The admission results (application round from 1 Dec 2022 to 4 Jan 2023) have been sent to the applicants to the e-mail address given on their application form. The results can also be found in the My Studyinfo -service.
Greetings from the Changing Education Master’s Programme team! We warmly welcome all our newly selected students to the programme and are eagerly waiting to get to know all of you.
Our programme is amongst the most popular International Master’s Programmes at the University of Helsinki when it comes to the number of applications.
Our faculty is also very proud to be ranked 21st—even higher than in previous years—in the QS World University Subject Rankings for 2022. We are the highest-ranked European faculty of educational sciences in a non-English-speaking country and fourth among all European faculties.
We are planning and preparing everything to be ready for you to start your studies and looking forward to meeting you!
Studying in the programme will involve different types of teaching and learning arrangements ranging from engaging learning environments in the Minerva Plaza to traditional and digital learning environments. Our facilities for self-study are excellent, allowing us to manage also unexpected situations and provide you different spaces to work in groups and independently.
Since we are studying education, we have a meta-level in our teaching. All of our students are also studying their own learning. We provide you with very basic information about your individual learning, such as statistics on the use of learning materials, engaging in learning events, and also opportunities for more in-depth data collection, including individual physiological data collection if you wish. We offer the students the possibility to test Firstbeat for stress, recovery and physical activity studies and Oura for sleep, stress and exercise.
Your studies in the programme will view educational systems as a whole, in all age ranges from early childhood education to continuous education, in all groups of individuals including those in marginalized positions, in all decision-making levels from families and individual teachers and learners to municipal, national and international decision-making on education. This comprehensive view is made possible by enabling exciting visits and training both in Finland and abroad.
One Step Ahead (OSA) is the faculty’s first international student association founded by the first cohort of our students. Their mission is to create a community focused on research-based improvement of education. Find out more and join OSA already now to take part in their interesting events.
The Changing Education online media platform is a hub for discussion on groundbreaking research in education and a space for inspiring interviews with experts. All from a Changing Education perspective.
The platform was created by One Step Ahead ry (OSA), the international student association of the Faculty of Educational Sciences.
Other important student organisations for the CE students include:
Mainly in Finnish:
If you speak Swedish:
If you have questions about studying in the programme and student life in Helsinki, you can chat directly with some our student ambassadors to get answers (but please contact the Admission Services for questions related to admissions). Find our student ambassadors (Area of Study: Changing Education) and more information here.
You can also check the current board of OSA (the student association of the program) on the Changing Education website.
You can meet some of our teaching staff through the following links and videos:
You can meet some of our teaching staff through the following links and videos:
Professor Erika Löfström, Programme Director
Professor Minna Huotilainen, Programme Vice Director
Associate Professor Kalle Juuti
Adjunct Professor, Senior lecturer Hanna Posti-Ahokas
Professor Emerita Hannele Niemi
University lecturer Helena Hinke Dobrochinski Candido
Associate Professor Ben Cowley
Postdoctoral Researcher Caitlin Dawson
Minerva Plaza allows inspiring learning together.
For those students who intend to work in the laboratory-based neuroscientific research, please see the information of the Cognitive Brain Research Unit facilities.
CICERO Learning is a network of research in the areas of learning, brain and technology and offers our students facilities for state-of-the-art learning studies.
AGORA brings together scholars from a wide variety of multidisciplinary backgrounds, who share an interest in critical theories and methodologies in education. Members of AGORA are interested in questions such as social justice, equality, differences, power, global issues, collectivism and multiplicity.
Moving to a new country can be challenging. Besides the difficulty of adjusting to new surroundings that are, in most cases, different from what you are used to and the culture shock that one may experience in a foreign country, there is also the issue of administration, accommodation, living expenses, and adjustment to a new education system, in the case of students. It is for these reasons that one needs to be fully prepared before moving to a new country.
If you are from the European Union, the situation might be easier for you than non-EU students. For those from outside the EU, the first thing to consider is a residence (study) permit. A residence permit is required for studies in Finland. Therefore, you should start applying for the permit as soon as you have confirmed your study place. You will get more information regarding this from the university’s admissions services and from the nearest Finnish Embassy in your country. For accommodation, you can apply for student apartments via HOAS.
Take note that the cost of living in Finland might be higher so you need to plan your finances accordingly. It is always wise to look for a source of funding once you have accepted your study place. The average amount required for living in Finland may be found at migri.fi, which is the same site you visit when applying for the residence permit. Also take note that upon arrival, it will be advantageous to open a bank account at one of the local banks and to register your address with Digital Population Registration Office (DVV). Your student tutors will give you more guidance on these matters.
Start planning your studies once you have registered as an attending student and are in the process of travelling to Finland for the commencement of the academic year. There is a possibility of doing an internship abroad or in Finland after your first year of studies. If you are considering an internship, plan for it accordingly. Most of the courses in the Changing Education master’s programme are research-based. Although you won’t be conducting research in every course except for your master's thesis, it is important that you brush up on the research methods you learned during your bachelor’s studies. You should also practice reading and dissecting academic text as you will spend a lot of time reading research articles.
During the orientation week, you will also receive support from your tutors and the CE team to make the start of your studies and moving process as smooth as possible!
The teaching officially starts on the 4th of September 2023, but you should participate in the orientation activities for the new students already before the classes begin, starting from the 28th of August. You will find more information about the teaching periods on the studies page. During the orientation, a group of student tutors, senior students from CE, will help and guide you in the beginning of your studies. You will learn more about studying in our programme and get support with administrative matters. This will make it easier for you to start your studies and life in Helsinki.
The detailed information concerning the orientation and student tutors will be published in the Instructions for students in mid-August. During summer, in this same page you will also find the welcome letter by the tutors concerning some information about the orientation week. Make sure the CE programme is selected on the dropdown menu to access the correct information. Prepare for a full week of orientation and introduction sessions.
The international students in the Master's Programme in Changing Education can apply to the UNITalent Programme. It is designed to support international students in building professional networks in Finland and to gain insight into field specific working life. Students take part by attending monthly group meetings with hosting organisation for a period of three months. During the programme, the University Career Services also provides training in career management skills.
If you have questions regarding the content of the programme, courses or studies, please contact the siltavuori-student@helsinki.fi You can find more information and answers to the most common questions on the Student Services Instructions for students.
If you have questions related to the admissions and accepting your study place, please contact the Admission Services.