Faculty of Social Sciences

Post-graduate admission

In the Finnish system only those applicants who have already obtained a Master´s degree or similar from a recognized university are considered post-graduate applicants. Thus the Postgraduate Admission is the procedure for those applicants who have already a Master -level degree from an established and recognised foreign university. Consequently, this admission is not meant for those students who have not yet obtained their Master´s degrees.

Postgraduate studies can be divided into two degrees: Licentiate of Social Sciences and Doctor of Social Sciences. Licentiate of Social Sciences is a lower, optional post-graduate degree, mainly composed of independent research. The objective of the degree is to prove the student´s ability to use scholarly research methods. There is another type of licentiate´s degree in social work which aims at professional specialization. For the Doctor´s degree (Doctor of Social Sciences) the candidate must write a dissertation. After receiving publishing permission from the Faculty, the candidate must defend the dissertation in a public examination which is organized as a debate between the candidate and an opponent or occasionally two opponents.

Postgraduate applications are handled by the Administrative Officer, Ms. Terhi Kulonpalo, and all enquiries etc. ought to be directed to her. There are two application deadlines per annum: the 15th of May and 15th of November. The applicants are required to submit the following documents:

1. Official information on the curriculum and course contents of your Master's degree. This information should be as detailed as possible.
2. Information on your Master's thesis: title and brief summary.
3. Short curriculum vitae.
4. Preliminary research plan (Requires a contact with the appropriate department of the University of Helsinki).
5. The application itself
   You can request an application form to the University of Helsinki by filling in your details on the web page above. The material will be sent to you by email as a .txt, .rtf or .pdf attachment.
6. The language certificate.

The student selection is based on the applicant's academic background and on a research plan made by the applicant. The selection of postgraduate students is completed from four to six weeks after the closing dates.