International Students Scholarship
pool by Finnish Government
The Finnish Government offers scholarships of 3-9 months for Doctoral
level studies and research at Finnish universities or public
research institutes. The Finnish Government Scholarship Pool programme is
open to young researchers from all academic fields. The scholarship cannot
be applied for Master's level studies or post-Doctoral studies/research.
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Very important: the
Finnish Government Scholarship Pool programme application form is not an
application for a study/research placement. It is merely an application for
funding.
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In order to be an eligible applicant
for this scholarship, you must first
successfully apply for a study/research placement at a Finnish
university/public research institute - in other words, you must be at
least provisionally accepted either as a visiting Doctoral-level
student/researcher, or as a full-time Doctoral degree student. Please see
section 'Doctoral Admissions'
for information on how to apply for a Doctoral-level study or research
placement in Finland.
Who
can apply?
The scholarships are based mainly on
cultural agreements or similar arrangements between Finland and the following
countries:
- Australia
- China
- Cuba
- Egypt
- India
- Israel
- Japan
- Mexico
- Mongolia
- Namibia
- Republic of Korea
- Turkey
- Ukraine
- USA (NB: please see the section Fulbright-CIMO
grants on the Fulbright
Online website)
Only the nationals of the
above-mentioned countries can be
considered eligible applicants in this scholarship programme. (If you are not a
national of any of the above countries, you cannot apply for this particular
scholarship - however, please see the other scholarship options in the section 'Tuition and scholarships')
Eligibility
criteria
To be eligible, the applicant must:
- have established contact with the Finnish receiving
institution before applying (see section 'Doctoral Admissions')
- have a letter of invitation from the academic
supervisor in Finland; the invitation should also explain the commitment
of the host institution to the project
- have earned a Master’s-level degree before applying
- intend to pursue post-Master's level studies as a
visiting student, participate in a research project or teach at a
university or public research institute in Finland; priority will be
given to doctoral studies
- not have spent already more than one year at a Finnish
higher education institution immediately before the intended scholarship
period in Finland
- be able to give proof of sufficient skills in speaking
and writing the language needed in study/research*
- be a national of one of the eligible countries listed
above (*) this means that the application must include some proof of the
applicant's language skills - CIMO does not require you to take an IELTS
or TOEFL test, but if you have such official proof of your English skills
that can of course be enclosed in the application. Usually however it is enough
if, for example, the letter of invitation from the hosting Finnish
university states that your language skills have been deemed sufficient
by the Finnish university.
What
does the scholarship cover?
The scholarship includes:
- a monthly allowance of EUR 1500. The allowance
is sufficient for one person only.
Expenses due to travel,
international or in Finland, are not covered by CIMO. Scholarship recipients
are recommended to make arrangements for sufficient insurance coverage for
their stay in Finland. Please see the section 'Before
your arrival' for information on the practicalities of coming to Finland as
an international student/researcher.
Scholarship
period
The Finnish Government Scholarship
Pool programme can be applied for a study/research period of 3-9 months,
9 months being the maximum time for an individual applicant.
You may wish to keep in mind that
the Finnish academic year starts in late August/early September and ends in
late May (check the exact dates with the Finnish university you're interested
in). However, in your application you may also specify your scholarship period
to start later than September - as long as your scholarship period begins within
the academic year that you've applied the scholarship for.
This scholarship programme can
not be applied to cover a whole Doctoral degree programme - if you are
granted this scholarship, after the initial CIMO scholarship period you will
need to look for other
sources of funding for the remainder of your studies/research in Finland.
How
and when to apply
Applications for the Finnish
Government Scholarship Pool funding should be made to the appropriate
authority in the applicant's country. The scholarship authorities in each
country are invited to present applications for up to 10 candidates for the
Finnish Government Scholarship Pool. For information on the appropriate
authority in your country, please see the listing of countries
and authorities to contact.
The announcements for the opening of
the annual application round are usually sent out from CIMO at the end of
September annually. The applicants may then contact the scholarship
authorities in their home country for information on the national deadline
for submitting the application documents.
The annual deadline set by CIMO for
the nomination of scholarship candidates by the national authorities is in mid-February
(2015: 16 February)
NB: You should check the application deadline set by the authorities in your
country since it may be earlier.
Scholarship
decisions announced by June annually
CIMO will inform both successful and
unsuccessful candidates of the results by June annually.
If you are among the scholarship
candidates selected by the appropriate contact
authorities in your home country (in other words, if your scholarship
application has been forwarded to CIMO) but you have not for some reason
received a decision letter from CIMO by mid-June,
Application
form & the required documents
Applicants from other participating
countries: you can download the 2015-2016
application form via the link below.
Please save the application form on
your own computer before completing it. The form should be typed throughout. To
move between different fields, use the “Tab” key. Relevant boxes can be ticked
by using the “Space” key or the left-hand mouse button. After completing the
form, please print and sign it.
If needed, the application form can
also be obtained from the national scholarship authorities or directly from
CIMO.
Documents required for an
application:
- a completed and signed application form
- curriculum vitae
- copies of latest diplomas*
- two letters of recommendation
- study/research plan (2-5 pages, including a statement
of motivation, goals, work plan, work method, expected results)
- invitation/expression of interest and motivation for
cooperation from the hosting academic
supervisor in Finland
- language certificate (Finnish, Swedish or English) or
other indication of sufficient language skills - please see above, in the
section 'Eligibility criteria'
*) copies of original
diplomas accompanied with translations into English, Finnish or Swedish - if
the original certificates are not in these languages.Preferably official
translations. Please do not send in any originals as CIMO will not
return any application documents.
Useful
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