Voucher for internship

Internships supported by Tampere University (internship voucher)

The main goal of internships supported by Tampere University is to foster the growth of students’ professional expertise, their career planning and future employment as well as to promote interaction between education and the world of work. The primary goal of supported internships is to offer the students the opportunity to work in their field and to ensure that workplaces give them the supervision that they need. There are general university and degree programme-specific criteria for granting internship voucher.

Students are responsible for finding and organizing internship positions for themselves. One platform for searching internships is the University's JobTeaser-service. Please also see the tips that have been published in the Student's Guide.

Please note that the internship voucher is not paid to the student. In University-supported internships, the employer always pays the student a salary and bills the internship voucher from the University after the end of the internship period.

The internship voucher can not be used in unpaid internships. To get the internship voucher, the employer must pay a salary to the student for the entire internship.

See the following instructions: The criteria for university-supported internships | The amount of the internship voucher and required salary | How do I apply for the internship voucher? | Internship agreements I Internship voucher practices in 2024

The criteria for university-supported internships

University-supported internships must be supervised and suitable for the student’s field of study and goals. When applying for the internship voucher, you should always begin by having your degree programme approve the internship first.

Please also note that the student must be enrolled as present at Tampere University throughout the supported internship. An internship voucher cannot be applied for after the internship.

The general criteria

• The internship voucher is available to Tampere University’s degree students.
• The internship voucher can only be granted for internships that are included in the degree you are completing at Tampere University. You can get the support once during your studies.
• The internship voucher can be used for an internship that meets the duration and scope requirements set by your degree programme. The general criterion is that the internship must last for more than 2 months (= at least 9 weeks) as a full-time job.
• The internship voucher can also be obtained for part-time employment. However, the total duration of the part-time internship must meet the requirements set by the degree programme. For example, a 3-month internship can be done in 6 months if the internship is done in a part-time employment relationship (50% working time).
• During the internship period, the salary must correspond at least to the annually defined minimum salary that meets KELA’s work requirement (€1399/month in 2024). In part-time internships, the amount of required salary is proportional to working time. The internship voucher cannot be used for unpaid internships.
• The internship voucher can be granted to all employer sectors, including internships at Tampere University
• The internship support is only granted for internships in Finland and for internships abroad where the employer is Finnish (e.g. Finnish embassies abroad). There are specific forms of support for internships abroad (Erasmus grant).
• Internship voucher cannot be obtained for internships carried out at your own work.

The degree programme-specific criteria

Please note that your faculty or degree programme may have policies that supplement the general criteria of internship support listed below, meaning that you should also familiarise yourself with your degree programme's internship practices.

The amount of the internship voucher and required salary

• In 2024, the total amount of the internship voucher is €1.800 at the most. The voucher sum is always the same, it does not depend on the amount of salary the student is paid.
• Receiving the internship requires that the employer pays the student a salary in accordance with the collective agreement in the field. If there is no collective agreement in the field of the workplace, the salary should be at least as much as defined in Kela’s work requirement (€1399/month in 2024).

How do I apply for the internship voucher?

Apply for the internship voucher through your degree programme. Please check the information on the practices of internships in different degree programmes. The page is being updated, meaning that if you cannot find information on your degree programme, please contact your degree programme or faculty for more information.

Internship agreements

In the internships supported by the university, two agreements are made:

1. The student has a fixed-term employment relationship with the workplace. This means for example that the employer and student draft and sign an employment contract. During the internship, the student has the same rights and responsibilities as the other employees. For example, annual holiday days accrue during the internship.
2. In addition, the student’s faculty and the employer make a separate internship agreement for the entire internship period. The agreement details the supervisor at the workplace, the duration of the internship, the tasks, and matters related to billing the internship voucher.

Internship voucher practices in 2024

The practices of granting internship vouchers are being made more flexible and equal for students. Students can apply for and receive the internship voucher once during their studies if they need it, provided that the internship meets the general and degree programme-specific criteria for granting the voucher.