Master's Degree Programme for Research Chemists

In 2025, a maximum of 20 students will be selected into the programme. The application period opens on 8 January 2025 and closes on 22 January 2025 at 15.00 (EEST). The applicants need to apply through the national Studyinfo portal at studyinfo.fi. Each applicant can only fill in and submit one application form in the joint application.

Eligibility criteria 

You can apply to the Master’s Programme for Research Chemists if you meet the following criteria:

• You have completed a bachelor's or master's degree in chemistry or chemical engineering corresponding to at least 3 years of full-time academic studies from an institution of higher education at an internationally recognized university in Finland or abroad. Alternatively, you should graduate during the spring semester and be able to deliver your final degree certificate by 31 July 2025, at the latest. An applicable degree from a recognized Finnish university of applied sciences is also accepted. 
• Your degree must include a sufficient amount of chemistry laboratory courses.
• You have sufficient skills in English. Details of English language requirements are described below.

Language requirements

Applicants must either (1) meet the language proficiency criteria (see below), or (2) reach the minimum required language test results to be considered eligible to the University of Eastern Finland. No exceptions will be made and no waivers regarding the language proficiency requirements are given.

Applicants must either (1) meet the language proficiency criteria (see below), or (2) reach the minimum required language test results to be considered eligible to the University of Eastern Finland. No exceptions will be made and no waivers regarding the language proficiency requirements are given.

(1) Applicants who hold one of the following do not have to take an English language test

• A language test is not required if the applicant has completed their secondary education in English language in EU/EEA -countries, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand or in Switzerland.
• A language test is not required if the applicant has completed a Bachelor’s, Master’s or higher degree in English language in EU/EEA -countries, or in one of the following countries:
  Australia, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Botswana, Cameroon, Canada, Dominica, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guyana, Hong Kong, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Malawi, Namibia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Philippines, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and Grenadines, Sierra Leone, Singapore, South-Africa, Switzerland, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, the United Kingdom, the United States, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

The degree/programme must be taught and assessed entirely in English. If you verify your language skills with your education degree, the language of instruction must be clearly indicated on the educational documents. 

Online studies or studies completed on offshore campuses outside the accepted countries/area cannot be used to indicate language skills, even if the degree-awarding institution is in one of the accepted countries.

(2) All other applicants have to take one of the following language tests 

• TOEFL iBT, overall score 92, min. 22 in writing 
• IELTS (academic) overall score 6.5, min. 6.0 in writing
• PTE (academic), overall score 62, min 54 in writing
• C1 Advanced overall score C or 180, with min. 162 in writing 
• C2 Proficiency overall score level C1 or 180, with min. 162 in writing
• National Certificate of Language Proficiency YKI-test: level 5 in all different subtests (reading  comprehension, writing and speaking). It is possible to combine different examinations. 

No other degrees or statements of language proficiency will be accepted.

TOEFL, IELTS and PTE certificates are valid for two years from the day they are issued, i.e. the language test need to be in effect during the application period, from 8 January 2023 onwards.

The language test results must be verifiable from the online verification service of the organiser. 

Enclosures 

The required enclosures need to be uploaded electronically to the application by 29 January 2025 at 3 pm (EEST) at the latest. UEF does not process application documents that have arrived after the deadline. All enclosures are compulsory for the selection process. Missing enclosures will result in the application being ineligible for evaluation.

Certificates 

• Degree certificate (in the original language) and an English, Finnish or Swedish translation of the degree certificate 
• An official transcript of academic records (in the original language) and an English, Finnish or Swedish translation of the transcript of records. The transcript should include the course units, their completion time, grades, and credits awarded 
• English language certificate (See application process) 

Other documents

• Motivational video (Check instructions from application process)
• At least two letters of recommendation from your previous academic instructors
• Grading scale of the institution (official attachment)

1. Check the admission requirements​​ carefully.

2. Check the application period​.

3. Gather your documents​.

4. Submit the electronic application​ by the deadline.

5. After submitting your application, ensure you submit your documents by the deadline.

6. The results for studies starting in September 2025 will be published by May 28, 2025, at the latest. Please be patient with the results. All applicants will receive a personal email regarding the outcome.

The admission process in the Master's degree Programme for Research Chemists aims at a fair selection of high-quality applicants. Student selection is based on the application documents and an evaluation of how the applicant's skills and competences gained during their previous academic studies correspond to the master's studies they have applied for. Meeting the minimum application requirements does not guarantee acceptance into the programme.

Applicants will be ranked according to the selection criteria, and the top 20 applicants will be accepted into the program, while the rest will be rejected. The program may accept more applicants at its discretion to fill the available study places. Applicants are not placed on a waiting list.

The applications will be graded using the following criteria (0-100 points):

(1) Relevance and extent of chemistry studies in the degree (0-40 points):

• Relevance and topicality of completed studies to the applied programme.
• Amount of completed chemistry studies.

(2) Academic performance (0-30 points):

• Grading of completed courses (grading scale of the institution should be included in the application).

(3) Motivational video (0-20 points): In the video, the applicant should explain why they are the perfect candidate for this program. The applicant should address at least the following topics:

• Introduce yourself and briefly describe your study and work history.
• Describe any experience in laboratory work during your previous degree.
• Express interest in chemistry education and research (e.g., specific research topics of interest) at the University of Eastern Finland.
• Outline your future goals.

The maximum duration for the motivational video is two minutes. The accepted video formats are as follows: x-m4v, x-matroska, x-msvideo, mpeg, ogg, webm, 3gpp, 3gpp2, mp4, MP2T, quicktime, x-ms-wmv, and x-ms-vob. The applicant’s educational background and motivation for applying to the master’s program will be assessed based on this submission

(4) Two Letters of recommendation (0-10 points):

• Freshness of the letters of recommendation.
• Recommender must be someone who has supervised and taught the applicant during the previous studies in the higher institution.
• The letter should express an assessment of the applicant's suitability for the programme. The applicant's previous educational background is reviewed based on this attachment
• Letters should be signed and stamped documents, or they should be delivered directly to the program coordinator by email from the official email address of the higher institution.

The final selection is based on the combined scores from different sections. The applicant must score at least 1 point in each section.

Selection results

Results for studies starting in September 2025 will be published on 28th May 2025 at the latest. When the selection decision has been made, the results will be sent immediately to applicants by e-mail.

Admitted students shall inform whether they accept their study place by latest on 10th July 2025 at 3 pm (EEST) electronically via Studyinfo portal or by submitting the confirmation form to hakijapalvelut@uef.fi.

According to One study place per term provision, a student may accept only one study place leading to a higher education degree in Finland during one academic term. This rule applies to all higher education.

Conditional acceptance 

Admitted students are conditionally accepted:

• If the degree is not ready during the application period.
• If the documents demonstrating eligibility for application need to be submitted as certified copies.
• If the applicant is liable to pay tuition fees and needs to pay the tuition fee and return the Student Agreement.

Your admission is conditional if you apply to UEF with a degree that is not finished during the application period. It is required that the applicants deliver officially certified copies of the final degree certificate and the transcript of records to the programme coordinator by 31 July 2025.

All accepted students need to provide officially certified copies, if they cannot authenticate their degree/transcript electronically when applying. The students will be conditionally accepted until they have provided the certified copies of the educational document (degree certificate and transcript of records). Country specific requirements are in use in the situations when the applicant cannot provide the documents electronically. The last date when the documents need to be at the university is 30 May 2025. In case the applicants do not deliver the documents by the given deadline, their study right will be cancelled.

The annual tuition fee for non-EU/EEA citizens is 10 000 euros. The tuition fee will be paid in two separate instalments.

All new non- EU/EEA students who have applied for scholarship in the application form will receive a scholarship (tuition waiver) which is 30% of the annual tuition fee. The scholarship is granted for two years if student fulfils the requirements of the student agreement. EU/EEA students are exempt from tuition fees.

The early bird deduction (500 euros) of tuition fee is available for students who will pay the first instalment of tuition fee no later than June 11th 2025.

Scholarships for living costs are not available.