EIT Digital Master Schools information material about internship & Master's thesis is available in the EIT Digital Student Portal.

A key component in all EIT Digital Master School programmes is an integrated combination of a master's thesis (30 ECTS) and an internship (included in the master's thesis credits). The industry-based master's thesis (typically integrated with the internship) is a core part of your education, crucial for awarding you the EIT Digital certificate. This combination forms the Final Degree Project.

EIT Digital Guidelines on choosing your Final Degree Project can be found below as an attachment.

At Aalto University, we prefer not to talk about internship, but rather about master's thesis position in industry. We have a long tradition of industrial theses in Finland. About 70% of all graduates of technology at Aalto University write their thesis for a company, even though it is not usually required in other master's programmes.

This section includes information and guidelines regarding the industrial perspective of your master's thesis.

NB! Students are not allowed to do their master's thesis in Aalto's research groups.

Thesis employment contracts

It is necessary to draft a written contract for master's thesis, when an organization outside Aalto University is involved. The contract helps you become familiar with the issues you should agree with the organization for which you write your master's thesis.

You can find instructions and templates for thesis contracts with external organizations at https://www.aalto.fi/en/services/study-and-educational-projects-contracts-with-organisations-outside-aalto-university. The contract is signed by the student and the organization. The university is not involved, and you do not need to return the contract to Aalto University.

The agreement about the master's thesis between the student and the university (supervisor) is the confimation of master's thesis topic.

Information package for employers about master's thesis assignment/internship

An information package for employers in Finland (updated 10/2021) can be found below as an attachment. We recommend you share this document with your employer, especially if they are have not hired thesis workers from Aalto University before.

ICT Innovation tips for thesis position hunting

Students need to be very proactive in searching for thesis positions. We of course try to help and support you. EIT Digital staff are contacting different companies all the time, and will inform you of their open thesis positions throughout the year.

Here are some tips:

• Look for EIT Digital tips for securing your internship under the tab Internship and Masters Thesis in the online portal.
• Use LinkedIn to look for companies & open positions.
• Ask your mentors for advice and attend all the mentoring events.
• Follow JobTeaser for positions and career events, order a career services newsletter.
• Check https://jobsinfinland.fi/, duunitori.fi, aarresaari.net.
• Attend upcoming Career fairs.

Entry students of cohort 2017 follow the same guidelines as exit students, except for the schedule (they should follow the schedule of their exit univesity): they are appointed a supervisor, who evaluates their Master's thesis following the evaluation guidelines of Aalto University. Please familiarize yourself with all the guidelines and the thesis process description carefully, especially the evaluation guidelines which give you a good picture of what is expected of a master's thesis at Aalto University. Remember that the criteria may be different at your exit university, and aim to fulfill both if possible. Please see the detailed instructions in MyCourses under SCI Master's thesis.

This section contains information for entry students from cohorts 2018 onwards.

Background: ICT Innovation piloting lighter evaluation process of master's thesis for entry students

According to the Cooperation Agreement of EIT Digital Master School (2018), the master’s thesis shall be performed according to the rules and regulations of the Exit University and also agree with the rules of the Entry University. According to the degree and credit transfer regulations of Aalto University, the master’s thesis credits cannot be transferred, and the thesis has to be evaluated at Aalto University, following our guidelines.

However, as of spring semester 2020, Master’s Programme in ICT Innovation has launched a lighter approval process of master’s thesis. It was first piloted for two years, and then continued. The reform applies to cohorts 2018 - 2022. Continuation of the lighter process to cover cohorts from 2023 onwards is under way and will be decided during spring 2023.

The elements of the thesis process remain the same in this model, with the exception that the thesis is evaluated at the exit university, and approved at Aalto University with the exit university’s grade proposal. Grades are transferred according to the scaling table agreed in EIT Digital Master School cooperation agreements. The scaling table is available on page Planning your studies

Overview of the Master's thesis process

You must be enrolled as attending student in Aalto university when you submit forms to Aalto.

Good to remember when planning your thesis process and graduation schedule

Remember that the master’s thesis is a public document by law in Finland. All Aalto University graduates must publish their thesis in Aalto University archive (aaltodoc.aalto.fi). Make sure that the thesis you submit to your exit university does not contain any confidential material, because the same exact thesis will later be published in the Aalto University archive.

Aalto entry students follow the schedule and process of their exit university. The steps required at Aalto will take place after the equivalent step has been completed at the exit university.

The topic and the thesis cannot be approved in the same Programme Committee meeting (see meeting schedule and deadlines for submission of forms). For example, if you want to submit your thesis and graduate at the end of July, you must apply for thesis topic in May at the latest.

Once your graduation at your exit university is approaching, check the local graduation & thesis submission deadlines at Aalto to see what is the deadline of all applications and documents, if you wish to graduate at the next possible occasion at Aalto. Approval and grading of thesis and graduation are separate processes. They are applied for in separate systems, but application deadlines are the same.

• Approval and grading of thesis: eAge.
• Graduation: Sisu.

You cannot graduate from Aalto before we have received your complete official transcript (from administrative contact person by email or through administrative portal) of your exit university.

The academic year at Aalto University is 1 August – 31 July. If you aim to graduate in July, consider the holiday seasons of the universities (e.g. Finland and Sweden are "closed" in July, Italy and Spain in August).

If you graduate from Aalto after 31 July, you will be transferred to Aalto University’s local tuition fee and scholarship scheme. Aalto has no tuition fees for EU/EEA nationals. All non-EU/EEA students are encouraged to apply for a tuition fee waiver for the 5th semester of studies.

If you need to extend your Finnish residence permit, the topic confirmation form should be submitted at the latest by the time you apply for the tuition fee waiver for the 5th semester. The application is sufficient, the topic does not have to be approved yet. More information in Financial support for ICT Innovation students.

Starting your thesis and confirming the topic

Follow the instructions of your exit university for finding a thesis topic, internship, and a supervising professor (sometimes called an examiner) at your exit university. Once this is done, and you have registered your thesis topic at your exit university, you must apply for thesis topic confirmation at Aalto University. The decision of approval of your topic (merely a formality in this case) is made by the Degree Programme Committee in Computer, Communication, and information sciences (CCIS). With this form, you also confirm your supervisors.

Apply for thesis topic confirmation

The purpose of this step is to confirm that a professor of your exit university has agreed to be your supervisor, and your thesis topic has been approved according to the regular approval procedure of your exit university.

The supervisor is a faculty representative who ensures that the thesis meets all goals and requirements set by the university, and eventually, evaluates your thesis. You will have two supervisors: one from your exit university, and one from Aalto University. The exit university supervisor will be responsible for the instruction and evaluation, according to the guidelines of your exit university. This person must be a professor at your exit university. The co-supervisor from Aalto University is your programme coordinator (i.e. professor responsible for your major), and they will not be involved in the actual instruction or evaluation, but ensures that the thesis meets all aims and requirements set by Aalto University. The exit university is responsible for the supervision and evaluation of the thesis, even if the student is physically located in Finland.

The thesis advisor is usually from an organization or company for which the thesis is written and holds at least a master’s degree. The advisor is an expert in the field of the thesis, and he/she can give advice on the content and writing of a thesis. The advisor, or a person in a similar role according to the exit university terminology, should work with the student and, if possible, contribute to the evaluation of the thesis at the exit university. This person does not have a role in the approval process at Aalto University, which is why we recommend Aalto University entry students to not name a separate advisor in the topic application to Aalto University (the form requires this, but please write your exit university supervisor's name in those fields) - see exceptions below. Neither the supervisor nor the advisor may be a relative of the student, or biased in any other way.

An exception to this rule is KTH (possibly also other universities where two faculty members are involved with your thesis), and please note the different terminology:

• Your examiner at KTH (the professor responsible for evaluation of the thesis) should be the supervisor on Aalto forms. Please name him/her as your first supervisor and your Aalto supervisor as second.
• Your supervisor at KTH should be the advisor on Aalto forms.
• Due to this, KTH students will name an advisor at Aalto, but this person is "the supervisor" according to KTH terminology, meaning a faculty staff members of KTH, not the supervisor/advisor in the industry.

In practice, this is how it works

• Apply for approval of the topic with the online form in eAge system. The topic you provide on this form should be exactly (word to word) as it has been approved at your exit university. The final title of the thesis does not have to be the same as your topic as long as the domain is the same (e.g. you have not restarted your thesis from the scratch with a different topic and data).
• Remember to select the correct school (AUS and CNI = Electrical Engineering, DSC and HCID = Science) and the correct master's programme (Master's Programme in ICT Innovation). Otherwise you will not get the correct form. The codes of your majors are in the below list.
• The form allows you to name two supervisors (see "who is who in thesis terminology at Aalto" above). Please name your exit university supervisor as the first one, and Aalto UniversIty supervisor as the second one. Remember that the Aalto University supervisor is always your programme coordinator! Names of the programme coordinators/professors of the majors are in the below list.
• We recommend you not to name an advisor in this context (if it is mandatory on the form, give the name of your Aalto supervisor) unless you are from KTH.

For KTH students

• 1^st supervisor = KTH examiner (this is the person who evaluates your thesis and gives the evaluation statement)
• 2^nd supervisor = Aalto supervisor, i.e. Quan Zhou (AUS), Wilhelmiina Hämäläinen (DSC), Jukka Manner (CNI), or Mika Nieminen (HCID).
• 1^st advisor = KTH supervisor
• 2^nd advisor = the instructor from the company

For other students

• 1st supervisor: Exit university supervisor (the person who evaluates your thesis and gives the evaluation statement)
• 2nd supervisor: Aalto supervisor (professor of your major = your programme coordinator)
• 1st advisor: Aalto supervisor
• 2nd advisor: leave blank

Attach the official thesis topic confirmation or similar agreement from your exit university in the Supervisor's Agreement tab. If you do not have such document from your exit university, you can fill in this form, and ask your exit university supervisor to sign it. Irrespective of the type of the document, the most important thing is that it confirms that a professor of your exit university has agreed to be your supervisor, and your thesis topic has been approved according to the regular approval procedure of your exit university.

Note also the following

• Article format thesis of approximately 10 pages is not accepted in Aalto University.
• The topic is valid for one year from the date of approval. If the thesis is not submitted for evaluation during that period, the topic expires and must be applied for again.
• You must also reapply for the topic confirmation if you start a new thesis with a different topic OR if your supervisor changes.
• You must be enrolled as attending Aalto University when you apply for thesis topic confirmation, and you must have an up-to-date and approved Personal Study Plan (HOPS) in Sisu.

Code of major

You are asked for a code of your major on the application for topic

Personal study plan (HOPS) in Sisu

All students have to make a personal study plan in Sisu before their topic can be approved and in order to graduate. Please see Planning your studies for instructions about the study plan.

Before thesis submission at exit university

Publicity of the thesis

Remember that the master’s thesis is a public document by law in Finland, and all Aalto University graduates must publish their thesis in Aalto University archive (aaltodocs.aalto.fi). You should ensure that the thesis that you submit to your exit university does not contain any confidential material. The same exact thesis will later be published in the Aalto University archive. Detailed instructions are given below.

Thesis presentation

Aalto University students are required to give a presentation about the thesis.

If your exit university requires a thesis defense or presentation, Aalto University can recognize this for the thesis presentation requirement, and you do not have to give a separate presentation to your supervisor at Aalto. If possible, you can invite your Aalto supervisor to follow the presentation. As proof of the given presentation, you fill in and ask your supervisor at exit university to sign the Thesis presentation form. Please ask your exit university supervisor to send the scanned copy or photo of the signed form to [email protected] by the deadline of your thesis submission. The email should include your name, your programme (Master's Programme in ICT Innovation), your Aalto student number, and the name of the university where the presentation has been given.

If your exit university does not have a requirement for a presentation, please arrange a meeting to give a presentation to your Aalto supervisor. An online meeting is accepted. If possible, plan this well in advance. July is a holiday month in Finland, and you are unlikely to reach your supervisor or to give the presentation then.

When your thesis has been registered at your exit university

Submitting your thesis to Aalto

Check that you are enrolled as attending student at Aalto University, and that your thesis topic is valid (valid for one year).

Add the titel page and abstract page that follow the templates of Aalto University. The templates are available in MyCourses in SCI Master's thesis: Templates. Check that you have the correct school: AUS & CNI: School of Electrical Engineering; DSC & HCID: School of Science. Otherwise, the uploaded version has to be final and the content should be exactly identical to the version submitted to the exit university.

Save the thesis in PDF/A-format. The instructions on converting the file into a PDF/A compliant versionare available in MyCourses. The file name should not have any Scandinavian letters (e.g. ä and ö) or special characters. The name should be in the following format: school's abbreviation_publishingyear_lastname_firstname.pdf. For example, student Jan Järvinen would name the file as sci_2013_jarvinen_jan.pdf. NB! AUS and CNI students study at School of Electrical Engineering, and the file name should be e.g. elec_2020_jarvinen_jan.pdf.

By the thesis submission deadline, submit the electronic version of the thesis and apply for approval in eAge. The form is 207 Approval and grading of the thesis.

• Remember to select the right school (AUS, CNI → School of Electrical Engineering, DSC and HCID→ School of Science), programme, and code of major.

By the thesis submission deadline, send these documents to your Aalto supervisor, i.e. the programme coordinator:

• final version of your thesis (the same that you will upload in eAge system), including Aalto cover page and abstract
• evaluation statement of the thesis from your exit university (cc. [email protected])
• transcript of records or final certificate (ELTE students), which has the thesis grade (if applicaple at the time).

Check that you have completed all the steps: topic approval, presentation, thesis result registered at exit university and that you have sent the final version of your thesis to your Aalto supervisor.

Ask the administrative coordinator of your exit university to upload your transcript of records (ELTE students: final cerficate in addition to transcript of records) in EIT Digital Master School's student management portal. If the registration of your thesis grade and credits, and the preparation of the final transcript takes long, you can send an unofficial transcript, or a separate statement (signed by your thesis examiner) about your thesis grade. The final transcript / final certificate is required, before the thesis grade can be translated to Aalto University and before the degree can be awarded.

You will be notified when the thesis has been approved in the Programme Committee. After this, it is transferred from the eAge system to the Aaltodoc publication archive.

Submitting involves publishing

According to Finnish legislation, a master's thesis is a public document and its contents cannot be confidential. Therefore, the material of the thesis must be chosen so that it does not include any information that could be classified as a business secret.

A master’s thesis being a public document means that it is accessible through a closed Aalto campus network, or can be sent out in electronic format upon request. The so-called metadata (i.e. name of author, title of thesis, name of thesis supervisor and advisor, keywords) of each thesis is published in the Aaltodoc database at https://aaltodoc.aalto.fi. In addition to this, all approved theses are archived in the Aaltodoc publication archives. Full versions of the electronically archived theses can be accessed on certain computers at the Learning Center.

With the student's permission, the thesis abstract and/or full text can be published on the internet. We strongly recommend entry students not to give permission to publish them, but only the metadata. The options for different permissions are provided on the online application form for Evaluation and Approval of Master’s thesis. However, the student should keep in mind that the thesis is always a public document from the date of the committee meeting where it has been approved, and accessible soon after approval in the Learning Center as mentioned above. Notably, a patent application claiming priority to any results reported in the thesis must be filed before the date of that committee meeting.

The PDF/A file of the thesis cannot be corrected or changed after the approved thesis has arrived in Aaltodoc. Consultation with the legal counsel of the Aalto University has contributed to this practice. However, the metadata of the thesis will be corrected according to the author’s wishes also after it has arrived in Aaltodoc.

Grading of the thesis

The lighter procedure for thesis approval means that the master’s thesis is not evaluated and graded at Aalto University. An entry student does not have to follow the thesis regulations of Aalto University, but only the ones of their exit university. (Exception to this is article format master's theses of appr. 10 pages, which Aalto cannot accept.) The grade of the master’s thesis is translated from the exit university grade following the grade scaling table of EIT Digital Master School cooperation agreement. No exceptions or individual interpretations of the grade are allowed. All entry students of the same cohort will follow this procedure, irrespective of their master’s thesis location.

The credit transfer and transcript exchange in EIT Digital Master School is deal with by the administrative representatives of the universities. An official transcript of records or a final certificate (ELTE), including the thesis grade and credits, must be sent by the administrative contact of your exit university to the corresponding person at Aalto University before your thesis can be registered, i.e. before the meeting of the Programme Committee. The grade will be translated based on the grade on the official transcript of records or on the final certificate (ELTE), even if it differs from the supervisor's statement at exit university.

Aalto University reserves the right to reject the master’s thesis in case of plagiarism, whether it is detected at the exit university or at Aalto University.

ELTE students

At ELTE you will receive a final certificate that includes separate grades for written thesis, presentation and final exam. Note that only the grade for the written thesis (= the evaluation of master’s thesis on the final certificate) will be translated to Aalto, following the grade scaling table of EIT Digital Master School cooperation agreement. 

Appealing against a grade

Students dissatisfied with the grade of their thesis may appeal against the decision in writing to the Aalto University Academic Appeals Board (Aalto-yliopiston tutkintolautakunta) within 14 days of receiving notification of the decision. Address: Aalto University Academic Appeals Board, Registry, P.O. BOX 11000, FI-00076 AALTO. We encourage entry students to primarily appeal against the grade at the exit university.

Graduation

When you have completed all requisite studies for your master’s degree, apply for graduation. Submit a request for graduation through your primary study plan (HOPS) in Sisu. Usually this is done at the same time as submitting the form for Approval and grading of thesis. When you apply for graduation, all courses, both from the entry and exit university, have to be registered in Sisu, and your study plan has to be approved. This means that the final transcript has to be submitted (uploaded in the EIT Digital Master School's student management portal) at least a couple of days before the application deadline.

Aalto University has a local graduation ceremony, where you are awarded your degree certificate. If you are not able to attend, you can collect it from the Student Services or have it sent to you by registered mail. EIT Digital Master School organises a joint graduation ceremony for the whole of your cohort, and you will be invited separately. Read more information about graduation and graduation schedules.

Questions?

If you have any questions about this procedure, or thesis and graduation process at Aalto University in general, please contact [email protected].

This page only contains the programme-specific features related to ICT Innovation and to exit students of Aalto University. Detailed information about master's thesis process at Aalto (both for SCI and ELEC students) is on the SCI Master's Thesis page in MyCourses. Please familiarize yourself with the content carefully.

Overview of the Master's thesis process

All forms, templates, instructions and application deadlines are available in MyCourses - SCI Master's thesis

You must be enrolled as attending student in Aalto university when you submit forms to Aalto.

Good to remember during the thesis process

Remember that the Master’s Thesis is a public document by law in Finland, and all Aalto University graduates have to publish their thesis in Aalto University archive (aaltodocs.aalto.fi). This means that you should ensure that the thesis that you submit does not contain any confidential material.

NB! Students are not allowed to do their master's thesis in Aalto's research groups.

The academic year at Aalto University is from 1 August to 31 July.

If you graduate from Aalto University after 31st July, you will be transferred to Aalto University’s local tuition fee and scholarship scheme. All non-EU/EEA students are encouraged to apply for a tuition fee waiver for the 5th semester of studies. This is with a separate form in March-April. Students concerned will be contacted individually.

If the student needs to extend their Finnish residence permit, the topic confirmation form should be submitted by the time the student applies for the tuition fee waiver for the 5th semester. The application is sufficient, and the topic does not have to be approved by the committee yet. More information in Financial support for ICT Innovation students.

All students who finish 60 ECTS credits and complete their degree during the academic year (by 31 July) are eligible for the Dean’s incentive scholarship of 500 EUR (subject to annual decision). Note that the credits have to be completed by 31 July and transferred to Aalto University study register by 30 September. I.e. we must receive an official transcript including your thesis a few working days before 30 September.

Requirements of EIT Digital Master School and entry university

A key component in all EIT Digital Master School Programmes is the integrated combination of a Master's Thesis (30 ECTS) and an internship (included in the master's thesis credits). The industry-based master's thesis (typically integrated with the internship) is a core part of your education, crucial for awarding you the EIT Digital certificate. This combination forms the Final Degree Project.

According to the EIT Digital Master School guidelines, the exit university should be the main responsible institute in the master’s thesis process. Most entry universities are not involved in the thesis process at all, and simply register the grade given at the exit university, but you may want to confirm this with your entry university.

Read more about the EIT Digital requirements and industrial Master's thesis at Aalto under Guidelines for industrial thesis above.

Master's Thesis requirements at Aalto University

As your exit university, Aalto is responsible for supervising and evaluating your master's thesis. Contact your academic coordinator or professor of the major in December to agree upon the thesis topic, supervisor, and  integrating the thesis with the internship. Keep the supervisor and the administrative coordinator informed about your progress. If there are any delays or problems in the process, it is important to discuss them frequently with your supervisor.

Graduation

We have a local graduation ceremony, where you are awarded your degree certificate. If you are not able to attend, you can collect your certificate from the Student Services or have it sent to you by registered mail.

EIT Digital Master School organises a joint graduation ceremony for the whole of your class, and you will be invited later. The requirement is that you have completed your studies at both universities by the end of October. This means that you have submitted your thesis in time and it has been evaluated by your supervisor. Read more about Graduation.

Enrolment at Aalto

You must enroll as attending at Aalto for the autumn semester, if you do not graduate by 31 July of your exit year. If you have questions about enrolment, please contact the study affairs secretary.

If you graduate by the end of August, the student union fee can be refunded. Visit the Student Services or send an email ([email protected]) after graduation, and they will help you with the refund procedure. After the refund, you will lose the right to student benefits. You have a right to ask for refund only until the end of September.

More information about Annual enrolment.