Frequently asked questions about Sisu

What do I use Sisu and WebOodi for?

Sisu is the new academic administration system of the University of Helsinki which replaced WebOodi from 31 May onwards. Study planning, course registration, digital services, the assessment of completed studies, graduation procedures and other functions happen in Sisu.

What will change with the deployment of Sisu?

In Sisu, registration for courses, the submission of applications and the procedures relating to graduation always take place through the study plan. Hence, the importance of planning studies becomes even more pronounced than before. You will, however, be able to flexibly edit and supplement your study plan whenever you wish. The study plan will help you keep up to date on your progress and portray in a visual format which studies you have completed and which studies you must still complete for your degree. You will be able to receive feedback on the plan from your supervising teacher. You will also be able to ask your supervisor questions and receive answers through the Sisu system. Digital services, such as credit transfer, will become a smoother process with Sisu.

Can I continue to select studies freely?

The planning and timetabling of studies does not mean that the selection of studies available will be reduced. All courses available at the University of Helsinki can be found in Sisu, and you will be able to enter courses as elective studies in your study plan. The study plan need not be completed at once; instead, you may edit it freely as your studies progress.

Where can I find support for using Sisu? 

Digital clinics provide help with technical issues related to Sisu. Some of the clinics focus specifically on the drafting of study plans. During these sessions, you will also have the chance to receive personal guidance and advice. See the Guidance Corner website for details on the clinic dates and times and instructions for registering. 

Sisu tutors support students in getting started with the system. The Sisu tutors will be available for consultation before the service break relating to the deployment of Sisu, after the deployment, as well as at the beginning of the academic year in August and September 2021. For further information, see Sisu instructions for students.

If you need guidance and support in planning the content of your studies, contact your PSP supervisor or Student Services.

What must the study plan contain? 

At a minimum, you must add to your plan the courses you wish to register for or which will be recorded as completed. You can find instructions for the study plan here. However, if you are about to graduate soon, all the studies included in your degree must be recorded appropriately in your study plan before you can submit a graduation request.

Why can’t I submit any applications in Sisu?

If your study plan has been drawn for the curriculum periods 2017-2018, 2018-2019 or 2019-2020, you cannot use Sisu’s electronic applications. You must either update your study plan according to these instructions or make a new study plan for the curriculum period 2020-2021. You can check the curriculum period by clicking the heading of your study plan. You also know you need to update your study plan if its structure appears to be against the rules. 

Which curriculum period can I use as a basis for my study plan? 

You can select any curriculum period, but it is recommended that you verify the relevant instructions provided by your degree programme. You cannot select a period that precedes the beginning of your right to study. You can find the available options in Sisu by clicking “Create a new study plan” and selecting “Curriculum period”.

Can I plan master’s level studies while completing my bachelor’s degree?

Yes, you can, if you have been granted the right to pursue both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. In the two-tier degrees, the plans for bachelor’s and master’s level studies are included in the same study plan template. You may begin planning your master’s level studies at any time. To see your options for master’s level studies, click on the highest level heading in the “Structure of studies” view.

If I simultaneously hold several rights to study, can I complete just one study plan for them? 

No, one plan is not enough. Study plans are degree specific, meaning that for each right to study, i.e., right to pursue a degree, you must draft a separate primary study plan.

Why is there an error notification in my study right?

If your study plan displays the notification "You do not have a study right that corresponds to your study plan or you have not registered for the current semester", you must create a new study plan. When creating a new study plan, select the education that is automatically displayed in the window "My educations" as the basis for your plan. Select the curriculum period according to the instructions provided by your degree programme. Finally, change the status of the plan to primary. The error message concerns, in particular, students in these study tracks in these degree programmes (irrespective of their first year of study) as well as students who began their studies before 2017.

What should I do if the duration of my study right appears different in Oodi and Sisu?

Please see instructions on page Potential issues with information transferred from Oodi.

How is registration for courses done in Sisu?

In Sisu, the course in question must always be added to the primary study plan before registration. Also, before registering for the course, you must select the method of completion (e.g., lecture course or examination). For detailed instructions for selecting the completion method, see the webpage How do I register for my courses and exams?

How do I register for Open University courses?

In the Open University, the actual registration is exceptionally done via the course pages. If you only study in the Open University, you will only register for teaching on the course page and you do not need to draw up a study plan in Sisu. If you are a degree student at the University of Helsinki, start the registration from Sisu: first add the course to your study plan, if it is not visible there already. Then select a completion method and teaching in the Open University. Finally, Sisu will guide you to the course page for you to register there.

On the course brochure, why is there a notification The teaching is already in your calendar, either through one of the parts of another completion method, through another version of the course or through another course?

In Sisu, teaching can be related to several courses or completion methods, that is you can choose which course and completion method you complete by participating in teaching. If you have already chosen teaching through another course or completion method, you will see the notification below its name. By clicking the Show link, you can see which course and completion method you have chosen. You can change the completion method through which you have chosen teaching by removing the selection through the completion method you have previously chosen, and then by selecting teaching through the new completion method.

If you have already chosen your preferred completion method, you do not have to mind about the notification.

How do I register for a resit examination?

If you have previously completed a course with a passing grade, you can register for a resit examination by opening the course brochure and selecting the course version for the academic year in which you completed the course. You may have to change the course version, for example, to that of the previous academic year to access the resit examination. If the previous version does not include a resit examination, you can contact Student Services to register.

If the completed course credits have not been registered (or you have failed the course), you can register for the resit examination normally, without changing the course version to an earlier one. In other words, you must select the examination session from the course brochure to register.

In some cases, the resit examination may have a different code that the original course. In such cases, the completed credits will appear in your plan twice, but you can delete the additional credits later in the free edit mode.

Can I register for courses if the following message appears in my plan: ‘Study right must be separately confirmed’?

Yes, you can. This message will appear, for example, if your study track will not be confirmed until after student admissions. However, this does not usually prevent you from registering for courses, unless accepting the student’s registration depends on that specific right to study. In such cases, you can contact Student Services.

Why does the following error message appear: ‘The course is not included in your primary study plan'

See the registration instructions for further information.

Are students selected for courses in the order of registration? 

In Sisu, you can verify from the course brochure the selection criteria for the course. In most cases, students are selected for courses based on criteria other than being the first to register (see below). 

What criteria are used when selecting students for courses? 

To be eligible for courses, the students’ right to study and registration for the academic year must be in order. The course must also be included in the students’ primary study plan. In some cases, certain prerequisites must be met, i.e., students must have completed certain courses before being eligible for the course in question. Also, depending on the course, students might be selected on the basis of completed credits, year of studies, study track or whether they are exchange students or not. Students fulfilling the criteria are automatically selected for the course, and if there is still room, others may be admitted.

If I have several study plans, can I register for a course through any of those plans?

To be able to register for a course, you must have included it in your primary study plan. Always use your primary study plan to register for courses. Note that if you hold several rights to study, you may also have several primary study plans.

Can I register for a course when I have not registered for attendance for the academic year? 

No, you cannot. Register for attendance before you register for courses. Your registration for the academic year must be valid also for the duration of the course. Registration for the academic year continues to take place in the Oili service.

Must studies be included in the Timeline in Sisu before course registration, or is it enough to select the completion method for the course (e.g., lectures)? 

Studies need not be included in the Timeline in order to be able to register for courses. 

How can I register for studies that are not automatically displayed in the study plan (e.g., optional studies)?   

To be able to register for optional studies, you must first include them in your study plan and select the method of completion. For detailed instructions, see Sisu instructions: Study plan. 

I should register for a course that has been agreed to substitute for a certain course required for my degree. I am unable to enter the course in its correct place in my study plan. What should I do? 

For the time being, enter the course as an optional course, so that you can proceed to register for it. Later on, you can move the course to its correct place by submitting an application in the free edit mode in Sisu. The free edit mode will become available on 31 May. 

I have enrolled in a specific group, but the teaching of another group is also shown in my study calendar. How do I get rid of the extra group? 

1. The event can be a joint session that has been added to both or all groups, for which Sisu will show only the name of the first or last group attached to it. In this case, the teaching event should not be removed because it is part of your group’s teaching schedule. If necessary, you can compare the group schedule shown in the teaching information in the course brochure or on the course page and the events in your calendar if you want to make sure it’s actually a teaching event for your group.
2. On the Study calendar page, in the course details you still have the other group's schedule selected with the “Show events in the calendar” option.  

If the view is due to the second point, you can remove other groups from your calendar by deselecting the “Show events in the calendar” option.

Why is the number of completed credits on Sisu’s front page different from the total credits shown in WebOodi?

Sisu’s frontpage only displays the credits of those courses that are in your study plan. The actual total number of all your completed credits can be seen on My Profile page, on the tab Completed credits. If you for example have credits that are in accordance with the old degree requirements, they are not automatically visible in your study plan, but you must add them there yourself. See instructions from the study plan instructions: Adding missing course credits to the study plan.  

If also the number of completed credits shown in My Profile is smaller than in Oodi, it might be because of the systems’ different methods of calculating the total number of completed credits. More information is available on page Potential issues with information transferred from Oodi.

Why can’t I see this spring’s completed studies in Sisu?

First check whether the completed credit is registered to WebOodi. If so, see if you can find it in Sisu in your credit information on the My Profile page. After this, follow these instructions: adding missing course credits to the study plan.

Then again, if the credit does not appear to be in Oodi, make sure that the course is in your study plan in Sisu and that its completion method is selected. If the completion was not registered in WebOodi before the service break, it will be registered in Sisu retrospectively. Please calmly wait for the credit to be registered, unless the matter is urgent for example because of graduation. If the completion method is not selected in Sisu, you will only get the completion registered as a partial completion to My Profile page (please see the question below). 

Why is a course completion displayed only on My Profile page as a partial completion?

When a teacher assesses a course completion in Sisu, it is immediately visible to you as a partial completion. During the following night, it will automatically change into a full completion, and it will then be displayed as completed in your study plan as well. However, this requires that a completion method for the course has been selected in the study plan.

If you have not selected a completion method, the partial completion must be changed into a course completion manually in Student Services. In this case, it might take longer for the course to be visible in your study plan. If the matter is urgent for example due to graduation, please contact Student Services.

Please note that Kela also receives information of the credits of partial completions for monitoring the progress of studies. If you are not graduating soon, you may well check the situation of your completed credits again in the fall, and then contact the Student Services in case the partial completions are still displayed.

What should I do when my credits are not automatically displayed in my study plan? 

If the missing credits are indicated in Sisu as substituting courses, you can add them to your plan yourself. See Sisu instructions: Study plan. If the substitutions are not indicated, you can apply to have the credits separately included in your plan using the free edit mode as of 31 May. As the number of applications will be high after the deployment of Sisu, priority will be given to applications from students who are about to graduate. If you are not about to graduate right after the deployment of Sisu, it is recommended that you submit your application in the autumn.

My credits transferred from WebOodi appear different in Sisu and they are not visible in my study plan (e.g., the codes of courses are different). What should I do?

Please see instructions on page Potential issues with information transferred from Oodi.

What should I do if I am not able to add studies in the location of my choice in the study plan? 

In Sisu, if you wish to make selections that deviate from the degree structure, you must submit an application for this in the free edit mode. First see the instructions under the heading “Editing a study plan” on the page Sisu instructions: Study plan. If you are not about to graduate right after the deployment of Sisu, it is recommended that you submit the application in the autumn.

I have completed a credit in the Open University that corresponds to a course belonging to basic studies /I have a previously completed credit that has the same course title as the current course. However, Sisu does not recognise the credit. What should I do to have it displayed in my study plan? 

Sisu verifies that the credit code corresponds to the course in your study plan. The same course title is not enough to have Sisu recognise their correspondence. If the course brochure of the corresponding course indicates the course that you have completed as a substituting course, you will be able to add the completed credit to your study plan. (Note that not all substituting courses have yet been included in Sisu.) If the “Substitutions” tab does not contain information about substituting courses, you can apply for the inclusion of the completed credit in your study plan through the free edit mode as of 31 May.  

I have completed a module that I wish to enter as optional studies. How can I include this module in the study plan? 

If the structure of your degree contains optional modules, you can add the completed module in the designated place. If your study plan does not contain a designated place for optional modules, wait for the deployment of the free edit mode on 31 May to submit an application for the inclusion of the completed module in your study plan.

How can I enter studies completed during an exchange or under the Flexible Study Right Scheme (JOO) into Sisu?

You can have studies completed during an exchange or under the Flexible Study Right Scheme (JOO) added to Sisu by submitting an application for substitution or inclusion in Sisu as of 31 May. You can submit the application once the credits are completed. For studies to be included (such as completed credits to be included as elective studies), you can first create a study draft and apply for inclusion once the credits are completed. For degree studies to be substituted with studies completed elsewhere, submit an application available in the course brochure, under the “Substitutions” tab. For further information, see the webpage Recognition and validation of prior learning.

How are studies completed elsewhere recognised in Sisu?

As of 31 May, you can submit applications for substitution or inclusion using the relevant feature in your study plan. A link to instructions relating to the recognition of prior learning will be available by the end of May. For further information, see the webpage Recognition and validation of prior learning.

How can I add studies to my study plan that are included in another degree completed at UH or in a study module?

Submit an application for inclusion in Sisu if the studies are included in another degree completed at the University of Helsinki or in a study module that you have completed at the University of Helsinki or at the Open University. Read more about the recognition of prior learning here.

Where can I find the available compulsory courses in Sisu? 

In Sisu, you can find the available teaching for compulsory courses in the course brochures, under the “Completion methods” tab. To open the course brochure, click on the course code. 

Where can I find the available optional courses in Sisu?

You can find the optional studies offered by the different degree programmes under Optional studies on the Instructions for Students website. When you have decided on the courses that you wish to complete, you can search for them in Sisu by the course title or code and add them to your study plan. For more information, see the instructions under the heading Planning optional studies on the Sisu instructions webpage. You can access the course page and material through the Courses page. 

Where can I find the teaching offered by my degree programme during the academic year 2021–2022? 

The preliminary teaching programme for the next academic year can be accessed through the page entitled Where can I find courses (select your degree programme from the menu). The teaching programme for the autumn term will be published in Sisu and on the Courses page by the beginning of the term. The teaching programme for the spring term will be published in November. 

How do I apply for the right to complete restricted optional modules? 

Sisu does not offer such a feature. For faculty-specific instructions for applying for the right to complete restricted optional studies, see Optional studies on the Instructions for Students website.

How soon should completed credits be visible in Sisu? 

As teachers themselves record completed credits in Sisu (with a few exceptions), there should be no delays due to processing after the assessment results have been announced. In most cases, the completed credits are displayed in Sisu the day following the assessment.  

“Examination results shall be announced well before the resit date or the registration date for the resit, one month from the examination date at the latest” (Regulations on Degrees and the Protection of Students’ Rights at the University of Helsinki, dated 15 April 2015). 

NB! Completions submitted during the service break will be backdated for their correct date of completion. Due to the service break, it may take longer than usual for student services to register all completions. 

Will I receive an email when credits are registered in Sisu?

Email notifications are under construction and will hopefully be available as soon as possible. For the time being you can see registered credits on the page My profile in Sisu. If you have added the course to your study plan, you will see a laurel wreath and the grade next to the course when the credits have been registered.

I want to graduate in the summer of 2021. What should I do?

If you did not manage to get your last credits before the service disruption, wait until they are registered to Sisu and only then submit a graduation request. Once you have completed all the studies required for your degree, and they are displayed in the correct places in your primary study plan, Sisu will guide you in submitting a graduation request.

If you are not able to include your prior credits in the plan yourself, you must apply for their approval using the free edit mode. The on-site Student Services will prioritise applications submitted by graduating students and will provide support in Sisu for graduation-related issues.

See further instructions on the page Graduation.

How will the studies which I do not intend to include in my degree be displayed in Sisu?  

To the left of your study plan, under the “Add to the plan” bar, you can see a list of all your completed credits which are not included in any study plan at the moment.  All your completed credits are also listed under your profile (which you can access by clicking your name). If you do not wish to include certain credits in your degree, you can order in Sisu a separate transcript of studies with all your completed credits.  

When will WebOodi be closed?

From 18 May to 31 August 2021 WebOodi will only be available in read-only mode. During this time, it will not be possible to register for courses and enter completed courses or degrees in WebOodi.

Will WebOodi be closed entirely, or can I continue to access it to view information?

Students can log into WebOodi until the end of August 2021. As WebOodi will be in read-only mode, you will be able to browse your personal information and course catalogues. From 31 May onwards transcripts will be ordered from Sisu. Please note that from 17 May, information in WebOodi is no longer updated.

Why did Sisu replace WebOodi?

WebOodi served the University of Helsinki for the past 20 years and reached the end of its lifecycle. Sisu (Student Information System for Universities) has been jointly developed by six Finnish universities. The universities decided to create their own system because the ones on the market did not meet all their needs. In addition to the University of Helsinki, Sisu has been deployed by the University of Jyväskylä, Tampere University and the Lappeenranta–Lahti University of Technology LUT. 

Why was the end of May selected as the new date for the deployment?

May was selected so that teaching to be offered in the autumn can be entered in Sisu in good time before registration for courses begins in August. Aalto University will also deploy Sisu later in the summer, and a simultaneous system switchover in two major universities would not be possible. In May, a more complete version of Sisu will be made available to the University of Helsinki, including new features relevant to graduation and assessment.

How will Sisu be developed in the future?

The version to be deployed in May is the newest version, upgraded on the basis of experiences gained at other universities. In future, Sisu will be developed further together with the other universities using Sisu and new features will be introduced.

Where can I get help if I cannot use Sisu due to its accessibility issues?

If you are unable to use Sisu due to the accessibility issues, please contact the University’s accessibility liaison. More information can be found on the page Special arrangements support studies. Unfortunately there are still accessibility issues in Sisu, especially for people using screen readers. More information is available in Sisu’s accessibility statement. Funidata Oy, the company developing Sisu, is working on finding the best solution for solving the issues.

How have students been able to influence the system features?  

The development of Sisu is highly student oriented. The University of Helsinki has used the Sisu study planning tool since 2017 and has collected feedback and development proposals from students. Students can continue to have their say on the further development of Sisu after the deployment in May by submitting feedback to the Student Services.  

Below is a list of explanations for the most common notifications related to study plans. Many of these notifications first concern a section of the study plan and later apply to the entire plan. In such cases, verify which section of the plan the notification relates to in the first place.

“You do not have a study right that corresponds to your study plan or you have not registered for the current semester.”

If your right to study and your registration for the academic year are in order, the error message will disappear when you complete a new study plan. For detailed instructions, see the section Study rights on this page.

“The structure of the study plan is against the rules. Please correct your selections.”

Possibly, you must update your study plan, or in some cases, you must draft an entirely new study plan. For further information, see Sisu instructions: Updating your study plan created prior to 1 August 2020.

The error message may also be due to the fact that in some sections of the plan you have made selections against the relevant rules. The notification may appear if the scope of credits in a given section of the study plan exceeds the allowed scope, or if you have added a study draft to a section of the plan containing only compulsory studies. It may also appear if you have made changes to the plan in the free edit mode (available as of 31 May), but have not applied for approval for these changes. The notification will disappear when the relevant section of the study plan is corrected or the degree programme approves it.

“Selections missing”

This notification appears when at least one section of the study plan lacks some of the required studies. The notification first applies to the section in question and then to the entire study plan. For example, if this notification appears under the section “Optional courses”, it can also be seen on the line displaying the name of the degree programme. The notification will disappear from the degree programme level when you complete the selections in the correct section of the study plan.

“Optional selections”

This notification is displayed in connection with those sections of the study plan where you are free to select a certain number of courses from any available course, but may choose to select no courses.

“Indirect selections”

This notification is displayed in the study plan when you have selected the same course for two different sections. The notification first applies to the section in question and then to the entire study plan. Once this section is corrected, the notification also disappears from the degree programme level.

“Approval required”

This notification is relevant to modules. The module content must be submitted for approval in Sisu before you can graduate. The application feature will be available as of 31 May. 

“Approval requested”

You have added content in the study plan that deviates from the predetermined structure and have applied for approval for this content (this feature is available as of 31 May).

"Study right must be separately confirmed"

This notification is shown when you are planning your Master's degree studies while the studies in your Bachelor's degree are still on-going. You will see the notification also on the study track section until your study track is confirmed in the Student Services.