- The oldest and largest university in Finland
- Founded in 1640
- Repeatedly been ranked among world's top universities
- Regularly been ranked among Europe’s 10 to 15 best universities on worldwide ranking lists of research universities
- Only civilian institution to be awarded the Cross of Liberty in 1940
- Some 470 doctorates are completed annually and nearly 10 000 scientific articles or monographs are published yearly by the university’s researchers
- Helsinki is the captial city of Finland, and the country's largest city
- Was designated as the 2012 World Design Capital by the World Design Organization
Visa + Requirements|Travel advice + advisories
Partner university’s areas of study
- Courses taught in Finnish are offered, in addition to English and Swedish
- Students must have at least a B2 level to study in Finnish or Swedish (self-assess with: European Language Portfolio Global Scale)
Eligibility and Timing
Terms Offered
Who can go?
- Students from the Faculty of Arts, and the Faculty of Forestry
Term Dates
- Autumn semester: late August to December
- Spring semester: January to May
Credits
Summer programs
Course equivalency formula
- 2 ECTS credits = 1 UBC credit
Credit transfer process
The transfer credit process takes approximately 16 weeks following each submission deadline. You should allow sufficient time to meet important deadlines that may affect you (e.g. application for graduation, registration in courses that require prerequisites that you took on exchange, entry to a major/honours program, etc.)
For more information about Go Global transfer credit
Grading scheme
- The University of Helsinki uses a six-level grading scale from 0 to 5
- 5 = excellent or A
- 4 = very good or B
- 3 = good or C
- 2 = satisfactory or D
- 1 = passable or E
- 0 = fail or F or FX
- In addition to applying this grading scale, pass/fail grades may be used when grading practical training and practical skills courses
Passing grade
1 or ECourse Information
* Students who have special requirements or require academic accommodation should contact a Go Global advisor regarding their needs at least six weeks prior to the application deadline.
Type of Go Global Experiences
Course information and restrictions
- Courses taught in English can be found here
- Exchange students are required to choose the majority of their courses from one faculty
- Economics, Psychology, Communication, and Political Science have restrictions regarding acceptance (both for local and exchange students) - they only accept students who are majoring in the subject in question and have completed enough courses in the discipline in their home university prior to arrival
- Psychology majors should check which of the following is more suitable considering their study background: Social Psychology courses (Faculty of Social Sciences) or Psychology courses (Faculty of Behavioral Sciences)
- English Philology only accepts students majoring in English
- Other foreign languages: student should be a major or minor in the language at the home university
- These studies are considered case by case
- Economics courses in English offered on Master’s level only
Full course load information
- 60 ECTS credits in an academic year
- 30 ECTS credits per academic term
Transfer Credits And Equivalent Courses At This University
Check out the courses that previous students have transferred back to UBC in the last 5 years using our Course Search Tool. If you don't see a particular course you listed, it simply means you need to submit it as a new course request through the Transfer Credit Portal while on your Go Global experience. For more information, please visit the Go Global Transfer Credit webpage.
Exchange Tuition
- 15 credits or equivalent full-time program fee per term, paid to UBC
- Summer students attend through our exchange agreement and pay tuition to UBC based on the number of credits earned at the partner institution
- Some exceptions may apply
Scholarships and awards
The Go Global Award $1000
All students accepted to Go Global for Exchange, Research Abroad, or Study Abroad travel programs are automatically considered for this award. If you meet the eligibility criteria, you'll be notified of your award after you're accepted to Go Global and after you get nominated to apply to the partner university.
Additional awards
Students who are eligible for awards may receive one UBC or UBC-affiliated international learning award. If you're eligible, you are always offered the highest-value award. Unless stated otherwise, you need to meet eligibility criteria set out by the University Senate regarding awards.
Check out international learning awards and eligibility.
Information for US students:
If you are a student from the United States, please check the US Department of Education Lookup Tool to ensure that any partner institution you wish to attend on Exchange is Title IV ‘eligible’ for Federal Student Aid for the year in which you intend to study there. For institutions outside of the US, select “Foreign Country” from the “State” dropdown menu.
If you attend an eligible institution, then you may receive Title IV federal student loans while on Exchange.
If you attend an ineligible institution:
- You will not be eligible for US federal student loans,
- You may invalidate any US student aid you have previously received for your studies at UBC,
- You may be required to immediately begin repaying your US student loans, and
- You may not be eligible for any future US student aid for the remainder of your studies at UBC.
Types of accommodation available
Housing notes
- Applicants for student exchange to University of Helsinki should apply for Unihome or Hoas housing via the university's Mobility Online portal as part of their exchange application
- Students may also wish to make their own housing arrangements