Doctoral Programme in Social and Cultural Encounters (SCE)

The SCE is a joint doctoral programme of the Philosophical Faculty and the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies. At the SCE, you can complete the following doctoral degrees: Doctor of Philosophy, Doctor of Theology, Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology, Doctor of Philosophy in Education or Doctor of Social Sciences. The choice of the target degree and the major subject depends on your academic background and the topic of your dissertation.

Major subjects and degrees in the Humanities

• Finnish language, English Language and Culture, English Language and Translation, Swedish, German Language and Culture, German Language and Translation, Russian Language and Culture, Russian Language and Translation, Linguistics, Translation Studies
• Literature, Folklore Studies, Cultural Studies (specialisation in Etnomusicology, Cultural Anthropology, Media Culture and Communication, Gender Studies, Sociology of Arts)
• Doctor of Philosophy

Major subjects and degrees in Theology

• Biblical Studies, Church History, Practical Theology, Systematic Theology, Religious Education, Church Music, Systematic Theology and Patristics, Comparative Religion
• Doctor of Theology or Doctor of Philosophy

Psychology

• Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology or Doctor of Philosophy

Career Counselling

• Doctor of Philosophy in Education or Doctor of of Philosophy

Major subjects and degrees in the Social Sciences

• Sociology, Social Policy, Social Psychology, Social Pedagogy, Social Work
• Doctor of Social Sciences or Doctor of Philosophy

Major subjects and degrees in Geographical and Historical Studies

• Environmental Policy, History, Human Geography
• Doctor of Social Sciences or Doctor of Philosophy

Major subjects and degrees in Business Studies

• Innovation Management, International Business and Sales Management, Service Management, Accounting and Finance, Business and Law
• Doctor of Science or Doctor of Philosophy

Major subjects and degrees in Law

• Financial law, European law, Administrative law, International law, Commercial law, Legislative studies, Family and inheritance law, Procedural law, Criminal law, Civil law, Social welfare law, Labour law, Constitutional law, General jurisprudential studies, Environmental law
• Doctor of Law or Doctor of Philosophy

The selection of the doctoral students is based on the admission criteria of the SCE:

1. Eligible applicants for doctoral studies leading to a doctoral degree must have successfully completed a relevant Master’s degree awarded by a Finnish university or a Finnish university of applied sciences or a relevant applicable study programme abroad. The applicant must have completed at least 60 ECTS credits in the major subject or other applicable subject of the doctoral degree.

2. Eligible applicants for doctoral studies must have been awarded a grade corresponding to "good" (cum laude approbatur, 3/5) or higher for their Master’s thesis or a corresponding scientific final paper.
If the applicant’s grade is lower than required or if their earlier degree does not include a scientific thesis, the applicant must present additional academic merits in support of their admission.

3. Eligible applicants for doctoral studies must have completed advanced studies, achieving a grade of "good" (3/5) or higher in the major subject of their Master's or other previous degree.

4. Eligible applicants for doctoral studies must produce a high-quality research plan, that is suitable for the research profile of the doctoral programme. The research plan is drawn up in accordance with the guidelines of the doctoral programme and in collaboration with the applicant’s prospective supervisors.

5. An eligible applicant for doctoral studies must have two supervisors, both of which must hold a doctoral degree, who have committed to oversee the doctoral dissertation of the applicant.
The prospective supervisors must work at the University of Eastern Finland, either in the Philosophical Faculty or in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies. For persons applying for the right to pursue doctoral studies in the Philosophical Faculty, one of the supervisors has to be a professor or an associate professor. For persons applying for the right to pursue doctoral studies in the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies, one of the supervisors has to be a professor, associate professor, docent or a person with equivalent qualifications.

6. Eligible applicants for doctoral studies must have sufficient English skills in order to complete the doctoral studies.
The applicant can verify her/his English skills with an attachment to the application. These attachments must include a degree diploma, transcript of studies and a Diploma Supplement if the applicant has:

• English as foreign language included in at least a Bachelor-level degree conducted in a Nordic country (Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) or in an EU/EEA country;
• At least 20 ECTS of university-level studies in the subject of English Studies in a Nordic or an EU/EEA country;
• Master's thesis written in English when Master's degree is completed in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country;
• Bachelor's or Master's degree completed in English language in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country or Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States;
• Doctoral Degree completed in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country or Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States;
• Secondary education and final examination completed in English (for example International Baccalaureate) in a Nordic country or in an EU/EEA country or Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom or the United States.

In other case, the applicant is to prove her/his language skills in English with an English language test:

• TOEFL paper-based: Total score 600 and Writing 4.0;
• TOEFL Internet-based and TOEFL iBT® Home Edition: Total Score 100 and Writing 22;
• IELTS (Academic) and IELTS Indicator: Overall Score 6.5 and Writing 5.5;
• PTE Academic (Pearson Test of English), min. 59 points;
• C1 Advanced (CAE), pass levels A, B or C / C2 Proficiency (CPE), pass levels A, B, C or level C1 Certificate;
• National Certificate of Language Proficiency (YKI). Skills level 5 or 6 in the reading comprehension, writing and speaking subtests.

For more information on the tests, please contact the language testing organizations.

Please note that a written statement by the applicant, prospective supervisor, English teacher, etc., concerning the applicant's English skills is not an acceptable way to prove language skills.

The admission criteria and the application guidelines are described in detail in the StudyInfo admissions portal. Please read all the instructions on applying carefully; neglecting the instructions may lead to your application being rejected.

If you have questions, please contact the coordinator of SCE in good time before submitting your application.

When applying for doctoral studies, a research plan must be enclosed with the application. The research plan is the most important part of your application. Prepare the research plan carefully, because it measures your skills and competencies for the doctoral education. The research plan is an independent document by the applicant, but the persons who have agreed to be your supervisors will give you advice. Please contact supervisors well in advance so that they will have proper time to read your proposal. The actual supervision will start if you are admitted to the University.

The objective of the research plan is to prove that the proposed research is scholarly interesting, feasible and that the applicant in question has the necessary abilities to carry out the planned research project.

The research plan must include the following information:

1. Title of the research.
2. A concise description of the research design. Present the research problem/task, methods of data collection and analysis and theoretical premise of your research.
3. Background, aims and objectives. Describe how your research is linked to previous research, describe the scientific and societal impact of your research, present clearly defined research question(s).
4. Research methods and materials. Describe what kind of research material/ data will be collected and how; describe how the material is handled and used; describe the analysis method.
5. Research ethics. Provide information on the ethical issues that concern the chosen topic, methods and material.
6. Schedule and funding plan. Outline the implementation schedule of your research project; present a publication plan (if an article-based thesis); present the funding plan and funding sources of the research.

Length of the research plan is 10 pages.

The right to pursue doctoral studies does not include funding or a contract of employment or teaching tasks at the University. However, full-time doctoral students need funding to cover their costs of living and potential research costs (travel costs, research material etc.). Funding options should be discussed with the supervisor already when planning to apply for a doctoral study right and creating a research plan.

Doctoral studies can be funded for example by a scholarship, by working as a researcher in a research project, by working as a doctoral candidate at the University of Eastern Finland (doctoral student position), or by studying part-time while at work. Doctoral students apply for funding themselves.

Read more about funding options of doctoral studies on Kamu Student handbook.