Faculty of Social Sciences is the most popular faculty among exchange students, although, in general, exchange students are rather evenly distributed across faculties. As has been the case in previous years, most of the exchange students come from France, Germany and Spain. International Master’s Degree Programmes are the most popular among students from China, Vietnam and Spain.

This autumn, a total of 156 new exchange students will take up studies at the University of Lapland. In addition, 18 new international students will aim for an International Master’s Degree and 9 new international students will pursue a doctoral degree.

The University of Lapland is an attractive study destination among international students due to its educational offering, safety and the surrounding natural environment. In the autumn of 2017, the University of Lapland participated in the International Student Barometer (ISB) survey. The study indicates that the most important selection criteria for the University of Lapland are educational offering, cost of studies, and safety. Moreover, the university’s geographic location is a significant pull factor contributing to the attractiveness of the university as a study destination.

For degree students who participated in the ISB survey, cost of studies emerged as a very important selection criterion. This autumn, a total of 10 new international students from outside the European Union and the European Economic Area —who are liable to pay tuition fees— will pursue a degree at the university. Tuition fee does not apply to EU citizens studying in higher education degree programmes in Finland. Doctoral programmes are tuition-free.

This week, new international students will participate in an orientation programme the purpose of which is to make them familiar with studying in Finland, the new surroundings, and the academic community. Coordinated by International Student Services, the orientation week has received a great deal of praise and the ISB survey indicates that our international students were worldwide the most satisfied with the reception they received at our university.

This year, special effort has been put in making the new international students familiar with the study practices of Finnish higher education, as well as facilitating their integration into the academic community. The orientation week is organised in close collaboration with the Student Union of the University of Lapland (LYY). A team of international tutors—local degree students who offer their help to new international students by giving them advice in practical academic matters and other practicalities, and by leading social activities on and off campus—is there to make international students feel at home. In addition, the popular Finnish Friend Programme continues building bridges between cultures.

Further information:

Sanna Konola,
Advisor, International Services
sanna.konola@ulapland.fi, +358 40 484 4195