Doctoral Programme in Educational Studies

Philosophical Faculty

• Doctor of Philosophy (Education), Licentiate in Philosophy (Education)

Subjects: adult education, special education, educational science, early childhood education, home economics and craft science

• Doctor of Philosophy

Subjects: adult education, educational science, home economics and craft science  

Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology

• Doctor of Philosophy, Licentiate in Philosophy

Subjects: physics, chemistry, mathematics, computer science

Eligible applicants for doctoral studies in the Doctoral Programme in Educational Studies must have completed by the end of the application period

• Master's degree with science of adult education, special education/pedagogy, education, early childhood education, home economics or craft science as their major subject or completed advanced studies in any of these subjects or

• Master's degree in some other relevant field of study or Master's degree at a university of applied sciences in a relevant field of study

Candidates applying from the Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology are expected to have a subject teacher's qualification in physics, chemistry, mathematics or computer science, and the topics of postgraduate studies are related to learning, teaching or teacher education in these subjects.

Applicants must have

• completed at least 60 ECTS credits in the major subject or other applicable subject of the doctoral degree

• completed advanced studies with the grade "good" or higher

• completed Master's thesis or an equivalent final thesis with the grade "good" or higher

• sufficient English skills in order to complete the doctoral studies. The applicant can verify her/his English skills with an attachment to the application according to selection criteria

• two supervisors, one of which is a professor from the doctoral programme. Supervisor consent form KASVA 

• a research plan of high quality approved by the supervisors

The board of the Doctoral Programme in Educational Studies will assess the quality of the applicant's research plan and its relevance to the research topics of the programme.

Further details on selections criteria, instructions for making application and attachments required can be found in Studyinfo-service.

Eligible applicants for doctoral studies must have sufficient English skills in order to complete the doctoral studies. Doctoral students are expected to be able to write scientific texts, participate in teaching, and communicate fluently with university staff in English.

The applicant can verify her/his English skills with an attachment to the application. These attachments must include a degree diploma, transcript of studies and a Diploma Supplement if the applicant has:

• English as foreign language included in at least a Bachelor-level degree conducted in a Nordic country (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) or in an EU/EEA country;

• At least 20 ECTS university-level studies in the subject of English Studies completed in a Nordic or in an EU/EEA country;

• Master's thesis written in English when Master's degree is completed in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country;

• Bachelor's or Master's degree completed in English language in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country or Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States;

• Doctoral Degree completed in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country or Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States;   

• Secondary education and final examination completed in English (for example International Baccalaureate) in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country or Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States.  

In other case, the applicant is to prove her/his language skills in English with an English language test:  

• TOEFL paper-based: Total score 600 and Writing 4.0;

• TOEFL Internet-based and Special Home Edition of TOEFL iBT: Total Score 100 and Writing 22;

• IELTS (Academic) on paper, on computer or online: Overall Score 6.5 and Writing 5.5;

• PTE Academic (Pearson Test of English), min. 59 points;

• C1 Advanced (CAE), pass levels A, B or C / C2 Proficiency (CPE), pass levels A, B, C or level C1 Certificate;

• National Certificate of Language Proficiency (YKI). Skills level 5 or 6 in the reading comprehension, writing and speaking subtests. 

For more information on the tests, please contact the language testing organizations.

Please note that a written statement by the applicant, prospective supervisor, English teacher, etc., is not an adequate proof of the applicant's sufficient English skills.

Research proposal for the application, Doctoral Programme in Educational Studies

When applying for doctoral degree studies, a research plan must be enclosed with the application. The student prepares the plan with his/her supervisors, and it must be approved by them. The research plan must cover the entire doctoral dissertation. If the research topic and materials change substantially during the studies, a new plan must be made. If the changes are significant, approval must be sought from the faculty. The research plan is usually drafted in Finnish or English. The maximum length of the research plan is ten pages (A4, single-spaced, Times or Arial 12 pt, 2-3 cm marginals).  

The research plan should apply the following structure: 

1. Title of the research and the name and contact information of the postgraduate student

2. Background
   - a short summary of the theoretical background of the research with necessary sources (including the methodological basis)
   - a description of earlier research related to the topic 
   - a description of what remains unknown about the research topic and an explanation of the research's relevance on a national and/or international scale

3. Aims and research questions
   - the aims of the research clearly defined and presented 
   - the research hypotheses or assumptions

4. Materials and methods
   - a description of the research methods and materials used, and the grounds for choosing the particular methods
   - a description of how the data and materials will be handled and used (also after the research has been completed)
   - a working plan, a plan for different stages of the work

5. Schedule and funding plans
   - a description and a schedule for the different stages of the work
   - the funding plan and funding sources of the research

6. The ethical aspects of the research
   - the ethical aspects of the research (e.g. whether the research requires statements from ethics committees or statutory research permits; possible permits should be attached to the research plan) 

7. Publication plan
   - the means and mode of publishing and/or presenting the research results

8. Applications of research results
   - an estimation of the applications and the social significance of the research results

9. References
   - a list of the references cited in the research plan 

10. The names of the persons and units participating in the research project

The right to pursue doctoral studies does not include funding or a contract of employment or teaching tasks at the University. However, full-time doctoral students need funding to cover their costs of living and potential research costs (travel costs, research material etc.). Funding options should be discussed with the supervisor already when planning to apply for a doctoral study right and creating a research plan.

Doctoral studies can be funded for example by a scholarship, by working as a researcher in a research project, by working as a doctoral candidate at the University of Eastern Finland (doctoral student position), or by studying part-time while at work. Doctoral students apply for funding themselves.

Read more about funding options of doctoral studies on Kamu Student handbook.