Sisu instructions: Applying for credit transfer

You need not apply for credit transfer for studies completed at the University of Helsinki or as open university education if they have not already been incorporated into another University of Helsinki degree or study module. You can indicate completed studies as equivalent in the relevant course brochure in Sisu or apply for approval to deviate from the degree structure under the free edit mode (see user instructions for the free edit mode). If the studies have, however, been incorporated into another degree or study module, you must apply for their credit transfer. 

For language and communication studies previously completed at the University of Helsinki, further information is available in the Language Centre’s credit transfer instructions.

Your application cannot be processed without a transcript of studies from the higher education institution where you completed the studies in question. Alternatively, you can add a link to the completed studies in the field 'Description'. You can find the link in the My Studyinfo service under ‘My completed studies’. NB! Please check that the linked information is correct. The link is valid for six months only.

Submit a separate application for each course to be able to place the courses in different sections of your plan. Submit a single credit transfer application for multiple courses only if you are certain that you will place them in the same section of your plan (e.g., in optional studies). Even if applying for credit transfer towards a study module, submit a separate application for each course included in the module.

You can apply for credit transfer to any study plan for which you hold the right to study. The studies serving as the basis for your application must have been completed within the past 10 years.

Submit a substitution application when all of the following apply:

• you wish to substitute a compulsory or an optional course in your plan
• you have completed the substituting studies in another higher education institution in Finland (universities, the National Defence University, universities of applied sciences) or abroad or you are requesting the recognition of learning acquired in non-formal or informal education
• the studies incorporated into the degree or study module have a different code from those you wish to substitute
• you do not have a credit marked in Sisu for the studies in question.

Select the course to be substituted

1. Click on ‘Structure of studies’. In your study plan, find the course you wish to substitute.
   
    
2. Open the course brochure by clicking on the code in the course icon.
   
    
3. Open the ‘Equivalences and substitutions’ tab. 

4. To open the substitution application, click on ‘Go to application button’ under the heading ‘Substitution’ at the bottom of the tab.

   

    

5. From the pop-up window, click on ‘Add information on studies or other prior learning’.
   
    
6. From the next pop-up window, select the type of studies to be included.
   1. If you have completed studies at another general or applied sciences university or the National Defence University, select the radio button ‘Completed studies’.
   2. If applying for substitution based on learning acquired, for example, through employment, an elected position or a hobby, select the radio button ‘Other prior learning’. 
7. Click on ‘Add’.
   

Enter substitution information

On the page that appears, enter in the relevant text fields the scope and title of the course at the original place of completion. If possible, enter the title in Swedish and English as well. Under ‘Description’, enter the course objectives, content and any required reading.

If necessary, next you can add another substitution’s information by clicking the ‘Add information on studies or other prior learning’ button again, which is now shown below the information of the course you have completed elsewhere. Do this when, for example, you wish to substitute a 10-credit course with two 5-credit courses that have been completed elsewhere.

Add attachments

Add attachments by clicking on ‘Choose files’ at the bottom of the page or by dragging and dropping the files into the field ‘Drop files to attach’. Required attachments include a transcript of studies from the university where you completed the studies and a description of the completed course. Add the course description to the application as a file attachment (e.g., a screenshot) if you did not add it under ‘Description’. If applying for substitution based on non-formal or informal learning, your application must be accompanied by a description of how the learning corresponds to the learning outcomes of the studies to be substituted. Your application cannot be processed without a transcript of studies and a course description.

If necessary, add any other attachments required by your degree programme. For more information on the required attachments, see the website Recognition and validation of prior learning. To conclude, click on ‘Continue’ in the bottom right corner of the application.

Alternatively, you can add a link to the completed credits in the description field. You can find the link in the My Studyinfo service under My completed studies (information in Finnish and Swedish only). NB! Please first check that the linked information is correct. Please also note that the link is valid for only six months.

Select the manner in which you wish to be informed of the decision

Next appearing at the bottom of the application is the heading ‘Assessment and decision’. Use the radio button to select how you wish to be informed of the decision. We recommend choosing an electronic decision unless you require a hard copy. In the bottom right corner of the application, click on ‘Submit application’. You can then print the application from the top of the page. 
 

Being informed of the decision

You will get a notification of the decision in Sisu’s frontpage and messages. The application can also be found from the My profile page. After your substitution application has been approved, the substituted course will be shown as completed in your study plan.

Submit an inclusion application when all of the following apply:

• you have completed the studies in another higher education institution in Finland (universities, the National Defence University, universities of applied sciences) or abroad or you are requesting the recognition of learning acquired in non-formal or informal education
• you do not have a credit marked in Sisu for the studies in question
• you plan to include the studies in optional or alternative studies in your plan.

Submit an inclusion application if the course you have completed has been incorporated into another degree or study module completed at the University of Helsinki and the course has the same code as the course you wish to substitute. 

Applying through a study draft

You may have already created a study draft of the studies to be included in your study plan. If this is the case, make the inclusion application through the study draft. Now the credit transfer will be shown in your study plan directly in the section where the study draft has previously been approved in.

Open the application on the Structure of studies page as follows:

1. First, click the ‘Study draft’ link on the icon of the study draft you are applying for inclusion for.
   
2. Then click the Suggest credit button.
   
3. Select ‘I am applying for an included course credit’ and click the Continue button. 
   

Applying without a study draft

If you are proceeding without a study draft, click the button with three dots in the upper right corner of the structure view. Select the option ‘Request to have prior learning included in your degree’ from the drop-down menu.

Suggest a credit

1. First, check or select the location of the credit to be included in your study plan. If the location has not been selected yet or you wish to change it, click the link next to the planned location. Depending on the case, the name of the link is either ‘Change’ or ‘Select a location for the credit in the structure’.
   
2. Type the name of the credit in the text field, e.g. the name given in another university’s transcript of studies. Then click the Continue button.
   
3. Click the button ‘Add information on studies or other prior learning’ in the middle part of the pop-up window.
   
4. Select the type of the studies you would like to add to the application in a new pop-up window. . 
   1. Select ‘Completed studies’ from the radio buttons if you have completed the studies in another higher education institution  
   2. Select 'Other prior learning' or you are requesting the recognition of learning acquired in non-formal or informal education
5. Click the Add button.
   

Add the information of the course that will be included

On the page that appears, enter information in the relevant text fields about the studies completed elsewhere. If possible, enter the course title in Swedish and English as well. Submit a separate application for each course completed elsewhere.

Add attachments

Next, add attachments by clicking on ‘Choose files’ at the bottom of the page or by dragging and dropping the files into the field ‘Drop files to attach’. Add at least a transcript of studies from the university where you completed the studies. This transcript must include your basic details and information on the completed studies. Without this attachment your application cannot be processed.

If necessary, add other attachments. If applying for inclusion based on non-formal or informal learning, your application must be accompanied by a description of how the learning corresponds to the learning outcomes of the studies to be substituted. To conclude, click on ‘Continue’ in the bottom right corner of the application.

Alternatively, you can add a link to your studies (instead of a transcript of studies) under ‘Description’. You can find the link in the My Studyinfo service under ‘My completed studies’. NB! Please check that the linked information is correct. The link is valid for six months only.

Choose how you want to be informed of the decision

Now, a heading Assessment and decision will appear at the bottom of the application. Select how you wish to be informed of the decision. We recommend that you choose the electronic decision if you do not necessarily need the decision on paper. Click the Submit application button in the bottom corner of the application. After this, you can print out the application from the upper corner of the view.
 

Notification of the decision

You will get a notification of the decision in Sisu’s frontpage and messages. The application can also be found from the My profile page. After your inclusion application has been approved, the included course will be shown as completed in your study plan.

1. Click ‘My profile’ from the main menu in Sisu.
2. Open the Applications and decisions tab.
   
   
3. Click the application you wish to cancel.
   
   
4. Click the 'Cancel the application' button.

If your application lacks the required attachments or information, the person processing the application will ask you to supplement it. They will return your application to you in Sisu to be supplemented. In Sisu, you will receive a message about this through which you can access your application page. The application details will include a note indicating its return to you for supplementation, stating the reason for this and providing a deadline for submitting the supplemented application.

NB! To check whether you have received a supplementation request, please see your messages in Sisu. Supplement and submit your application as requested.

As a rule, you have three weeks to supplement your application. If you fail to submit the requested attachments or information by the deadline, your application may be rejected.

What is EMREX and what does it have to do with credit transfer?

EMREX is a service for transferring verified and machine-readable study data. It allows you to transfer completed credits from a Finnish or international higher education institution using EMREX to the University of Helsinki. This requires that you have a valid username and password at the institution from which you wish to transfer credits to the University. 

How to import credits completed at another higher education institution into Sisu

1. Ensure that the institution from which you wish to import credits into the University of Helsinki’s Sisu uses EMREX. The countries and institutions using EMREX are listed on the emrex.eu website.
2. In Sisu, click on ‘Structure of studies’.
3. From the three-dot menu, click on ‘Import attainments from another institute of higher education’.

4. Under ‘Attainment register’, select the country from whose register to search for completed credits. 

   
5. Click on the blue ‘Go to EMREX’ button.
6. Identify yourself with your username and password for the target institution. Please note that you must hold a valid username and password for the other institution.

7. Select the credits you have completed at the other institution. We recommend that you transfer all of them at once, as your username and password at the target institution will expire after a certain period of time.
   
   Here is a screenshot of the Finnish test environment, with credits completed at Aalto University:

   

    

8. Click on ‘Send chosen credits’.

9. You will see a summary of the credits to be transferred, alongside relevant data. 

   
10. Accept the transfer of study data and personal details at the bottom of the page. Click on ‘Submit’.
11. You will be notified of the successful import of your credits.

How to retrieve completed credits from EMREX for your credit transfer application

If the higher education institution where you completed the credits to be transferred uses EMREX and you have imported the credits into Sisu, you can retrieve them for a credit transfer application as outlined below. 

1. Apply for substitution or inclusion following the Sisu instructions.

2. Under ‘Information on the studies’, select the credits imported from EMREX by clicking on ‘Select an attainment’.
    

   

3. Select the credits to be transferred.
    

   

4. If Emrex provided information for all required fields, your application generally need not be accompanied by a transcript of studies. You can add the required description of studies yourself rather than attaching the above transcript. However, if any other information is missing from required fields, attach the transcript.

   However, the person processing your credit recognition application may ask you to provide a transcript of records or other additional information if the application cannot be resolved based solely on the data transmitted via Emrex.
    

   
5. After completing all the information, submit the credit transfer application. 

• Sisu instructions: Study plan
• Sisu instructions: Study draft

You can find all Sisu user instructions on the User instructions for Sisu page.

You can find answers to common problems and questions on the Frequently asked questions about Sisu page.