Educational Sciences, Master of Arts (Education) (2 yrs), autumn 2026

Scope of studies

120 ECTS credits

Career titles

educational administrator

educational consultant

educational coordinator

educational developer

educational planner

Tuition fee for non-EU/EEA citizens

12 000 €

Scholarship

04000 €

Language of instruction

English

Teaching time

Day time teaching

Planned duration

2 years

Form of teaching

Contact teaching

Education description

The objective of the Master’s Degree Programme in Educational Sciences is to prepare highly competent and internationally oriented educators to raise the quality of education in the diversifying contexts of the globalised world. The programme offers both theoretical and practical skills across a wide selection of topics in the field of education, ranging from early childhood education to learning in old age. During the programme, students will gain a broad understanding of the field of education, including awareness of international issues in education. The programme also offers a unique opportunity to get first-hand experience on the Finnish education system and students can reflect it to their own experiences and the global contexts. Students will also have the opportunity to specialise in areas of education which they find the most relevant and interesting. The areas of specialisation are Educational Leadership, Early Childhood Education, Global and Sustainable Education, Language and Education, Special Education, and Study and Career Guidance.

The studies in the programme include aspects of intercultural competence and international education policies and practices. Research studies consist of academic skills, research methods and master’s thesis. Students also focus on their chosen specialisation area where they acquire deeper understanding of specific topics. Collaboration and discussion between students focusing on different specialisation areas deepen their understanding of the different educational phenomena and broaden their multi-professional and multidisciplinary knowledge and know-how. Students will acquire scientific expertise in the field of education and will be able to work with theories and analyse and develop educational practices. The master’s degree creates a foundation for producing scientific knowledge and applying scientific methods in practice in the field of education. The programme prepares experts into various sectors of education in national and international contexts: educational planning, administration, consultancy, coordination, development, teaching and research.

Educational research and instruction are implemented in connection with high level international networks, emphasising social change and societal impact. In our international cooperation, as in all activities, the focus is on the future – education, learning and teaching in the rapidly changing, global society. Master’s Degree Programme in Educational Sciences is an international programme with a global application process. Our students represent several countries from different continents. The cultural diversity of this multinational learning community is strongly emphasised all through the programme. Students bring their own expertise to the group and create a diverse learning environment where different views are shared and valued.

Internship is an optional part of the programme where students have a possibility to familiarise themselves with an educational institution either in Finland or abroad. Visiting scholars from different countries visit our Faculty regularly and international seminars are organised yearly.

Research and instruction in the field of education focus on lifelong learning, ranging from early childhood education to adult education. Research activities provide a sustainable basis for the continuous development of our internationally recognised educational system. Our research is located particularly within the following core field of the University of Jyväskylä: learning, teaching and interaction.

Educational research in the Faculty of Education and Psychology and the Finnish Institute for Educational Research can be divided into five domains of research strength:

Processes of learning, teaching and guidance
Professional identities, career paths and competences in the changing work life
Wellbeing, participation and contexts of growth of children and young people
Special topics of learning and participation
Education of the future and societal change

Students are required to conduct a small scale research and write a master’s thesis supervised by professors and senior lecturers. The thesis topics are related to the research areas of the Faculty of Education and Psychology. The thesis process is supported by research method courses, research seminars and individual supervision.

A 1,500 € early bird discount from the first year is offered to those who accept their study place within 14 days and pay the annual tuition fee by the deadline. You are not required to pay tuition fees if you are a citizen of an EU/EEA country or Switzerland or hold a specific type of residence permit in Finland. For more information, please see: Tuition fees and scholarships (jyu.fi).

Application options

Educational Sciences, Master of Arts (Education) (2 yrs)

Application starts

7.1.2026 08:00

Application ends

21.1.2026 15:00

Application procedure

Joint application

Places of study

Prior education

University Bachelor's degree

University of applied sciences Bachelor's degree

University of applied sciences Master's degree

Foreign Master's degree

Foreign Bachelor's degree

University Master's degree

Admission criteria

Eligibility criteria

These admission criteria are valid for student selections made in 2026. The faculty reserves the right to make changes between application rounds as necessary. The number of study seats is decided annually and will be announced on Studyinfo before the application period begins.

To be eligible, you must have a suitable higher education degree and demonstrate adequate English proficiency, as described below.

1. A higher education degree that fulfils the following requirements:

As a rule, the degree must give eligibility for master’s-level degree studies in the awarding country. If the degree is significantly less extensive than a Finnish bachelor’s degree (comprising a minimum of 180 ECTS credits and three years of full-time study), it may not provide eligibility. If your degree qualifies for doctoral-level studies, you should seek admission to a doctoral programme instead.

The higher education institution awarding the degree must be officially recognised in the national education system, i.e., listed as a degree-granting higher education institution by the country where it is located or by a relevant international organisation (such as UNESCO).

The degree can be from a field other than education.

If the degree is incomplete at the time of application, you may be admitted on a conditional basis. In this case, you must graduate and submit officially certified copies of the final educational documents so that they are received by the University by the specified deadline. The deadline will be posted on the University’s website before the application period begins.

You cannot be admitted if you currently hold a study right for this master’s programme at the University of Jyväskylä.

2. English proficiency demonstrated as follows:

Each applicant must demonstrate they possess the necessary English language profiency. Please visit the following web page for further information: Master's applicants: How to prove your English skills (jyu.fi).

We do not grant waivers for the language skill requirement. In case you fail to prove your proficiency in one of the pre-given ways, your application will be rejected.

Admissions procedure

Online application, required attachments and interview

The application process is divided into two phases: 1) submitting an online application and the required attachments, and 2) participating in an online interview and completing a written assignment (if applicable).

Please note that if you use generative artificial intelligence (AI) to aid your application, you must indicate which model (e.g., ChatGPT) you have used and in what way through proper citations (written assignments) or oral communication (video assignments). Citations are not required if you use AI solely for ideation, proofreading, stylisation or similar purposes.

Claiming AI-generated content as your own without acknowledging it is considered plagiarism. If we detect that a supporting document or assignment has been generated by AI, either wholly or in part, without proper acknowledgement, it will be given zero points.

Phase 1: Application and required attachments

First, you must submit your application on Studyinfo along with the necessary attachments by the given deadlines. If your application is deemed eligible, it will be evaluated according to the criteria listed below. Ineligible applications will not be processed further after they have been found not to meet the eligibility criteria/documentary requirements.

Eligible applications will be ranked based on research interests and a motivation video. You must score a minimum of 2.5 points for your research interests to have your motivation video evaluated. To qualify for the next phase, you must score a total minimum of 5 points for your research interests and motivation video, and at least 2.5 points for each.

Category	Points
Research interests	0–4
Motivation video	0–4
Total maximum points	8

Research interests will be evaluated in relation to:

suitability of the research focus to the faculty’s research profile
argumentation of the significance of the research interest(s)
description of suitable research approach and possible methods to conduct this research
coherence of the writing

Motivation video will be evaluated in relation to your:

motivation for the field of education
motivation for applying particularly for this programme
own professional development through the programme
future goals

Based on this preselection, approximately three- to fourfold of highest scoring applicants in relation to the study seats will be invited to an online interview and to complete a written assignment. If two or more applicants have equal points from Phase 1, the order will be determined as follows: 1) Research interests 2) Motivation video. If there is still no difference, the order will be raffled. A notification of the result of this phase and detailed instructions will be sent via email to those applicants selected for Phase 2.

Phase 2: Online interview and written assignment

After the first phase, selected applicants are invited to an online interview and to complete a written assignment immediately after the interview. The written assignment will be carried out online in a given time frame. You are responsible for providing yourself with the space, time, and equipment to enable participation in the interview and in the written assignment. More detailed instructions will be provided in the interview invitation.

The interview will take ca. 15–20 minutes per applicant. The focus will be on your motivation video and research interests. More detailed instructions will be provided in the interview invitation.

The academic staff of the programme will give scores in Phase 2 according to the following criteria.

Category	Points
Interview: Knowledge of the field of study	0–4
Interview: Communication and interaction	0–4
Interview: Interest and motivation	0-4
Written assignment: academic quality and written communication	0-4
Total maximum points	16

Final selection
Your scores from Phases 1 and 2 are added together to form your final admission score. You must score at least half of the maximum points of Phase 2 and receive at least 1 point from each Phase 2 category to be considered for admission.

Applicants will be ranked according to their admission scores, and the highest-scoring applicants, in accordance with the number of available study seats, will be admitted. If two or more applicants are tied for the last study place, all of them will be accepted. The faculty may also, at their discretion, admit more applicants than there are study places to ensure there will be enough students to start their studies in the programme. There are no arrangements for clearing, i.e., unaccepted study seats will not be reallocated.

All applicants will be notified of the results via email by the date given on the University’s website. If your application was rejected, you will be informed of the policy and the deadline for requesting rectification of the admission decision.

More information about the application process

For more information on the admission round and instructions for applying for JYU master’s programmes and scholarships, please see our websites.

Attachments

The required application attachments are listed below. Some attachments may be optional or apply only to some applicant groups. If a document is not listed below, it will not be considered.

If a mandatory attachment is not submitted following the instructions, your application will be deemed ineligible and not processed further. More detailed instructions will be published on the University’s website before the application period begins. The instructions may change between application rounds, and you must make sure to comply with the requirements for the correct round.

1. Copy of an official transcript of records of a higher education degree

A transcript of records (mark sheet) is a list of courses and study attainments a student has completed at an educational institution.

2. Official translation of the transcript into English, Finnish, or Swedish (if needed)

If the official transcript of records is issued in a language other than English, Finnish, or Swedish, an official translation into one of these languages is required in addition to the original language version.

3. Copy of a degree certificate of a higher education degree

If the degree used for proving your eligibility is unfinished at the time of application, a degree certificate is not required in the application phase.

4. Official translation of the degree certificate into English, Finnish, or Swedish (if needed)

If the degree certificate is issued in a language other than English, Finnish, or Swedish, an official translation into one of these languages is required in addition to the original language version.

5. Proof of English language proficiency

The required document is either a language test certificate or an educational document, depending on how you prove your language skills. See Eligibility for the approved methods.

If an educational document is issued in a language other than English, Finnish, or Swedish, an official translation into one of these languages is required in addition to the original language version.

6. Copy of a valid passport (if needed)

A copy of the identification pages of a valid passport with your (the applicant’s) name, date of birth, and nationality. If you do not hold a valid passport, another official identification document (such as a personal identity card or driving licence) stating the same information is accepted. If you are a Finnish citizen, this document is not required, since your nationality can be verified from a national database.

7. Copy of a residence permit card (if applicable)

A copy of both sides of the residence permit card. The document is required only if you, the applicant, hold one of the following: a valid residence permit in Finland of type A (that is not based on studies), P, P-EU, EU Blue Card, or a certificate of the permanent right of residence of a UK citizen in Finland, or residence card for a family member of an EU or UK citizen residing in Finland.

8. Research interests

Familiarise yourself with the research profile and projects of the Faculty of Education and Psychology. Based on these, write about which of these research areas interest you, and justify your interests. Why is this area of research important? What kind of research would you conduct? Please note that this plan is only a proposal, and does not constitute a final plan for your Master’s thesis. The maximum length of the research interests is one page (A4 size) using Times New Roman and font size 12 pt. If the document exceeds one page, the exceeding part will not be considered. Research interests must be written in English.

9. Motivation video

Please cover the following questions:

Describe your previous studies, activities, and commitment in relation to the field of education.
What motivates and interests you in the contents of the programme and why?
How do you expect to develop in the programme? What skills and knowledge do you think you would need to study in this programme and what do you expect to gain from the programme?
What kind of future goals do you have for your career after graduation, in connection to the programme?

Technical instructions for the video:

The length of the motivation video is 2–3 minutes and the file must not exceed 1.0 GB in size. If the video length exceeds 3 min. the exceeding part will not be considered.
Format of the video must be either mp4 or mov.
The applicant must be recognizable on the video.
Audio quality must be high enough so that the speech of the applicant is comprehensible.
The language of the video must be English.

It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that their motivation video complies with the given technical instructions.

Attachment is uploaded on the application form

Must be submitted by
Jan. 28, 2026 at 03:00 PM UTC+2

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Educational Sciences, Master of Arts (Education) (2 yrs), autumn 2026

Education description

Structure of studies

Further study opportunities

Career opportunities

Internationalisation

Research focus

Thesis

Scholarship

Tuition fees

Contact persons

Application options

Educational Sciences, Master of Arts (Education) (2 yrs)

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Development, Education and International Cooperation, Master of Social Sciences or Master of Arts (Education) (2 yrs), autumn 2026