The university plans to admit 120 students to the data engineering education expected to be launched on the Joensuu and Kuopio campuses in autumn 2026.
The University of Eastern Finland has plans to launch education in data engineering, pending an amendment to the decree issued by the Ministry of Education and Culture on the universities’ educational responsibilities. The Board of the University of Eastern Finland decided on 21 March 2024 that the university will submit a proposal to the Ministry of Education and Culture concerning the right to offer education in information and communication technology.
In autumn 2023, the University of Eastern Finland launched education in technology in three degree programmes: in photonics and in sustainable technologies on the Joensuu Campus, and in technical physics on the Kuopio Campus. All in all, 165 students were admitted to these programmes.
The new data engineering education is intended to be launched on the Joensuu and Kuopio campuses in autumn 2026 with an initial student intake of 120 students. The degrees available in the data engineering programmes would be the Bachelor of Science (Technology), the Master of Science (Technology), and the Doctor of Science (Technology) degrees.
“The amount of data in companies and in the public sector has grown exponentially, and this requires diverse expertise in data engineering. By offering education in data engineering, the university would be responding to future competence needs. The education we plan to provide will meet the needs of business and industry, and it will add to the pool of international experts in Finland,” Academic Rector Tapio Määttä says, explaining the university’s wish to expand its academic offering.
The new data engineering education would be composed of education in data science, statistics and computer science, with each of them given an equal emphasis. Most of the courses required for the Bachelor of Science (Technology) and Master of Science (Technology) degrees can already be found in the University of Eastern Finland’s current degree programmes.
“The new data engineering education is based on the existing expertise available in our computer science and data science programmes."
According to Määttä, as much as 56% of UEF’s MSc graduates majoring in computer science find employment in Eastern Finland.
“In contrast, only 3% of other universities’ computer science graduates holding an MSc in Technology find employment in Eastern Finland. We want to play a part in solving the shortage of skilled workforce, which is limiting the growth of companies in this region,” Määttä says.
The University of Eastern Finland is recognised for its strong research into forest bioeconomy, natural resources, photonics, materials technology, computational physics, environmental physics and medical technology. Research in all these fields relies on the analysis and processing of large masses of data.
“We currently have some 30 professors in fields that pertain to data engineering, so we are well placed to launch this new education that is also important for the vitality of Eastern Finland. Once in full gear, we would be recruiting new professors to our data engineering education. In fact, we are already discussing endowed professorships with regional financiers and companies in Eastern Finland,” Määttä notes.
The university also plans to collaborate with the regional universities of applied sciences, Savonia and Karelia, in the implementation of the education. The ICT education path designed by the higher education institutions in Eastern Finland creates a strong foundation for collaboration in data engineering education as well.
