Scholarships and grants

The University of Helsinki Funds includes over 300 funds founded by our alumni, friends and other supporters. All the disciplines have their own funds used to finance research projects, researchers and students of their own discipline. In addition to the discipline-specific funds, the university also has cause-specific and general funds. Funds have been donated to the University of Helsinki the past centuries.

The University of Helsinki Funds offers grants and scholarships only to students and researchers of the University of Helsinki (the only exception is The Cooperative Teaching and Research Fund).

Applications and recommendations are submitted through the electronic application system.

The application round was from January 12 till February 4, 2021.

If you have questions regarding the grants and scholarships, please contact studentinfo@helsinki.fi. 

All the applicants will be notified of the grant decisions by email in April, 2021.

Who can apply and the grant period

The University of Helsinki Funds offers grants and scholarships only to students and researchers of the University of Helsinki (the only exception is The Cooperative Teaching and Research Fund).

In case you are employed by the university of Helsinki and you have been granted a travel grant, please see the instructions in Flamma.

The application must always be submitted personally.

The applicants will be informed about the decisions by the end of March.

Grants must be spent within three years of the date awarded (by the end of the last month of the three-year period). No grant period can exceed the three-year limit. Grants not spent within three years will be considered cancelled.

Doctoral Students

Doctoral schools' travel grants are applicable during the same period. For more information about the travel grants for doctoral students, please see the instructions related to funding your doctoral studies.

Application

Login to the application system using your UH user name and password. The application system works in three languages. You can apply for all of the grants and stipends of the University of Helsinki Funds in either Finnish, Swedish or English. All the attachments added to the application must be in PDF-format.

With each application you can apply for funding from only one application target. You may however leave several applications during the application period.

Undergraduate and graduate students need to add:

• transcript of credits (ordered from Sisu).

Editing the application

You can submit your application either as a draft or a final application. You can return to the application system to check and alter both your drafts and final applications during the application period. Drafts are not acknowledged as applications when the decisions about the grants and stipends are made. After you have submitted your application as a final application you cannot change your possible referee anymore because the application system will automatically send an e-mail with instructions about adding a recommendation to the referee.

E-mail confirmation

The application system will send an affirmative e-mail to the address you give in the application when the application has been submitted as a draft and as a final application for the first time. In the affirmation e-mail there is a link that you can use to return to the system to check and alter your application during the application period. You can also print you whole application as a PDF with your attachments.

Referee

You can add 1-2 referees to application targets. Recommendations are free of form. If you add a referee to your application, they will be sent an e-mail with instructions to add a recommendation to the system. 

Make sure you ask your referee in advance which e-mail address they prefer to use. When you have submitted your application as a final application you cannot change your referee or their information anymore because the application system will automatically send an e-mail with instructions about adding a recommendation to the referee. A referee can add their recommendation only after you have submitted your application as a final application. The referee will see the following information about your application:

• your name
• the application target
• whether the application is for studying, research or for travel

Evaluation Criteria

Study progress

• number of credits and grades compared to the study time

Research plan and research activities

• is taken into consideration if the applicant is working on his/her thesis or if the applicant is applying for a research grant

Other activities that support the application

• work experience and positions of trust that support the studies or research
• activities within the University community

Evaluation criteria for travel grants

Study progress

• number of credits and grades compared to the study time

Significance of the planned trip for the studies

• the significance of the planned trip for the studies or research
• the link between the planned trip and the studies
• Financial significance of the travel grant for the trip planned

The aim of the grant is to promote the finalizing of the master’s thesis by providing for an intensive thesis writing period at one of the field stations of the University. The grant is meant for those students that are close to the end of their thesis work. The field stations are located in Hyytiälä, Kilpisjärvi, Lammi, Tvärminne and Värriö.

You can apply for the grant if you are a basic-degree student at the University of Helsinki and you have not been awarded the grant before. The grant is applied for one week and it includes full room and board at the field stations. More information available on Get Your Master's Thesis Written! Grant page. 

In the academic year 2021–2022 each international master's programme will award one Dean's Award to a student for outstanding study performance during the student's first study year. The Dean's Award is worth 1000€ and will be paid to the student during their second study year.

The Dean's Awards are available only to students who are liable to pay tuition fees. 

The Bachelor's Programme in Science awards one Dean's Award (à 1000€) already in the academic year 2020–2021 for:

• one student on their first study year (grant paid on the second study year) for outstanding study performance during the student's first study year
• one student on their second study year (paid on the third study year) for outstanding study performance during the student's first and second study years.

The Dean's Awards will replace the Second Year Study Grants. The Second Year Study Grants are awarded for the last time during the academic year 2020-2021 and shall be paid to the grantees during the academic year 2021-2022. 

Academy of Finland

The application rounds of The Academy of Finland are usually in April and September.

Funding database AURORA

Funding database AURORA is a national database in sciences, arts and culture. The database is open for all.

Council of Finnish Foundations

COFF helps applicants with questions concerning grants.

Finnish cultural foundation

The Finnish Cultural Foundation awards grants from the central fund and regional funds. Application period for the central fund takes place in October and the regional funds have a common application period in January.

FYRK

FYRK is a grant database in Swedish.

Research Professional

The international Research Professional is an online database of research funding and can be accessed with a computer connected to the university’s network.

Grants database SYL

The National Union of University Students in Finland SYL maintains a database where you can search for grants and scholarships.