Aalto Doctoral Programme in Electrical Engineering

The most talented students may receive funding from their department, or they may fund their studies through projects or grants. Students should discuss funding primarily with their supervising professor. The doctoral porgramme also offers funded positions for doctoral candidates; the call for applications is twice a year. However, the Aalto ELEC Doctoral School is not considered as a primary funding source when applying to the Doctoral programme.

Funding for research often consists of a variety of sources and requires continuous writing of applications and proposals, or at least vigorous planning for doing it. Research is based on projects and their funding of different sort. There are some foundations (linkitä tähän) that support research and research-related activities.

Please find more information on incentive scholarships.

Internationality is an integral part of the doctoral education in both recruiting and educating doctoral candidates. The most general purposes for doctoral candidate's mobility are the development of the research and international networking. Mobility may be relevant for future employment prospects but also for developing international career opportunities. Aalto University encourages every doctoral candidate to spend at least a period of six-months abroad during their studies.  

Doctoral candidates are advised to contact their supervising professor and/or advisor to find out which university would be most useful in terms of their education. Professors usually have personal contacts to universities and research institutes abroad and can help to select the most suitable one to each student’s research work. Visiting a foreign university or research institute often means sharing knowledge and know-how, creating new ideas, expanding international networks, and developing one’s professional skills.

Doctoral education networks offer universities a framework for educational collaboration. The networks organize joint seminars, courses, summer schools and events as well as promote networking and increase peer support among students. Most of the networks are based on former graduate schools (1995-2015), but also new networks have been established.

The School of Electrical Engineering has committed to the following Doctoral Education Networks in 2018-2021:

1. DELTA - Doctoral training network in Electronics, Telecommunications and Automation
2. HICT - Helsinki doctoral education network in information and communications technology
3. MOF - Doctoral Education Network for modern optics and fotonics
4. NEE - Doctoral Education Network for Electrical Energy Engineering

Cotutelle agreement – joint supervision

The Aalto University encourages doctoral degrees which are jointly supervised with an international partner. These agreements are referred to as ‘Cotutelle Agreements’. Arrangements for joint supervision, or ‘cotutelle agreements’, are made in terms of the studies and supervision of a single doctoral candidate. Such doctoral candidates are awarded degrees and the associated certificates from both universities.

The university aims at international standards of high-quality research and education. International cooperation is an integral part of the doctoral education of Aalto University, and one method for such cooperation is arrangements for the joint supervision of doctoral degrees. A doctoral candidate may earn a double degree under a joint supervision arrangement between two universities provided that the joint supervision is based on genuine scientific cooperation, bringing added value to the doctoral dissertation and enhancing the quality of the research.

Cotutelle agreements should be made at the beginning of the studies but it requires a study right at the Aalto University before any agreement can be made.

The professor (i.e. supervising professor) who is in charge of the research field the applicant is applying to is responsible for the academic evaluation of the applicant. The Doctoral Programme Committee will also evaluate the applicant, and the doctoral programme may ask the department to assess the applicant.

The departments have defined whether an evaluation statement from the department is needed regarding all applicants to that department or only when the doctoral programme considers it relevant. Departments can make changes in the definition only when the admission criteria are confirmed, and the doctoral programme should be informed about the changes in writing.

To be eligible for doctoral studies at the School of Electrical Engineering, applicants must:

• hold a master’s degree granted by a Finnish university or a Finnish university of applied sciences;
• hold an applicable degree earned abroad providing them with eligibility for corresponding university or university of applied sciences studies in the country where the degree was earned, providing the knowledge base required for in the School of Electrical Engineering and corresponding to the Finnish Master’s degree.

In principle, an acceptable master’s degree has been awarded in accordance with the principles of the Bologna Process (3+2 years). A degree earned abroad in a country that does not follow the Bologna Process must include a minimum of 4 years of studies and a master’s thesis, and be deemed by the School of Electrical Engineering as providing the candidate with an adequate knowledge base to doctoral studies at the school.

Applying with a degree from a university of applied sciences

The potential of applicants with an applicable Finnish master’s degree from a university of applied sciences for successful doctoral studies is assessed case by case. Granting the right to study requires the School of Electrical Engineering to determine the applicant’s need for supplementary studies . If the school deems the applicant with a master's degree from a university of applied sciences in an applicable technical field as having potential for completing the doctoral degree, the applicant can be assigned a sufficient amount of supplementary studies to allow him or her to start the doctoral studies. The extent of supplementary studies may not, however, exceed 60 ECTS.

International applicants with a previous technical degree corresponding to a Finnish university of applied sciences degree are subject to the same rules as those with a corresponding Finnish degree.

If the extent of necessary supplementary studies exceeds this maximum, the applicant will be advised to be first pursue the master's degree before applying for a right to pursue a doctoral degree.

Full-time doctoral studies

Full-time doctoral students plan their studies with the aim of completing a doctoral degree within four years of the admission to the doctoral programme. Full-time doctoral students need to have funding allocated for the doctoral studies (e.g. project funding, a personal grant or funding from an employer). Students working outside of Aalto University who wish to be full-time doctoral students must provide a document of their employers' approval for full-time doctoral studies (80 % of their working hours must be dedicated to doctoral studies).

Part-time doctoral student

Part-time doctoral students are those who do not meet the above-mentioned requirements for full-time doctoral students. Their studies are planned in such a way that the time spent on doctoral studies will last longer than four years but no more than eight years. A part-time doctoral student typically has a main occupation outside the School of Engineering, which occupation does not include scientific research for the doctoral dissertation. A part-time doctoral candidate typically has a main occupation outside the School of Electrical Engineering which does not include scientific research for doctoral dissertation.

Language of degree of a doctoral candidate

The doctoral candidate will define in his/her application for doctoral studies in which language he/she will pursue his/her degree (the language of the degree). The possible languages are Finnish, Swedish, or English. If the doctoral candidate chooses to write his/her doctoral dissertation (the compiling part of a compilation dissertation or a monograph) in Finnish or Swedish, the language of degree of the doctoral candidate will be Finnish or Swedish. The language of the degree is approved by the doctoral programme committee.

The language of the degree can, on reasonable grounds, be changed later if e.g. the language of the doctoral dissertation changes. A freely formulated, signed application indicating reasons for why the language of degree should be changed, shall be submitted to the doctoral programme of the School of electrical Engineering together with the degree certificate application.

Finnish or Swedish as a language of degree

A doctoral candidate whose language of degree is Finnish or Swedish will be granted the degree certificate in Finnish or Swedish along with a translation in English. If the doctoral candidate writes his/her dissertation in Finnish or Swedish, the language of the degree will always be Finnish or Swedish despite the earlier choice of language.

English as a language of degree

If the doctoral dissertation is written in English, the doctoral candidate can choose English as a language of degree.

If the doctoral candidate’s language of degree is English, he or she will be granted the degree certificate in English and in Finnish or Swedish. The language of degree will be mentioned in the diploma supplement, and it will be indicated in the degree certificate that two degree certificates have been given.

Language requirements

Successful applicants must have an excellent command of Finnish, Swedish or English. All guest students and international students applying for master's or doctoral studies offered in English must demonstrate their proficiency in English. Applicants are required to attach an official language test report to their application.

The following groups are exempted from the language test requirement:

Applicants who have completed a higher education degree

• taught in Finnish, Swedish or English in a higher education institution in Finland.
• in an English-medium programme at a higher education institution in an EU/EEA country, provided that all parts of the degree were completed in English.
  • The language of the degree must be stated unambiguously in the degree certificate or its appendix, or in the transcript of records or other official document issued by the awarding higher education institution.
• an English-medium higher education degree requiring a physical on-site presence at a higher education institution in the United States, Canada, United Kindgom, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand.

Only the above-mentioned groups are exempted from the language test requirement, for all other applicants the official English language test result is an obligatory application document and applications without the adequate test result will not be accepted.

The accepted language tests and their minimum scores

The minimum requirements are very strict. If your score does not fulfill the minimum requirements, you are not eligible to apply and your application cannot be accepted.

1. IELTS (Academic only): 6.5, and 5.5 for Writing;
2. TOEFL:
   1. iBT (Internet-based Test): 92, and 22 for the Writing section or
   2. PBT (Paper-based Test): 580, and 4.0 for the Writing section or
   3. PDT (Paper-Delivered Test) Reading 22, Listening 22, and Writing 24
3. Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English (CAE): A,B or C
4. Cambridge Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE): A,B,C or Level C1
5. Pearson Test of English Academic (PTE A): 62, and 54 for writing;

No other English proficiency tests are accepted. If an applicant has taken several language tests, the best official score that is still valid and received by Aalto University by the deadline will be considered in the admissions procedure. You cannot combine scores from different test dates (e.g. TOEFL MyBest scores is not accepted).

ALL applicants are required to provide the following application documents

1. Application form / Hakemuslomake
2. Curriculum vitae (CV) which includes a list of publications and proof of other scientific activity
3. Preliminary study plan for 40 ECTS courses to be completed (Study plan must be signed by the applicant and the supervising professor).
   1. Structure of doctoral degree 40 ECTS
   2. Doctoral courses should be indicated with D in the course name
   3. Course information at MyCourses.aalto.fi
   4. Check the current courses for doctoral studies
   5. Check the courses suitable for Scientific practices and principles module

NOTE! Applicants who are applying for a full-time doctoral study right should do their personal study plan in a way that allows for the doctorate to be earned in four years of full-time study.

1. Preliminary research proposal and schedule for its completion. The proposal must include the signatures of the applicant and the professor in charge of the research field applied for (i.e. supervising professor). Example.Research proposal includes:
   1. The schedule of the research
   2. Implementation of the scientific plan
   3. The professor in charge of the field of research is committed to supervising the doctoral dissertation (signature)
   4. Preliminary funding plan (if funding plan is not a part of research plan)
   5. Supervision plan (must be signed by the applicant and the supervising professor)
   6. copy of passport or other official identification that indicates the citizenship of the applicant

Applicants with a master’s degree earned at another institution than Aalto University should also provide the following documents:

• Master’s degree certificate and official transcripts of records and their translations if the originals are not in Finnish, Swedish or English
• Bachelor’s degree certificate and official transcripts of records and their translations if the originals are not in Finnish, Swedish or English
• an English abstract of the master's thesis
• proof of language skills, see Language requirements for more specific information on the requirements
• statement of a professor in charge of the research field applied for confirming the applicant's aptitude for doctoral studies

Original degree certificates are requested after admission

After admission, you are asked to present your original degree certificate or a certified copy of them and a final transcript upon enrolment so please remember to take them with you. 

Before submitting the application

• The applicant should contact a professor in charge of their intended research field of doctoral studies and the supervision of the studies. Applicants are urged to ensure that their expertise and research interests are commensurate with the research group (and those of the supervising professor of their studies) that they apply to.
• In order to prepare for the discussion, it is beneficiary to prepare a CV (along with a list of possible publications) and a preliminary research plan for the intended doctoral studies.
• In addition, a study plan, a funding plan and a supervision plan should be discussed with the supervising professor.
• At this point the applicant’s eligibility and prerequisites for doctoral studies will be checked by the supervising professor.
• The possible prerequisites for entry will also be discussed. If needed, the professor may set prerequisites for admission into the doctoral programme.
• The professor also assesses the applicant's aptitude for doctoral studies, the suitability of the dissertation topic for the research field;
• and evaluates the adequacy of the supervising resources and prepares a statement for the doctoral programme committee.

More information about the rights and responsibilities of the doctoral candidates and the supervising professor  

When signing the research proposal and other documents of the applicant, the professor commits him/herself to supervising the dissertation.