1 GENERAL INFORMATION
With approximately 15,000 students and 2,800 members of staff, the University of Eastern Finland is one of
the largest universities in Finland. The University of Eastern Finland was established in 2010 as the result of
the merger of the University of Joensuu and the University of Kuopio. The university's campuses are located
in Joensuu, Kuopio and Savonlinna.
The University of Eastern Finland is a multidisciplinary university, which offers teaching in more than 100
major subjects. The university comprises four faculties: the Philosophical Faculty, the Faculty of Science and
Forestry, the Faculty of Health Sciences, and the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies.
The activities of the university underscore multidisciplinarity. The university's key interdisciplinary research
areas are built around four global challenges: Ageing, lifestyles and health; Learning in a digitised society;
Cultural encounters, mobilities and borders; and Environmental change and sufficiency of natural
resources.
The well-being of students is among the primary concerns of the university. In addition to the high standard
of teaching, the university offers its students a modern study environment which is under constant
development.
The university has extensive international relations and it is involved in several international networks. The
university's teaching and research staff and students are active in participating in various mobility
programmes. The university has concluded bilateral agreements on cooperation with approximately 100
universities abroad. Moreover, the university is involved in several international networks and disciplinespecific projects.
With its extensive networks, this multidisciplinary and international university constitutes a significant
competence cluster, which promotes the well-being and positive development of eastern Finland. The
University of Eastern Finland seeks to be among the leading 200 research universities in the world and, in
our strong research areas, among the world's leading 50 research universities. The number of international
students annually is about 1,400.
More information on admission requirements and procedures for exchange students, visiting students,
Master’s degree students: www.uef.fi/en/studies/admissions
1.1 Academic Year and Teaching Periods
The academic year is based on a two-semester system. Officially, the academic year runs from 1 August to
31 July. The Christmas break lasts approximately three weeks and during the spring semester there is a
week-long Easter break. No lectures are given on public holidays.
The University of Eastern Finland has no official summer semester but during the summer months it may be
possible to write essays or thesis or to take exams or to do a practical training or other project work.
Discuss and plan these with your academic coordinator/supervisor. http://www.uef.fi/fi/studies/summerstudies
There are no special examination periods at the University of Eastern Finland. Examinations are scheduled
throughout the academic year and not just at the end of each academic period. An examination is usually
held at the end of each course.
1
During the academic year 2015–2016 instruction will be offered during the following periods:
Autumn semester: 1 September – 18 December 2015
Spring semester: 11 January – 27 May 2016
Some academic departments divide the academic year into four teaching periods. In academic year 2015–
2016 teaching periods are as follows:
Autumn semester 2015
Period I: 1 September – 23 October 2015
Period II: 26 October – 18 December 2015
Spring semester 2016
Period III: 11 January – 18 March 2016
Period IV: 21 March – 27 May 2016
1.2 Orientation for International Students
To facilitate the integration of international students into their new environment, the University of Eastern
Finland organizes an Orientation for International Students at the start of both semesters. The orientation
provides international students with essential information about studying at the University of Eastern
Finland and includes practical information about living in Finland and your campus town. It is also a good
opportunity to meet other international students for the first time. Those who attend all parts of the
programme and meet all other possible requirements of the orientation period will earn one ECTS credit.
During the academic year 2015–2016 the Orientation for International Students takes place 1–4 September
2015 and 11–13 January 2016 (same programme in both sessions).
1.3 Basic Information about Studies
1.3.1 Courses and Course Descriptions
Courses can last for one semester or they may begin and finish at any time during the semester. During an
intensive course there can be six hours of lectures and/or laboratory exercises per day but during a less
intensive course there might be meetings of two or four hours per week. The duration of the course may
also vary from a few intensive days to several months. Usually the courses are not spread over the whole
semester. Therefore, the actual starting and ending date of studies depends on the field of study and the
courses taken.
Please note that the course information is subject to changes. Students should always contact the
international academic coordinator at the department for up-to-date information.
Course descriptions specify what a student must do in order to earn credits from a course. Also in most
cases, the course requirements can be seen in the course description. Courses may include for example
lectures and other guided instruction, written examinations, practical exercises, independent work,
seminars, a course diary, a term paper, an oral presentation, or even a combination of these. In most study
fields, courses form larger modules at three levels: basic or introductory studies, subject or intermediate
studies and advanced studies.
2
Further information about courses and course descriptions can be found in WebOodi information system
at: https://weboodi.uef.fi/weboodi -> In English -> Search -> Search for courses. It is also possible to
browse course catalogues by clicking on Course catalogues.
Schedules for the courses can also be obtained from WebOodi as soon as they have been confirmed by the
Faculty. Usually timetables are available in August. To search for timetables:
https://weboodi.uef.fi/weboodi -> In English -> Search for instruction and examinations. More detailed
information about courses can be also obtained from the contact person or teacher of the each course.
Members of the university staff often have allocated office hours during which the students can visit them,
or they can make an appointment either by phone or email.
Registration for courses and examinations require a username and password which students will get when
they start their studies at the University of Eastern Finland.
Information on teaching and learning methods is given in the course description for each course. Course
participants are generally assessed by written work in the form of reports, research essays or examinations.
However, in some cases, lectures are given only in Finnish, and you might have an option to pass the exam
by studying English course literature and completing the exam in English. NB! It is very important always to
attend the first meeting of each course to obtain all the relevant information, e.g. timetable and all the
work required for the completion of the course.
Course literature is often specified in the course description. This literature is usually available to be
borrowed from the University Library. There is also some literature that can only be read in the University
Library. The number of copies of books available at the library is limited, so you may have to make a
reservation. In some cases students may obtain assigned literature, e.g., some articles from the office of
the department organising the course. Some reading materials are distributed during courses. Questions
about specific course literature should be directed to the contact person/teacher of the course.
You can compose your personal timetable by using the on-line personal timetable tool LUKARI:
https://lukari.uef.fi/ Choose first the courses you wish to take, save the information and LUKARI will
compose your personal timetable. In the LUKARI timetable you will see if the courses you have chosen are
overlapping. If your courses are overlapping, please talk to the relevant teachers about it.
Some courses can also be completed as independent study. This means that reading assignments are given
in English and students complete e.g. an essay under the supervision of an instructor. In some study fields
independent studies can be completed by taking examinations on specified books. Some independent
study courses have multiple examination dates each semester or year, but others may be scheduled for
only one day a year. Confirm the schedule in WebOodi or from the International Academic Coordinator.
1.3.2 Examinations
There are no examination periods at the University of Eastern Finland. Examinations are scheduled
throughout the academic year and not just at the end of each academic period. An examination is usually
held at the end of each course. Students need to register for each exam in WebOodi well in advance during
the course-specific exam registration period. Students should always attend the first possible course exam
date.
Exams always begin precisely at the time announced (on the hour e.g. at 8:00, at 12:00), not quarter past
the hour like the lectures. If the student arrives late, s/he will be allowed to come in only during the first 30
minutes of the exam (e.g. by 8:30am, 12:30pm at the latest). However, even if you arrive late, you will have
3
to finish the exam by the same time as the others. The students will be allowed to leave the exam room 30
minutes after the beginning time at the earliest.
Remember to have your student number and ID (e.g. student card) with you when you are entering an
exam. Students can only bring their personal writing tools to the examination (unless otherwise instructed).
Please also note that students cannot take any materials out of the examination room after finishing the
exam (unless otherwise instructed). Most examinations require essay-type answers and have a specified
time limit. Questions about the examination policy of each specific course should be directed to the contact
person or instructor of the course in the beginning of the course.
In most cases it is possible to retake examinations if the students fails an exam, cannot participate in it, or
wishes to get a better grade. There are usually two or three opportunities to take the same examination
during the same academic year. However this practice may vary from department to department. NB! All
the examination opportunities are not usually offered during the same semester (e.g. if the first exam is
held during the autumn semester, the second examination opportunity may be offered during the spring
semester). The academic department is in charge of organising exams and each new examination requires
additional effort not only from the participant, but also from the course supervisor. Students are advised to
check with the International Academic Coordinator, if the department organises general examination dates
during the academic year, and to check which exams can be taken during these dates. Coordinators can
also be asked about the possibility to do an electronic exam.
1.3.3 Credits, Grades and Transcript of Academic Records
The Finnish national credit allocation and accumulation system is equivalent to the European Credit
Transfer System (ECTS). This means that credit points (opintopiste) are the same as those in the ECTS. A
total of 60 ECTS credit will measure the average workload of a full-time student during one academic year.
Work input for credits can consist of lectures, exercises, seminars, independent study and research, and
other assignments. The number of possible credits available for a course is announced beforehand and may
be divided into individual components. It may be possible for students to earn credits for some of the
course components without completing them all.
The official assessment scale of the University of Eastern Finland is from 1 to 5 (5 being the highest). Some
courses may be graded as Pass or Fail, in which case no numerical grade will be given. In a written
examination students normally have to obtain a minimum of 50% of the raw points to gain a Pass from a
course.
Grade
Definition
ECTS scale
5
4
3
2
1
Pass
Excellent
Very good
Good
Satisfactory
Sufficient
Course completed successfully
A
B
C
D
E
C
Normally grades are given according to how well you do on your exams or assignments, and each student is
assessed according to the goals of the course. The learning outcomes of a course are evaluated, but
students are not compared to each other on a statistical basis. When the grade has been given, it cannot be
4
changed anymore. If you want to discuss the principles of assessment, please do so at the beginning of the
course. Questions concerning credits should be directed to the contact person named in the course
description or to the instructor of the course at the first meeting.
The studies completed at the University of Eastern Finland will automatically appear in a Transcript of
Academic Records. The transcript includes information on the completed courses, ECTS credits, grades,
names of teachers and an explanation of the assessment scale above. Please note that non-completed and
failed courses do not show in the Transcript of Academic Records.
1.3.4 International Academic Coordinators
International academic coordinators are faculty members who deal with international issues at their
departments and are primary contacts in academic affairs and studies. Their contact details can be found
at: http://www.uef.fi/studies/international-academic-coordinators
E-mail addresses for the UEF staff members: firstname.lastname@uef.fi (instead of ä and ö, use a and o).
2 INTRODUCTORY COURSES
2.1 Preparatory Courses
Autumn semester 2015
1131003 Orientation for International Students
1 ECTS
8031004 University Computing Skills – lectures (not available for exchange students) 1 ECTS
8031005 University Computing Skills – exercises (not available for exchange students) 1 ECTS
8031003 University Study Skills (not available for exchange students)
1 ECTS
1130007 Career planning – international students seeking a job or traineeship in Finland2 ECTS
Spring semester 2016
1131003 Orientation for International Students
1 ECTS
1130007 Career planning – international students seeking a job or traineeship in Finland2 ECTS
All library users can independently search for information on various databases and other resources
available at the campus libraries.
Our library provides information retrieval courses for students of international master's degree
programmes. More information http://www.uef.fi/en/kirjasto/tiedonhaku-ja-tiedonhaun-opetus
2.2 Language Courses
The Language Centre is one of the non-faculty institutes of the university. For international students, the
Language Centre offers elementary and intermediate Finnish courses. It is possible for international
5
students to take part in courses in other languages as well. Courses at the Language Centre require
preregistration, and the number of students in groups is limited.
The Language Centre offers Finnish as a Second Language study modules intended mainly for registered
international students (exchange, degree and postgraduate students) and staff members of the University
of Eastern Finland. Other participants are welcome if there is room in the groups.
Survival Finnish is for short-term exchange students only (max. half a year). Otherwise students start with
Finnish 1.
Finnish studies consist of four courses focusing on different language skills. Finnish 1–4 form the core of
Finnish studies. Finnish 1 and Finnish 2 are elementary courses (A1-A2) where you will learn the basics.
Finnish 3 and Finnish 4 are intermediate courses (B1-B2) taking you further into the material covered in the
elementary course and giving you many skills needed in your studies and work. These courses comprise 14–
16 ECTS credits in total.
Preliminary information on Finnish courses offered in the academic year 2015–2016
Autumn semester 2015
8014300 Survival Finnish
8014301 Finnish 1
2 ECTS
4 ECTS
Spring semester 2016
8014300 Survival Finnish
8014302 Finnish 2
2 ECTS
4 ECTS
For more information, please see the Language Centre website: http://www.uef.fi/en/kielikeskus/etusivu
6