Join the MEC-funded doctoral pilot at Aalto University 2024-2027
Aalto University offers companies and organizations a unique opportunity to participate in the doctoral education pilot funded by MEC.
Doctoral education pilot at Aalto University
We have hired 178 doctoral researchers in the doctoral education pilot funded by the Finnish Ministry of Education and Culture.
What is the pilot about?
The Ministry of Education and Culture has allocated EUR 255 million to Finnish universities for piloting new practices in doctoral education in 2024–2027. This additional funding is used for recruiting 1000 new doctoral researchers with an employment contract. Of these ministry-funded 1000 doctoral researchers in Finland, 800 focus on areas in the flagship programmes of the Research Council of Finland, while 200 work in other research fields.
A flagship is an effective mix of cutting-edge research, impact in support of economic growth or society, close connections to the business sector and society at large, adaptability, and a strong commitment from host organisations. Flagships are high-quality, high-impact competence clusters.
More about the Finland Flagship programme funding
Societal impact
The pilot is a major effort to strengthen research activities and the impact of research and expertise in society at large. The project aims to increase the number of doctoral graduates and to reform doctoral education and strengthen its social impact.
The growing need for researchers was identified in the report of the Finnish Parliamentary Working Group on Research, Development and Innovation. The doctoral education pilot enables universities to respond to the ever-increasing talent shortage and supply the workforce with researcher training across sectors without compromising the quality of education.
More information: docpilot@aalto.fi
Aalto has 178 doctoral researchers in 11 pilot programmes
The positions in the new doctoral education pilot are divided into different fields. The majority of the positions are in the flagship programme areas of the Research Council of Finland. At Aalto, flagships in the areas of quantum technology, materials bioeconomy, and artificial intelligence received the largest number of positions. The recruitment of new doctoral students began at Aalto University in spring 2024, and the first new doctoral researchers started their employment at the beginning of August 2024.
Pilot programmes coordinated by Aalto
Aalto University coordinates three national doctoral pilot programmes.
Finnish Doctoral Program Network in Artificial Intelligence.
Aalto has 30 doctoral researcher positions. Flagship: FCAI
Circular Materials Bioeconomy Network: From bio-based resources to advanced materials (CIMANET).
Aalto has 35 doctoral researcher positions. Flagship: FinnCERES
National Graduate School in Quantum Science and Technology.
Aalto has 40 doctoral researcher positions. Flagship: FQF (Finnish Quantum Flagship)
Pilot programmes Aalto participates in
Aalto University is part of eight other pilot programmes that are coordinated from other universities.
Promoting sustainable development by linking digital solutions to water resource management.
14 positions in Aalto. Flagship: DIWA
Develops methods of applied mathematics and physics for the benefit of society.
14 positions in Aalto. Flagship: FAME
Addresses the challenges of decreasing learning achievement, increasing truancy and dropout rates, and digital technology in education.
4 positions in Aalto. Flagship: EDUCA
The programme addresses the urgent need for training high-level experts in the rapidly growing photonics industry. I-DEEP extends its reach to all Finnish universities with research activities in light-based technologies.
14 positions in Aalto. Flagship: PREIN
8 positions in Aalto.
10 positions in Aalto.
5 positions in Aalto.
Research will focus on sustainability transformations in different sectors of society to find solutions to climate change, biodiversity loss, and sustainable use and management of natural resources.
4 positions in Aalto.
We invite companies to participate in the pilot
Aalto University invites companies to participate in the pilot! The call for doctoral thesis project partners has closed, but we still need more mentors for the doctoral students.
Contact us at Aalto Corporate Relations (external link)
Leave a contact request and the Aalto Corporate Relations team will contact you.
Future talents
Hey employer! Let’s connect each student with Finnish working life.
Corporate collaboration opens doors to working life for doctoral students
Collaboration between universities and companies on doctoral dissertations brings research results closer to practice and opens new career paths for young researchers.
Doctoral pilot programme produces the best experts in artificial intelligence
The AI-DOC doctoral pilot program produces top AI experts in Finland. Companies would be wise to establish relationships already during their doctoral studies.
Where is quantum technology heading? - The QDOC doctoral pilot offers insights for corporate partners
Corporate partners in the Quantum Doctoral Pilot programme (QDOC) say that collaborating with the programme helps them distinguish between technology hype and developments that are truly relevant to them.
Doctoral education at Aalto University
News
Board approved Annual Board Report and Financial Statements 2025
The Aalto University Board convened on 25 March 2026.
Iris Seitz awarded for exceptional early-career achievement
Dr. Iris Seitz, former PhD student of Professor Mauri Kostiainen, has been awarded the 2026 Robert Dirks Molecular Programming Prize for her work on programmable protein architectures with nucleic acid origami.