Career

The interdisciplinary Master’s Programme in Environmental Change and Global Sustainability (ECGS) provides you with a unique education which is widely applicable for a future career path. ECGS has a multidisciplinary learning community from a wide range of sciences, accommodating students in a multicultural network with excellent career prospects.
Employment opportunities for graduates

Upon graduating from ECGS you will have sufficient expertise in environmental sciences, sustainability sciences, agricultural and forest sciences and environmental policy to act as a specialist in the public, private and third sectors.  

Potential careers include: 

  • Sustainability and responsibility coordinator at an educational institute
  • Disaster risk management in an NGO
  • Environmental expert at a business lobbying organization
  • Climate and energy specialist for a municipality or a region
  • Environmental freelance consultancy
  • Political advisors in regional, national and European Parliaments.
  • Academic research and teaching and other research tasks in universities, research institutes and centers
  • Teaching in secondary schools and gymnasia, and other institutes of higher education
Alumni and student stories

Are you interested in the experiences of our alumni about studying the different topics and themes and how their studies apply to professional life?

Meet students, graduates and staff of the Master's Programme in Environmental Change and Global Sustainability (ECGS) and learn what they think about the programme, studies and life in Helsinki.
"It doesn’t matter if you work for the government, a municipality or a company, decisions related to sustainable development need to be based on research results and reports. The programme provides excellent prerequisites to apply knowledge.”
Group mentoring programme: UNITalent

Do you want to build a career in Finland? Get valuable insight into Finnish working life and build your professional networks by applying to our group mentoring programme. 

In the HelsinkiUNI International Talent Programme (UNITalent), a group of international talents is hosted by a local company or organisation. 

Successful applicants will get to:

  • learn about expert work first-hand from a local organisation.
  • hear about different kinds of career paths in a specific sector in Finland.
  • start building their professional network in Finland.
  • support the host in gaining an international perspective by sharing their perspective. 
  • learn career management skills. 

International master’s degree students at the University of Helsinki can apply as well as Finnish students who have completed their degree abroad.
Career services

Studies are part of your career. The Career Services at the University of Helsinki supports, in cooperation with the degree programmes, the growth of your expert identity as part of your studies and with separate services. 

From the start of your studies until one year after the completion of your degree, the Career Services supports your career path by:

  • giving career counselling and job-seeking support, 
  • arranging info sessions, workshops and events, 
  • providing suitable job and traineeship offers for students,
  • sharing the university’s subsidy for traineeships and  
  • facilitating group mentoring programmes.
Doctoral education

The ECGS Master's Programme prepares you to advance to doctoral level studies and thereafter positions in environment-related research.

Upon completion of your Master’s degree, you will be eligible to apply for doctoral studies in the University of Helsinki and other leading international research institutions. Examples of suitable doctoral programmes at the University of Helsinki include:  
Improve your career options with Finnish

Although international students get by with English in the Helsinki region, learning Finnish significantly improves their career options after graduation. It is challenging to find a job without any knowledge of the local language.

The University of Helsinki offers free Finnish language courses for enrolled international degree students. The beginner and intermediate level courses are not only a way to learn the language, but you also learn more about Finnish culture and network with other international students across fields.
Alumni of the Uni­versity of Helsinki

After graduation, the world is wide open and full of possibilities. How can you venture forward to make the career path you want? What kind of work would you like to do? What kind of life should you lead? The Helsinki alumni community is there to support you as you transition from the University to the world of work.

All previous University of Helsinki degree and exchange students, as well as staff, are our alumni. As a member of the University of Helsinki alumni network, Finland’s largest network of experts, you get valuable support, knowledge and contacts for your working life.
More about the programme