctoral Programme in the Humanities organizes various events and training courses for its doctoral researchers, such as orientation events for new doctoral researchers, writing retreats, grant writing courses, writing circles, and relaxed get-togethers. The programme’s activities aim to support the doctoral researchers’ work, well-being, and sense of community, as well as to enable encounters across scientific disciplines. 

The programme also provides financial support for activities organized by the programme’s scientific disciplines, such as courses, conferences, reading circles, and guest lectures. 

The programme’s activities are advertised on its email lists and .
Courses and studying

A doctoral degree in the Doctoral Programme in the Humanities comprises of a doctoral thesis and 30–35 credits of additional studies. The studies are divided into discipline-specific studies, aimed to support your research project, and transferable skills training. You can read more about the programme's curriculum and degree structure in the (NB! HUM-DP's curriculum comes into effect on 1 August 2026, and the curricula of the old programmes will still be in effect until 31 July 2026.)

Most of the studies are completed flexibly through means other than traditional coursework: conference presentations, essays, scientific and popular articles, editing work etc.

Regular courses at the programme include discipline-specific research seminars, where you get to present your own work, receive feedback and spur on your fellow doctoral researchers. You can search for the programme's teaching using in the Studies Service (NB! In spring semester 2026, courses will be organized using the old FTY, HKP, LANG, and SKY course codes).

Courses in research ethics and transferable skills are offered throughout the academic year by the .

Want to know more? Visit our   at the university's Studies Service.
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