Applying to TAMK Master's degrees

To be eligible for a Master’s degree studies in a university of applied sciences, the applicant must have completed an suitable Bachelor’s degree or another suitable higher education degree and have a minimum of two years' (24 months) of subsequent work experience from the relevant field after completing the degree.

Educational requirements

Each Master’s degree determines the educational requirements separately and the details are described in the admissions requirements.

Applicants must complete the degree used in the application procedure in time for a copy of the final degree certificate to arrive at TAMK Admissions by the deadline (see Submitting application documents).  

Work experience requirements

To be eligible, applicants must have 24 months (two years) of relevant work experience accumulated after the date of graduation (Bachelor’s/higher education degree) and no later than 31 July 2025.

As a relevant field is regarded both the field being applied to and the field of the previous higher education degree.  

TAMK also accepts work experience obtained after the completion of a post-secondary or higher vocational level diploma in Finland (in Finnish opisto- tai korkea-asteen tutkinto) prior to completing the higher education degree. At least two years of work experience obtained in a relevant field is still required.

Entrepreneurship will be accepted as work experience if the applicant can produce a certificate attesting that they are or have been covered by the statutory YEL or MYEL pension scheme. (YEL = statutory pension scheme for entrepreneurs; MYEL = statutory pension scheme for farmers, forest estate owners, fishers and reindeer herders and their family members). Entrepreneurship abroad should be substantiated with comparable official documents.

Work experience is given in full months. When converting part-time work (less than 35 hours per week) into its full-time equivalent, 150 hours or 20 working days lasting at least 7 hours per day correspond to one month of work. Work experience does not have to be continuous or obtained with the same employer. The amount of work experience points awarded for simultaneous employment relationships may not exceed the amount awarded for full-time employment.

Military or non-military national service, women’s voluntary military service, unpaid internships or child-care leave will not be counted towards work experience.

Asylum seekers and refugees

A person with refugee status *) or an asylum seeker may apply and be accepted to study in the programmes just as any other eligible citizen of Finland or any other country.

If the applicant is a refugee, in a position comparable to a refugee **) or an asylum seeker and they do not have documents in proof of their prior qualification, the higher education institution may invite the applicant to participate in an entrance examination or, if necessary, submit the application to academic evaluation. Based on information requested from the applicant, the higher education institution offering the programme in question will decide if the information on the prior qualification is sufficient.

The applicant must have an official decision attesting to his or her refugee status (a decision to grant asylum or a residence permit issued on the basis of need for protection). The applicant must submit a copy of this decision to the admissions office of each higher education institution to which he or she is applying by the deadline specified in advance (see Submitting application documents). While the customer service team of higher education institutions’ joint application system recommends that also alien’s passports marked ‘identity not verified’ be accepted, the UAS in question makes its own decision about accepting this document. 

In order to clarify their status, an asylum seeker to whom a decision has not yet been issued may present a photo ID issued by the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri), for example at an entrance examination, and should the higher education institution so require, also a certificate issued by the Finnish Immigration Service for a small administrative fee stating that the applicant is legally resident in Finland while their case is being processed, or until a legally valid decision has been made.

*) with refugee status, i.e. has been granted asylum = The person is living outside their home country or permanent country of residence because they have substantial grounds for fearing persecution. The reason for the persecution must be origin, religion, nationality, belonging to a certain social group or political opinion. An additional requirement is that, because of their fears, the person is unwilling to rely on the protection of the country in question. 

**) a person whose status is comparable to a refugee is a person provided with subsidiary protection = the person faces a risk of being subjected to the death penalty, execution, torture or other inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in their home country or country of former habitual residence. A permit may also be issued if the person is unable to return to their home country or country of former habitual residence without being exposed to serious and individual threat as a result of an armed conflict in the country concerned.

Forgery or misuse of a document may lead to criminal liability and will be reported to the police.

Applicants who have completed their higher education degree outside of Finland must provide an English language proficiency certificate (see exceptions below).

Applicants who do not have to provide the English language proficiency certificate:

• Applicants who have completed higher education degree in Australia, Canada, the European Union or EEA, New Zealand, Switzerland, United Kingdom, or the United States

Only the tests listed below are accepted with no exceptions:

• IELTS Academic: a minimum total score of 6.0 (Test sections: Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking)
• TOEFL Academic (iBT): a minimum total score of 60 (Test sections: Reading, Listening, Speaking, and Writing)
• Pearson PTE Academic: a minimum total score of 55 (Test sections: Speaking and Writing, Reading, and Listening)
• Cambridge English Scale Score: a minimum total score of 169 (Test sections: Reading and Use of English, Writing, Listening, and Speaking)

Test results are valid for two years. The test result must be valid at least until 28 February 2025. If possible, the applicant should choose TAMK University of Applied Sciences as the recipient of the results. The applicant must also attach a scanned/electric copy of the test result to the application for verification purposes and notify their unique identifier. 

Degree certificates

Submit a copy of the final certificate and transcript of records used as the basis for the application on the application form by the deadline (see Submitting application documents). If the documents are in other language than Finnish, Swedish or English, submit a translation of the certificate in Finnish, Swedish or English. 

Translation must be made by an official (authorised) translator, bearing the translator’s name, signature and stamp, along with the copy of the original certificate. Translations do not need to be notarised by a Finnish embassy or cosulate abroad.

Work certificates

Work experience must be verified with a work certificate or reference provided by the employer. The document must be given after employment, so appointment letters or contracts made before employment cannot be considered. A work certificate must indicate details such as the exact start and end dates of employment, the employer’s contact information, work duties, as well as working hours for part-time work. If the employment continues, the applicant should request a temporary work certificate from the employer. In addition, the applicant must submit a Curriculum Vitae (CV) / Resume.

If an original employment certificate is in a language other than Finnish, Swedish or English, the applicant must submit a copy of the certificate translated into Finnish, Swedish or English by an official (authorised) translator, bearing the translator’s name, signature and stamp, along with the copy of the original certificate.  Copies must be uploaded by the deadline (see Submitting application documents).

Degree and employment certificates and any possible other certificates will be checked for those admitted as students. The university of applied sciences may cancel admission if an applicant fails to submit qualification certificates/certificates of employment by the specified deadline, or if an applicant has provided false information.  

Individual arrangements are practical arrangements (i.e., providing additional time) to facilitate the entrance examination in case of special needs. Individual arrangements are in place to provide equity of treatment among applicants.

Read more about individual arrangements

Confirm the offered study place in time

Admitted applicants must confirm their study place by 11 July 2024 at 3 pm (UTC+3) by logging into Studyinfo.fi portal. If the confirmation has not been done by the deadline, the applicant will lose the offered study place.

Non-EU/EEA students: To qualify for the Early Bird -scholarship discount you must accept the offered study place and pay the discounted tuition fee for the full year by 31 May!

Confirmation of the study place is binding and cannot be altered or cancelled.

If you are admitted later from the waiting list, you have 7 days to confirm your study place. Please read your email regularly in order to receive the possible admittance letter in time.

One study place

You can only accept one study place among Bachelor's/Master's degrees in Finland starting during the same academic semester (1 Aug-31 Dec/1 Jan-31 Jul). Even if you register as absent or quit your studies, you cannot accept another study place during the same academic semester.

Enroll for studies

When accepting the study place, you also have to register as present or absent for your studies at TAMK on the Studyinfo portal.

First-year students can only register as absent on statutory grounds (source: Universities of Applied Sciences Act 325/2015 § 29-30):

1. to complete Finnish national service in accordance with the Conscription Act (1438/2007), Non-Military Service Act (1446/2007), or Act on Voluntary Military Service for Women (194/1995); Supporting document to be sent to admissions.tamk [at] tuni.fi (admissions[dot]tamk[at]tuni[dot]fi) : The Finnish assignment to service to demonstrate that the service will be completed during the academic year.
2. if on maternity, paternity or parental leave; Supporting document to be sent to admissions.tamk [at] tuni.fi (admissions[dot]tamk[at]tuni[dot]fi) : Kela’s certificate of maternity, paternity or parental allowance period or, if one is not yet available, a medical certificate of the pregnancy. Paternity leave can only be demonstrated with Kela’s certificate. Equivalent certificates of statutory parental leaves given by foreign authorities are also accepted.
3. if unable to begin the studies due to an illness or disability. Supporting document to be sent to admissions.tamk [at] tuni.fi (admissions[dot]tamk[at]tuni[dot]fi) : The Finnish sickness allowance decision or, if not available, a medical certificate. The illness or disability as well as the fact that it prevents beginning the studies on 1 August 2022 has to be stated on the medical certificate. Sufficient documentation of obstacles caused by practical arrangements related to the illness or disability, for example a student housing foundation’s certificate of queuing for a special needs flat. The student’s personal notification is not enough. It also has to be demonstrated how the issue will be handled. Disability is a permanent state and thus it is not enough to refer to the disability. There has to be temporary disability-related grounds for absence.

If you register as absent in your first academic year, but fail to deliver sufficient clarification regarding the grounds for your absence within the deadline, you will lose your right to study.

If you believe that there has been a mistake in the student selection or the set admission criteria have not been applied correctly, you can submit a written request for rectification of the student selection decision addressed to TAMK Board of Examiners within 14 days after the student selection results have been published. Always check the admission criteria of the degree first and contact TAMK Admissions before writing the request. If the issue cannot be solved by the admissions officials, you are advised to submit a written request for rectification.

If you have any questions about the evaluation of your pre-task or entrance exam, you can find feedback times and contact persons here.

Form and content of request for an administrative review

The document requesting an administrative review shall indicate the particular decision for which the review is requested, the amendment that is being sought in the review requested and the grounds for requesting the review. (Administrative Procedure Act, Section 49d)

The admissions services of TAMK are here to help you through the admission process. Do not hesitate to reach out to us!