When to apply?
The next application period is from February 2, 2021 at 09:00 AM EEST until February 16, 2021 at 03:00 PM EEST.
Applicants will be informed of the decisions by April 7, 2021. Those granted a study right must accept them by April 21, 2021. Study rights granted in the February round of applications will begin on May 1, 2021.
During the spring term 2021, the the next application period is:
- 1–15 April 2021 (beginning of the study right 1.8.2021)
Who can apply?
According to the Universities Act (558/2009) section 37 eligible applicants for studies leading to a postgraduate research degree have completed
- An applicable second-cycle university degree
- An applicable second-cycle degree from a university of applied sciences, or
- An applicable education at an institution abroad providing eligibility for equivalent higher education in the country in question
If you have not graduated yet, you need to have your required studies (incl. thesis) completed, graded and registered by the end of the application period. This must be confirmed in a free-of form certificate by an official representative (e.g., Student Services Office) of the university admitting the degree. Applicants who are granted study rights must be able to present a verified copy of their official degree diploma before accepting the offered study place.
Applicants licensed as a healthcare professional by the National Supervisory Authority for Welfare and Health or veterinarians licensed by the Finnish Food Authority who have completed applicable education abroad in their home country equivalent to a second-cycle university degree or a second-cycle degree from a university of applied sciences can be admitted. In addition, applicants who have been admitted to pursue a licentiate degree in medicine and dentistry or a licentiate degree in veterinary medicine at a Finnish university or at a university from EU/EEA country, can also be admitted to pursue a postgraduate research degree.
Preparing the application
To start with, you should read the University’s general instructions for doctoral applicants where you can find detailed instructions on how to prepare the required documents for your application. Once you are acquainted with those, come back here to read more about the programme-specific selection criteria and instructions for applicants.
Applications, along with the required additional documents, must be submitted by the end of the application period. Applications are submitted using an electronic application form, which closes at 15:00 local Finnish time on the last day of the round of applications. Those applicants who are required to send certified copies of their educational documents by post must make sure that these documents arrive by the end of the application period.
Applications and additional documents sent by email are not accepted. Incomplete applications are not considered.
Application documents required by all applicants
All applicants wishing to be considered must submit the following documents to the admission services by the end of application period:
Documents required for the application attached as scanned copies:
- Degree diploma (Master's degree or equivalent and potential Bachelor's degree). This does not apply to applicants who have been accepted to complete, but have not yet completed, a Licentiate of Medicine or Licentiate of Dentistry degree in Faculty of Medicine, any Finnish University.
- Transcript of records for your previous degree(s) (Master's degree or equivalent and potential Bachelor's degree). Unofficial transcript of records is sufficient for applicants who have been accepted to complete a Licentiate of Veterinary Medicine in the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Helsinki; or Licentiate of Medicine or Licentiate of Dentistry degree in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki
- Verification of language skills / language proficiency test result, unless proven by the Master's degree (see instructions for English, Finnish or Swedish).
- Signed supporting statement / commitment by your supervisor(s) and coordinating academic/responsible professor (see the instructions below: Supervision arrangements) needs to be attached to the application.
Please confirm that you have or you have applied for all needed permissions. A permit by an Ethical Review Board and/or by the National Animal Experiment Board, if required by the research arrangement. The permission documents need not to be attached to the application.
Documents needed as certified hard copies in mail (unless the previous degree has been awarded by a university in Finland):
- Certified official copies of your degree diploma, transcript of studies and official translations of these documents (if needed)
- Language proficiency test result (original) (unless the previous degree has been awarded by a university in Finland)
The certified copies of additional documents must be delivered to the Admissions Services of the University of Helsinki. For document requirements and instructions on submitting them, please visit the page Eligibility and educational documents.
A successful application is formally eligible and scientifically suitable (in quality and in substance) for the doctoral programme. Eligibility is estimated in regards of background degree and included studies, and language proficiency. Only applications meeting the eligibility criteria continue for scientific evaluation in doctoral programmes.