University of Helsinki Scholarship 2027 (Finland) — 50% or 100% Tuition Waiver for Master's Study
Tuition only Master scholarship in Finland for International students 2027
Helsinki reduces rather than pays: excellent fee-liable applicants from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland can request a 50% or 100% tuition waiver on the same form they use for admission. Most awards cover half the fee, and no living grant is offered.
Eligibility
- Applicant from outside the EU, EEA and Switzerland liable for tuition fees
- Applying to an eligible English-taught international master's programme
- Excellent results in previous studies
- Meets residence-permit requirements
- Requests the waiver on the admission form
University of Helsinki Scholarship 2027: a tuition cut, not a living grant
Helsinki is refreshingly blunt about what it offers. This is a tuition waiver, the majority of awards cover half the fee, and there is no scholarship for living expenses. Applicants who read that correctly prepare differently from applicants who assume a Nordic university will fund their rent.
WHAT IT COVERS
Fee-liable applicants from outside the EU, the EEA and Switzerland can request a 50% or 100% tuition fee waiver, granted for two years subject to full-time progress. Tuition for English-taught master's programmes is €13,000, €15,000 or €18,000 per academic year depending on the programme, so the value of the award varies widely. Most awards cover 50%. The waiver does not fund accommodation, food, travel, insurance or the residence-permit financial requirement, all of which remain yours. A €100 national application fee applies to non-EU and non-EEA applicants and cannot be waived.
WHO CAN APPLY
You must be applying to an eligible international master's programme, be liable for tuition fees, meet the programme's academic entry requirements, meet the residence-permit requirements for Finland, and have obtained excellent results in previous studies. Doctoral programmes carry no tuition for this group, so the waiver does not apply to them.
Self-check questions:
- Am I actually liable for tuition at Helsinki, rather than exempt? - Is my chosen programme one of the English-taught international master's degrees? - Can I fund my living costs independently for at least the first year? - Can I produce the language evidence my specific programme asks for?
HOW TO APPLY
Find your programme through the degree finder, prepare the attachments the programme requires, and submit through Finland's national Studyinfo portal between 5 and 19 January 2027. On that same form, tick the box indicating whether you are requesting a 50% or 100% waiver. There is no separate scholarship portal and no scholarship essay. The programme conducts an academic assessment of both your admission file and your waiver request, and if you are awarded a waiver the result arrives with your official acceptance letter.
Materials checklist:
- Studyinfo master's application, with the waiver question answered - Bachelor's degree certificate and transcripts, with translations where needed - English language evidence required by the programme - Passport and residence-permit documentation - Receipt for the €100 application fee - Signed scholarship agreement after admission, if you win a waiver
COMMON MISTAKES TO AVOID
Missing the window is the most common failure, because it is only two weeks long and there is one intake a year. Assuming the waiver covers living costs is the second mistake, and it is the one that ends in a withdrawn offer when the residence-permit funds cannot be shown. Forgetting to accept the scholarship agreement is the third: the waiver does not start until the university processes that form, and Helsinki does not keep a reserve list. Treating the general English requirement as universal is the fourth — programme-specific thresholds differ.
DEADLINE
The application period for master's programmes starting in autumn 2027 runs from 5 to 19 January 2027. The programme page for your specific degree states the exact closing time.
TIPS TO WIN
Because admission and the waiver rise or fall together, the strength of your academic file is the whole competition. Choose programmes whose prerequisites your degree genuinely satisfies, and be prepared before January, since preparing reference letters and certified translations inside a fortnight is unrealistic. If you are budgeting, work out the remaining tuition after a 50% waiver before you decide the offer is affordable.
WHAT HAPPENS AFTER YOU SUBMIT
The programme assesses your admission file and your waiver request together, makes a proposal to the Scholarship Committee, and that committee decides. If you are awarded a waiver the result arrives inside your official acceptance letter, and the award only begins once you have signed and returned the scholarship agreement. Continuation into the second year is not automatic: you must complete at least 55 ECTS in year one, with exceptions for delay caused by the university, by illness or by a comparable reason. Helsinki does not operate a reserve list, so a declined waiver is not passed to the next candidate. Apply early in the window, because the period is only two weeks and it is the only intake for the year. If the waiver you receive covers half the fee, calculate the remaining tuition for both years before you commit, and check whether your programme offers departmental support that can be layered on top of the university award.
More scholarships for international students
https://www.oeacnetwork.com/scholarships
Related awards on this site
https://www.oeacnetwork.com/index.php?page=post&id=3
https://www.oeacnetwork.com/index.php?page=post&id=9
Official page
Not sure whether your file is strong enough for this programme? Talk to an OEAC advisor — our team helps students from Afghanistan, Pakistan, China and across the region prepare competitive scholarship applications, and the first consultation is free.
Last updated: 10 October 2026 Photo: Leonhard Lenz — CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Always confirm the deadline and eligibility on the official page before you apply. Scholarship dates change between rounds, and this listing is a summary — the provider's own page is the authoritative source. OEAC Network lists scholarships for free and is not an agent for any university or funding body.
