The non-European citizens studying in an international Bachelor's or Master’s degree have fees which vary from 8,000 to 10,000 € per year depending on the programme. The university offers tuition waivers and scholarships for international degree students required to pay tuition fees. There are no tuition fees for the EU and EEA citizens. For further information, please see "Who will need to pay for tuition?"
As a new initiative for 2025, UEF is introducing a tuition waiver based on learning the Finnish language for students in Bachelor's and Master's degree programs taught in English. The aim of the waiver is to encourage international students to learn Finnish, improve their employment opportunities, and help them better integrate into Finnish society.
The new tuition waiver programme for the admission round of 2025 and details about Finnish Proficency Tuition waiver application round will be published in September 2024.
Fees will be collected from citizens outside the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland, starting their studies in Bachelor's or Master’s degree programmes conducted in English in August 2017 or after that.
You are not required to pay tuition fee if you have one of the documents mentioned below. Student who:
- is a citizen of the member states of the European Union (EU) or European Economic Area (EEA) or Switzerland.
- has a permanent residence permit card in Finland, type P permit
- has a continuous residence permit card in Finland, type A permit, based on other grounds than studying.
- Please note that if you have a continuous residence permit card in Finland (type A) issued for studies, you are liable to pay tuition fees
- has an EU residence permit for third-country citizens with long-term residence permit card in Finland (type P-EU permit)
- has an EU family member's residence card in Finland
- has an EU blue card in Finland
- has a Brexit residence permit card, type SEU = Right of residence under the withdrawal agreement, or P SEU = Right of permanent residence under the withdrawal agreement
The degree programmes conducted in Finnish will remain free of charge regardless of the student’s citizenship.
In order to be exempted from tuition fees for the academic year, your residence permit has to be valid at the start of that academic year, i.e. 1 August. To prove your residency status, copies of both sides of your valid residence permit card in Finland must be enclosed to your application. A copy of your valid passport, or national ID card where your citizenship is indicated, is required to prove your citizenship.
The tuition fee exemption is tied to the time that the exempting residence permit is valid. If the permit runs out and is not renewed, full tuition fee liability will normally start from the beginning of the next semester following the end of the exempting permit.
More information about determining your liability to pay and exemptions from tuition fees can be found on Studyinfo (studyinfo.fi).
Information about the changes in applying for a residence permit for studies or research is available on the Finnish Immigration Service website (migri.fi).
The Finnish Proficiency Tuition Waivers at UEF are aimed at incentivizing students to immerse themselves in Finnish language and culture studies. It rewards those who excel beyond the required courses outlined in their degree programme. The aim is to support international UEF students as they integrate into Finnish society and the local working environment.
1. ELIGIBILITY
The student has demonstrated proficiency in one of the following:
- Certification-based tuition waiver (A)
- Students who obtain a national certificate of language proficiency in Finnish (YKI-test) at intermediate level 3 or 4 while being present student at UEF are eligible.
- 100 % tuition waiver for the next semester's tuition fee (one semester)
- The value of the one semester 100 % tuition waiver varies by programme, depending on the tuition fee, and ranges from €4000 to €5000.
- The value of the one semester 100 % tuition waiver varies by programme, depending on the tuition fee, and ranges from €4000 to €5000.
- Study-based tuition waiver (B)
- To be eligible, students must demonstrate A2.2 level proficiency in Finnish by passing the "SUOMI 3" course while being present student at UEF.
- 50 % tuition waiver for the next semester's tuition fee (one semester)
- The value of the one semester 50 % tuition waiver varies by programme, depending on the tuition fee, and ranges from €2000 to €2500.
- The Student is currently enrolled in either an International Bachelor's or Master's degree programme at the University of Eastern Finland.
- The Student is liable for tuition fees: Citizens of non-EU/EEA countries who do not have permanent residence status in the Finland are liable for tuition fees.
- The student must not have already been awarded a 100% tuition waiver (e.g., UEF Scholarship).
- The student's language of secondary education is not Finnish or Swedish, and at the start of their studies they have limited or no command of Finnish.
- The Student has actively pursued their studies at UEF during either their first or second academic year, as evidenced by their study register.
- The student has not previously been awarded a Finnish proficiency tuition waiver from UEF.
- The student must have shown improvement or undergone testing of their Finnish language skills while enrolled as students at UEF. Any language-related achievements or activities before their enrolment at UEF will not be considered.
- The student is eligible to apply for a tuition waiver from one of the categories (A or B). The Finland Proficiency tuition waiver can be awarded only once, and for one semester.
2. HOW TO APPLY?
Tuition waivers are applied:
- November 15, 2024-December 15, 2024 for the spring semester
- June 15, 2025-August 15, 2025 for the autumn semester
- Students must apply for the tuition waiver through their programme by these specified deadlines.
- The decision will be made by 15 January, 2025 for the spring semester and 15 September, 2025 for the autumn semester at the latest.
- If the student is eligible for the Finnish Proficiency Tuition Waivers A or B, the tuition waiver will be granted.
- Please note: Clear documentation and evidence are required for the application.
3. LIMITATIONS
If a student has already paid the semester's tuition fee, the tuition waiver cannot be applied for that semester, and refunds are not available. For example, if a student has paid for the autumn semester and applies for a tuition waiver by December 15, the waiver will be granted for the spring semester, not the autumn semester.
However, if the student has paid for both the autumn and spring semesters and applies for a tuition waiver for the spring by December 15, 2024, they may request a refund for the spring semester after the tuition waiver is granted, for the amount covered by the waiver. It is not possible to apply for this tuition waiver retroactively.
If a student has a partial tuition waiver, they can apply for the Finland Proficiency tuition waiver. However, if the student already has a full 100% tuition waiver, no additional waivers can be granted.
The tuition waiver is a partial exemption from the tuition fee (partial scholarship). For students selected in 2024, the tuition waiver may cover max. 50 % of the programme’s tuition fee. However, the programmes have had the right to decide that the tuition waiver percentage can be lower than that. The student must apply for the tuition waiver on the application form. The waiver is granted for maximum of four (4) semesters (Master students) and for maximum of six (6) semesters (Bachelor students).
A waiver granted based on temporary protection: A student may apply for a tuition fee grant on humanitarian grounds if they are liable to pay tuition fee and have been accepted into an international bachelor’s or master’s degree programme at the University of Eastern Finland and they arrive in Finland on account of requiring temporary protection. The grant is awarded as a 100 % tuition fee waiver for the target duration of completing a degree. For more information about the temporary protection, please see the website of Finnish Immigration Service.
For students, the tuition fee will remain the same throughout the entire time of completing their degrees. The exact tuition fee of the programme can be found below and on the programme’s websites. For Erasmus Mundus programmes, please see the programme’s website for more information.
The tuition fee covers the studies included in the degree (personal study plan), studies-related supervision and counselling, and studies-related supporting services offered by the university. In addition, students are also entitled to the services of the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS). There are separate fees for FSHS and the Student Union. The university assists students in finding accommodation. See also the residence permit requirements and application process from the Finnish Immigration Service's website.
The University of Eastern Finland also grants an Early Bird tuition fee deduction of 500 € for the autumn semester to students who accept the study place and pay the tuition fees within three weeks of the date the results are published (for Master's students starting in autumn 2024 by 3 May 2024, for Bachelor's students the deadline is on 21 June 2024). Early Bird payment can only be done online (electronically). This Early Bird deduction does not apply to Erasmus Mundus and joint degree programmes.
Tuition fees and waivers 2024 by programme (Programme, Fee per year, Tuition waiver)
Bachelor's degree programmes
- Information Technology (new also in Kuopio), 10 000 €, 50 %
- Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development, 10 000 €, 50 %
- Sustainable Forest Bioeconomy new, 10 000 €, 50 %
- Social Sciences, 10 000 €, 50 %
Master's degree programmes
- Accounting and Finance new, 10 000 €, 0% and 50 %*
- Biomedicine (BIOMED), 8 000 €, 50 %
- Biology of Environmental Change (BEC, only in Joensuu), 8 000 €, 50 %
- Digital Marketing and Analytics, 10 000 €, 0 % and 50 %*
- Early Language Education for Intercultural Communication, 8 000 €, 50 %
- English Language and Culture, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Environmental and Ecosystem Ecology (former BEC Kuopio), 8 000 €, 50 %
- Environmental Health and Technology, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Environmental Policy and Law, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Forestry, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Information Technology (IMPIT), 8 000 €, 50 %
- International Business and Sales Management (IBS), 10 000 €, 0% and 50 %*
- Linguistic Data Sciences, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Medical Physics, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Pedagogy and Teaching for Sustainability, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Photonics, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Public Health, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Research Chemists, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Sustainability Leadership new, 10 000 €, 0% and 50 %*
- Tourism Marketing and Management, 10 000 €, 0% and 50 %*
- Toxicology, 8 000 €, 50 %
* In the programme the best 50 % of the student quota will receive a 50 % waiver, and the rest will pay 100 % (no reserve list for the waiver).
What is the Finland Scholarship?
UEF will grant a Finland Scholarship (Suomi-stipendi) for the two best applicants (who received best points) in each Master's degree programme. The Finland Scholarship is granted for the first year of Master’s studies and the students who receive it must be non-EU/EEA citizens who are liable to pay tuition fees. The total value of the Finland Scholarship is € 13 000–15 000, depending on the programme’s tuition fee. The Finland Scholarship includes:
- 100 % tuition waiver for the first year's tuition fee (value € 8 000–10 000)
- € 5 000 relocation grant
The scholarship is a one-year scholarship for the first-year Master’s students. For the second year of study, students need to secure sufficient funds themselves. The programmes' general tuition waivers will be offered for the second-year studies.
The Finland Scholarships will be granted until 2024. Students who apply to Master’s studies in 2025 are not eligible. The national Finland Scholarship programme is funded by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture.
Who can apply for the Finland Scholarship?
Prospective students who:
- are non-EU/EEA citizens
- are liable to pay tuition fees
- apply for Master-level studies and whose study right starts on 1 August 2022 or after that (until August 2024)
How to apply?
You must state your wish to apply for a Finland Scholarship on the Studyinfo application form. Finland Scholarships are awarded based on the programme's own admission criteria for the two best applicants per programme who have been chosen for the studies based on their success in the admission process (received best points). Scholarships are always personal, and UEF will notify applicants about the decision regarding the scholarship at the same time with the admission results. The decisions on scholarships cannot be appealed against.
About the Finland Scholarship at UEF
- The relocation grant is paid in one instalment after the student has registered as being present at UEF.
- The student must have a Finnish bank account, and the € 5 000 portion of the scholarship will be paid to that account at the earliest in October.
- The student needs to study on campus, as it is not possible to have these extra scholarships for distance learning.
- If a student is exempted from paying tuition fees, they are no longer eligible to receive the Finland Scholarship.
- Master-level students who have been admitted in 2021 or earlier are not eligible, even if the start of their studies is postponed.
- If the student defers the start of their studies for a statutory reason, they may begin the studies in the following academic year with the same conditions and keep the Finland Scholarship (one time).
- The Finland Scholarship is not granted in UEF's Erasmus Mundus and special agreement programmes (see the list of the Finland Scholarship programmes at UEF below)
Finland Scholarship can be granted in these UEF programmes
Philosophical Faculty
- Early Language Education for Intercultural Communication, Master of Arts (Education)
- English Language and Culture, Master of Arts
- Linguistic Data Sciences, Master of Arts
- Pedagogy and Teaching for Sustainability, Master of Arts (Education)
Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology
- Biology and Environmental Change (BEC), Master of Science, Joensuu
- Environmental and Ecosystem Ecology, Master of Science (Environmental Science) (former BEC Kuopio)
- Environmental Health and Technology, Master of Science
- Forestry, Master of Science (Agr. & For.)
- Information Technology, Master of Science (Computer Science)
- Medical Physics, Master of Science (Technology)
- Photonics, Master of Science (Technology)
- Research Chemists, Master of Science (Chemistry)
Faculty of Health Sciences
- Biomedicine (BioMed), Master of Science
- Public Health, Master of Health Sciences
- Toxicology, Master of Science
Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies
- Accounting and Finance, Master of Science (Econ. & Bus. Adm.) new
- Digital Marketing and Analytics, Master of Science (Econ. & Bus. Adm.) (1 in Joensuu and 1 in Kuopio)
- Environmental Policy and Law, Master of International and Comparative Law
- International Business and Sales Management, Master of Science (Econ. & Bus. Adm.)
- Sustainability Leadership, Master of Science (Econ. & Bus. Adm.) new
- Tourism Marketing and Management, Master of Science (Econ. & Bus. Adm.)
We recommend that prospective applicants apply for both the Finland Scholarship and UEF's own tuition waiver at the same time. If you are not awarded the Finland Scholarship, UEF will grant the tuition waiver. You must apply for both in the Studyinfo application form. Neither the Finland Scholarship nor the tuition waiver can be applied for afterwards.
You have the right to a full refund (excluding possible bank-specific payment charges) of the tuition fee paid:
- if you have been conditionally admitted and the condition is not met: your study place is thus cancelled,
- if you have submitted your residence permit application by 31 July but you have not been granted a residence permit in Finland. NB! The refund is not possible if the student has already registered as being present.
- if your residence permit status changes before the beginning of the academic year (1 August) at the university and, according to the new residence permit, you are no longer required to pay fees,
- if the university is unable to offer the degree programme you have been admitted to.
Kindly note that the refund must be applied before the end of September of the year you have been accepted to the University of Eastern Finland. The students must apply for the refund themselves, and if the student is late for the given deadline (end of September), the university has no obligation to return the tuition fee.
The refund policy takes into consideration the student's personal reasons only. The refund policy does not apply if the reasons are not related directly to the student but third parties, e.g. family members, friends or other relatives.
If there is a change in the student's residence permit, the influence of this change to payments of the student will take effect from the beginning of the following academic term. The student must provide a Finnish residence permit as proof for university's decision-making. The already paid tuition fee will not be refunded.
All new students admitted to international degree programmes in 2023 (September intake) who are required to pay tuition fees are eligible to receive a partial tuition waiver. The tuition waiver is 50–70 % of the annual tuition fee and it is granted for maximum of four (4) semesters (Master students) and for maximum of six (6) semesters (Bachelor students).
A waiver granted based on temporary protection: A student may apply for a tuition fee grant on humanitarian grounds if they are liable to pay tuition fee and have been accepted into an international bachelor’s or master’s degree programme at the University of Eastern Finland and they arrive in Finland on account of requiring temporary protection. The grant is awarded as a 100 % tuition fee waiver for the target duration of completing a degree. For more information please see the website of Finnish Immigration Service.
The student may register as being present for the 2023-2024 academic year. If the student does not receive a decision on being granted temporary protection, they will not be awarded the tuition fee waiver. If the student has paid the tuition fee and is then granted temporary protection, the tuition fee will be refunded to them.
For students, the tuition fee will remain the same throughout the entire time of completing their degrees. The exact tuition fee of the programme can be found below and on the programme’s websites. For Erasmus Mundus programmes, please see the programme’s website.
The tuition fee covers the studies included in the degree (personal study plan), studies-related supervision and counselling, and studies-related supporting services offered by the university. In addition, students are also entitled to the services of the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS). There are separate fees for FSHS and the Student Union. The university assists students in finding accommodation. See also the residence permit requirements and application process from the Finnish Immigration Service website.
The University of Eastern Finland will also grant an Early Bird tuition fee deduction of 500 € for the autumn semester to students who accept the study place and pay the tuition fees within three weeks of the date the results are published (for Master's students starting in autumn 2023 by 21 April 2023, for Bachelor's students the deadline is on 23 June 2023). Early Bird payment can only be done online. This Early Bird deduction does not apply to Erasmus Mundus and joint degree programmes.
Tuition fees and waivers 2023 by programme (Programme, Fee per year, Tuition waiver)
Bachelor's degree programmes
- Information Technology, 10 000 €, 70 % new
- Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development, 10 000 €, 50 %
- Social Sciences, 10 000 €, 50 %
Master's degree programmes
- Biomedicine (BIOMED), 10 000 €, 70 %
- Biology of Environmental Change, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Digital Marketing and Analytics, 8 000 €, 50 % new
- Early Language Education for Intercultural Communication, 8 000 €, 70 %
- English Language and Culture, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Environmental Health and Technology, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Environmental Policy and Law, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Forestry & Transatlantic Forestry, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Information Technology (IMPIT), 8 000 €, 70 %
- International Business and Sales Management (IBS), 8 000 €, 50 %
- Linguistic Data Sciences, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Materials Technology, 8 000 €, 70 % new
- Medical Physics, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Pedagogy and Teaching for Sustainability, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Photonics, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Public Health, 10 000 €, 70 %
- Research Chemists, 8 000 €, 70 %
- Tourism Marketing and Management, 8 000 €, 50 %
- Toxicology, 10 000 €, 70 %