The Doctoral Programme in Language Studies (HELSLANG) covers a wide range of linguistic fields, including various synchronic and diachronic approaches to language, translation studies and language technology. The focal areas are:
To learn more about the different disciplines brought together by the programme, please visit their websites:
A doctoral degree in the programme comprises of a doctoral thesis and 40 credits of additional studies. The studies are divided into discipline-specific studies, aimed to support your research project, and transferable skills training.
Most of the studies are completed flexibly through means other than traditional coursework: conference presentations, essays, scientific and popular articles, editing work etc. Want to know more? Visit our study planning instructions for current doctoral students at the university's Instructions for Students.
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.
Courses in research ethics and transferable skills are offered throughout the academic year by the University of Helsinki Doctoral School.
The annual Summer Conference of the Doctoral Programme in Languages Studies (Helslang) brings together doctoral students and researchers within different disciplines of languages studies to present and discuss ongoing research and doctoral theses. All doctoral students within Helslang are welcome regardless of the current stage of their research. It is an informal conference where everyone has the opportunity to present their research in a relaxed setting, and get and give feedback on the verge of summer.
The Nordic Nights seminar is a text workshop where the PhD candidates’ texts are discussed and where topics, languages and colleagues meet. It is an occasion to approach a diversity of topics, to give and receive constructive feedback and to meet and network with other PhD candidates.
The Doctoral Program for Language Studies at the University of Helsinki is a member of the prestigious LingNet Europe consortium.
The LingNet Europe consortium is administered from the Hermann Paul Centre for Linguistics (HPCL) at the Albert-Ludwigs Universität in Freiburg in Germany.
The aim of the network is to enhance mobility and research collaboration between its partner institutions on all levels from Master students (including 6-8 week internships with research groups) and PhD students via Postdocs to senior academic staff (for short-term visits or long-term research stays).
The universities involved offer possibilities for mobility from Helsinki, and to Helsinki from Antwerpen, Bern, Bozen, Freiburg, Fribourg, Leuven, Newcastle, Santiago de Compostela, Bergamo and Oslo.
For details, see the LingNet Europe home page.