FAQ
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Application
First familiarize yourself with the course selection and choose one primary course you´d most like to attend and if possible, a secondary course you could take if you´re not accepted to the primary course.
If you´re choosing on-site courses, check out the summer school practical matters regarding housing, visa etc. Make sure you´ll be able to come to Finland for the contact teaching period 7-18 August.
After choosing the course and tentatively planning your stay you can apply by filling out the application form in Konsta system. Read more about the application process.
The application deadline is 15 April 2023. We cannot accept late applications.
You will get a confirmation e-mail from the summer school staff by the end of May 2023. You will also be notified if you are not chosen for the summer school.
You can take maximum of two online courses or one online course and one on-site course. It is not possible to take two on-site courses due to the intensive on-site period in August.
To sign-up to multiple courses you have to send in the application form twice.
You need to be 18 years old or older to participate in the summer school. You must have completed high school or equivalent degree by the time the course starts. Please check details and prerequisites for each course.
Costs
There is no actual participation fee. The course fee is 75€ for on-site courses and 50€ for online courses.
The voluntary social programme has an additional fee, it costs max. 100 euros.
In addition to the course fee (and the social programme) you have to pay for accommodation and living in Turku if you have chosen a contact teaching course. Read more about housing and living costs in Turku.
The course fee includes the teaching, grading and participation to the course. Accommodation, living costs or social programme are not included.
After getting a confirmation e-mail sent from the summer school staff by the end of May 2023, you´ll get the course fee payment information from the institution that organizes your course. This information may come several days later than the confirmation e-mail and it is sent from a different e-mail address. Pay the course fee according to the information sent to you.
It may be possible for some hosting institutions to do payment via bank transfer. Contact summerschool@utu.fi for details. It is not possible to pay with cash.
Turku Åbo Summer School does not offer any scholarships.
Courses
It depends on the course whether it has requirements for previous studies. The prerequisities are stated in the course descriptions.
There are courses that are organized completely online. You can take part in these courses from home.
Most of the courses have a contact teaching period 7-18 August 2023. If you choose one of these courses, you have to be physically in Turku at least 7-18 August 2023. It is not possible to participate in the contact teaching period online.
On-site courses may have some work outside the contact teaching period that you can do anywhere.
Whether the course is organized online or on-site is stated in the course description.
You will receive a certificate of completing the course and credits from the hosting institution after the summer school.
Practicalities
Turku Åbo Summer School cannot arrange housing for the participants. We have collected some special accommodation offers and other tips for affordable housing here.
There is no on-campus accommodation in Turku. Student housing is organized by Student Village Foundation (TYS) that unfortunately cannot offer housing for summer school students.
Some non-EU/EEA citizens need a visa to enter Finland. You can find a list of those countries and further information about the entry requirements on the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland website.
If you need an official Letter of Acceptance for your visa application, you may ask it from us by e-mail on summerschool@utu.fi after your course registration and payment has been completed. Unfortunately, this is the only help we can offer in the visa application process.
Taking part in the Orientation Day is highly recommendable but not mandatory for on-site course students. The first social programme activities are also organized during the weekend before contact teaching period so take that into account when tentatively planning your stay.
On-site classes are held Mon 7.8. – Thu 18.8.2023. The orientation is on Fri 4.8.2023 and the social programme starts then.
You will most likely arrive to Helsinki-Vantaa airport. It takes about 2 hours to Turku via bus or train.
Cancellation
You can always cancel your participation. Whether you get the money back or not depends on when you cancel. Read more about our cancellation and refund policy.
Other
You do not need to know Finnish to participate in the Summer School. The language of instruction is English. Finland has two official languages, Finnish and Swedish, but English is widely used both on and off campus.
Higher education students in Turku may apply to become Event Tutors. We will post more about the application process in our social media around Spring. Event Tutors participate in the social programme events.
Please contact the summer school by email if you have questions or requests for accessibility or special needs.