Master's Degree Programme in Early Language Education for Intercultural Communication

The ELEIC programme offers a unique balance between theory and practice. It was designed with the aim to allow each and every student to be exposed to a wide range of learning environments, to get into real contact with children, parents, teachers, teacher educators and researchers from all around Joensuu and beyond. This contact can be through teaching, research, visits and observations.

The tasks you get to partake in will harness new competence, you will team teach during two periods of teaching practice, work with international peers, conduct research interviews, learn how to become a teacher-researcher, and stretch your educational muscles both as a teacher and as a learner. All while being immersed in an intercultural environment yourself with course mates from all over the world, each with their own distinct perspective.

An added value is that you will have the independence and agency to build your own personal study plan. In addition to the obligatory courses, you get to choose from all that UEF has to offer, to tailor your learning to your own unique career path as an educator.

The ELEIC programme is a steppingstone, offering you a strong and stable basis on which to stand whether your path leads to teaching, research, or administration.

For instructions on how to apply and a direct link to the application form on Studyinfo, please scroll down. The application period is open until 21 January 2026.

Key information

Level of degree: Master's degree
Programme duration: 2 years / 120 ECTS credits
Language of instruction: English
Application period: 7.1.2025 - 21.1.2026
Programme start: September 2026
Tuition fee: The annual tuition fee for non-EU/EEA students is 10,000 EUR. The fee is paid in two instalments of 5000 euros. There are no tuition fees for students who are citizens of EU/EEA countries or Switzerland. No scholarships are available for the first year of studies. Instead, applicants who accept their study place and pay the tuition fee within three weeks of the admission decision receive a 30% early bird discount on the first-year tuition fee. For the second year, students who complete at least 55 credits during their first year receive a scholarship covering 30% of the tuition fee.
Study campus: Joensuu

Why study with us?

This programme offers a balanced combination of theory and practice to be used in a future work as a teacher or educational administrator.

Studies

The programme consists of altogether 120 ECTS divided into:

Orientation Studies (7 ECTS)
Major Studies (97 ECTS)
Finnish Studies (6 ECTS)
Other Studies (10 ECTS)

Structure of studies

Orientation studies (7 ECTS)

Orientation studies provide students with the useful tools indispensable for successful completion of the courses included in the curriculum. They familiarize students with the University of Eastern Finland, present the core of the Finnish educational system in general, as well as introduce the main learning objectives, content and evaluation criteria of the ELEIC programme.

Major studies (94 ECTS)

Major studies aim at deepening students' academic skills related to research methodology in educational sciences. They also prepare students to plan and execute their research activities related to the topic of their Master's thesis. As one of the main aspects of the ELEIC programme is communication in various international settings, major studies include as well obligatory courses fostering students' ability to act as an English speaking professional teacher or educator. Content studies, constituting an integral part of the major studies are dedicated to the pedagogical viewpoints of language teaching and learning processes. The emphasis is laid on theoretical and practical aspects of working with/for children. The content studies are oriented towards theory and practice of teaching foreign languages to young learners, current pedagogical and educational issues, innovative pedagogical solutions, as well as teaching and professional practice.

Finnish studies (4 ECTS)

Finnish studies will introduce you to the Finnish language. You can complete 4 - 16 ECTS credits of Finnish.

Other studies (15 ECTS)

Other studies may include any university-level courses that serve to deepen students' expertise related to the topic of their master's thesis or personal interests.

How to apply?

Admission requirements

Eligibility

A previous bachelor's degree corresponding to at least 3 years of full-time academic studies from an institution for higher education is required from all master's degree applicants.

In this degree programme, a recognized bachelor’s degree (or higher) in the area of education or foreign languages, or equivalent, is required. The degree must be awarded by an internationally recognized university. The programme also accepts degrees from a recognized university of applied sciences or polytechnic. In addition, applicants must have studies or work experience in the field of early language education.

Language requirements

(1) Applicants who hold one of the following do not have to take an English language test

Secondary education or a bachelor's, master's, or higher degree completed in English in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States, or an EU/EEA country
Finnish Matriculation Examination, English language (A-language, advanced syllabus) completed with a minimum grade of eximia cum laude approbatur (E)
A university degree in Finland with English as a major subject

Online studies or studies completed on offshore campuses outside the accepted countries/area cannot be used to indicate language skills, even if the degree-awarding institution is in one of the accepted countries.

(2) All other applicants have to take one of the following language tests

TOEFL iBT: overall score 92, with 22 in writing
IELTS Academic: overall score 6.5, with 6.0 in writing
PTE Academic: overall score 62, with 54 in writing
C1 Advanced: overall score C or 180, with 162 in writing
C2 Proficiency: overall score C1 or 180, with 162 in writing
National Certificate of Language Proficiency (YKI-test): level 5 in all different subtests (reading comprehension, writing, and speaking).It is possible to combine different examinations.

No other degrees or statements of language proficiency will be accepted.

TOEFL, IELTS and PTE certificates are valid for two years from the day they are issued, i.e. the language test needs to be in effect during the application period, from 7 January 2024 onwards.

The language test results must be verifiable from the online verification service of the organiser.

Application process

Application procedure

Applications are submitted through the national Studyinfo portal (studyinfo.fi). The application period is 7 January 2027 8:00 –21 January 2027 15:00 (EEST). Once the online application has been filled out, required enclosures must be uploaded to the application by 28 January 2027 15:00 (EEST).

Enclosures

The required enclosures need to be uploaded electronically to the application by 28 January 2027 at 3 pm (EET). UEF does not process application documents that have arrived after the deadline.

Required enclosures:

Certificates
• Degree certificate(s) relevant to the programme. The degree certificate should include the name of the institution awarding the degree, the date of issue, the name of the degree and the name of the degree holder.
• Transcript of academic records. The transcript should include full titles and completion period of the units that the student has completed for the degree (or at the very least the overall study time at the institution), grades and credit points obtained together with information on the grading scale used at the institution at the time of study. The transcript must cover the full length of studies.
• Certificate of English proficiency. For detailed information about submitting the language test
reports, see http://www.uef.fi/en/web/admissions/language-requirements .

Additional form
• Motivation letter. The letter should depict the applicant’s study plans and academic goals, future career plans and professional goals, and contain a clear description of the personal and/or
academic motivation for applying for this particular programme.

If educational documents are issued in a language other than English, Finnish or Swedish, official translations of them to one of these languages are required.

All enclosures are compulsory for the selection process.

Student selection

Selection process

The admission process in the Master's Degree Programme in Early Language Education for Intercultural Communication aims at fair selection of high-quality applicants. Student selection is based on the application documents and evaluation of how the applicant’s skills and competences gained by the previous academic studies correspond to the master's studies applied for. Meeting the minimum application requirements does not guarantee acceptance to the programme.

Applicants will be ranked according to the selection criteria and placed in a rank order based on their earlier academic performance and experience, their motivation letter, and their suitability to the programme. To be eligible for the programme, all assessed items must meet the criteria for academic excellence. The best 20 applicants will be accepted to the programme and the rest will be rejected. Applicants are not placed on the waiting list.

Ranking of applications

The applications will be graded using the combined scoring of the following criteria (overall maximum 15 points):

Suitability and the content of earlier academic performance and experience 0-5 points (0=poor, 5=excellent)
Applicant's success in the previous studies in general and in studies related to the field of language education 0-5 points (0=poor, 5=excellent)
Motivation letter 0-5 points (0=poor, 5=excellent)

The purpose of the motivation letter is to provide a fuller picture of the applicant’s previous studies and background, which enables the programme to assess the applicant’s suitability for the Master’s Degree Programme in Early Language Education for Intercultural Education.

Why should we select you to this particular master’s degree programme?
What motivates you to apply to this master's degree programme and university?
What are your expectations of this master’s degree programme?

Selection results

Results for studies starting in September 2027 will be published on 31 May 2027 at the latest. When the selection decision has been made, the results will be posted immediately to the applicants by e mail.

Applicants must confirm their study place electronically in Studyinfo by latest on 13 July 2027 at 3 PM (UTC+3). Applicants without a Finnish personal identity code use the confirmation link sent by email. Applicants with a Finnish personal identity code must log into My Studyinfo with Finnish online banking credentials, a mobile certificate, or a certificate card. If you encounter any issues, you may request a separate confirmation form from the programme coordinator.

Conditional acceptance

Conditional acceptance and document verification

Admission is conditional if the applicant applies to UEF with 1) a degree that is not completed during the application period or if 2) the degree cannot be electronically authenticated (verified) at the time of application. In such cases, applicants must submit officially certified copies of the final degree certificate and transcript of records by the deadlines specified by the UEF. Applicants remain conditionally admitted until the required certified documents have been provided. Electronic verification of educational documents is strongly recommended; paper documents by mail are also accepted. Applicants must use the document submission methods specified by the UEF. For detailed instructions, please see the webpage Verification of official educational documents.

DEADLINES for document verification

Verified educational documents must be submitted to UEF by 31.5.2027. Graduating students: The final educational documents must be submitted by 30.7.2027. If the applicant does not deliver their documents by the given deadline, their study right will be cancelled.

Appeal procedure

If you disagree with the student selection decision, you may apply for a rectification of the decision after the results have been published, no later than 20 July 2027 at 3 PM (UTC+3). The deadline for electronically submitted requests ends at 11:59 PM (UTC+3) on 20 July 2027. Admissions results.

Tuition fees and waivers

Tuition fee

The annual tuition fee for non-EU/EEA students is 10,000 EUR. The fee is paid in two instalments of 5000 euros. There are no tuition fees for students who are citizens of EU/EEA countries or Switzerland.

No scholarships are available for the first year of studies. Instead, applicants who accept their study place and pay the tuition fee within three weeks of the admission decision receive a 30% early bird discount on the first-year tuition fee. For the second year, students who complete at least 55 credits during their first year receive a scholarship covering 30% of the tuition fee.

Other fees

All degree students of the university are members of the Student Union. The Student Union membership fee is ca. 75 € per academic year. The membership entitles the student to, for example:

reduced lunch prices at student cafeterias
discounts on local buses and long-distance transportation
discounts on many public services and free-time activities

All students also need to pay a healthcare fee, which entitles students to use the services of the Finnish Student Health Service. The healthcare fee is ca. 35 € per semester.

Students should be able to cover all the other expenses related to their studying in Finland (500-800 €/month, depending on individual spending habits). The UEF does not offer selected students any additional funding or financial aid.