FAQ: tuition fees, scholarships & other financial matters

Here you can find answers to frequently asked questions about the
tuition fees, scholarship and other financial matters.
Who is liable to pay? How does the scholarship programme work?
What are the living expenses?

Tuition fees

If I have citizenship in a European Union (EU) country, European Economic Area (EEA) country, or Switzerland?

You are not required to pay tuition fees. Please note that you are required to provide proof of your status as a citizen of an EU/EEA country or Switzerland when applying for admission. EEA countries include the following non-EU countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.

If I have a valid certificate of the permanent right of residence of a UK citizen in Finland (or a certificate from Migri that I have applied for this certificate by 30 September 2021), or a residence card for a family member of an EU or UK citizen residing in Finland?

You are not required to pay tuition fees.

If I have a Finnish residence permit of type P, P-EU, or EU Blue card?

You are not required to pay tuition fees for the period that the permit is valid.

If I have a continuous residence permit (type A)?

You are not required to pay tuition fees for the period that the permit is valid, unless the following applies to you:
- If your continuous residence permit (type A) is granted for studying, you are required to pay tuition fees.
- If your first residence permit in Finland was granted for the purpose of studying, you must pay tuition fees, even if you later obtained a continuous residence permit (type A) on other grounds.
- If you have a continuous residence permit (type A) based on family ties in Finland, and your family member originally came to Finland on a residence permit granted for studying, you are also required to pay tuition fees.

If I have a fixed-term temporary residence permit (Type B) in Finland?

You are required to pay tuition fees (unless it is a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection).

If I have a residence permit in an EU/EEA country other than Finland?

This does not affect your residence permit status in Finland. You will most likely need to apply for a residence permit based on studies in Finland (Type A for studying), in which case you will be liable to pay tuition fees.

If I am a close family member of a citizen of an EU or EEA country or Switzerland who is residing in Finland?

If your close family member has citizenship in an EU/EEA country or Switzerland, they have the right of residence in Finland. This means that they are allowed to be in Finland for longer than three months without needing a residence permit.
You can be considered a family member if you are a spouse, a registered partner, or a common-law spouse; a child under the age of 21 who is financially dependent on their parent(s); or a parent who is financially dependent on their child who lives in Finland. As a family member, you can obtain a residence card for a family member of an EU citizen; if you hold such a permit, you are not required to pay tuition fees.

If I am a close family member of a citizen of an EU/EEA country or Switzerland who is NOT residing in Finland?

This does not affect your residence permit status in Finland. You will most likely need to apply for a residence permit based on studies in Finland (Type A for studying), in which case you will be liable to pay tuition fees.

If I am a close family member of a person who has a Finnish residence permit of type A (granted for a purpose other than studies), P, P-EU, or EU Blue card?

You can be considered a family member if you are a spouse, a registered partner, or a common-law spouse; a child under the age of 21 who is financially dependent on their parent(s); or a parent who is financially dependent on their child who lives in Finland.

As a family member of a person who holds one of the permits, you can obtain a residence card for a family member. This permit exempts you from paying tuition fees for the period that the permit is valid, unless your family member originally came to Finland on a residence permit granted for studying. In this case, you are required to pay tuition fees.

If I have temporary protection in Finland?

If you possess a residence permit on the basis of temporary protection in Finland, you are not required to pay tuition fees for the period that the permit is valid. The permit has to be valid at the beginning of the study right (1 August) and cannot be revoked at a later stage.

If I have temporary protection in an EU/EEA country other than Finland?

This does not affect your tuition fee liability status in Finland. If you are eligible for temporary protection in Finland, and you receive a Finnish residence permit on the basis of temporary protection before the beginning of your study right (1 August), you are not required to pay tuition fees for the period that the permit is valid. If not, you will need to apply for a residence permit based on studies in Finland (Type A for studying), in which case you will be liable to pay tuition fees.

If I am an asylum seeker?

You are required to pay tuition fees while you are an asylum seeker. If you get a fixed-term continuous residence permit (Type A granted on the basis of international protection) to Finland, you will be exempted from paying tuition fees starting from the semester following the change of status.

Bachelor's Degree Programmes

9,000 EUR per year (4,500 after JYU Scholarship):

Business Innovation and Sustainability

The target duration of bachelor's degree studies is 3 academic years.

Master's Degree Programmes

8,000 EUR per year (4,000 after JYU Scholarship):

Artificial Intelligence
Information Systems
Language, Globalization and Intercultural Communication
Music and Science
Psychology of Physical Activity, Health and Wellbeing
Responsible Management and Business of Sport

10,000 EUR per year (5,000 after JYU Scholarship):

Banking and International Finance
Biology of Physical Activity
Corporate Environmental Management
Development, Education and International Cooperation
Digital Marketing and Corporate Communication
Educational Sciences
High-Performance Computing
International Business and Entrepreneurship

12,000 EUR per year (6,000 after JYU Scholarship):

Biological and Environmental Science
Chemistry and Analytics for Circular Economy
Nanoscience
Physics

The target duration of master's degree studies is 2 academic years.

Tuition fees and scholarships

The Ģ��ֱ�� will decide whether you are required to pay tuition fees based on your nationality and a possible residence permit decision made by the Finnish Immigration Service, which is checked from the copy of your residence permit card attached to your application (if applicable).

If you have applied for a residence permit but have not received the decision by the time your study right begins (1st of August), you are required to pay the fee. If you receive a residence permit that exempts you from paying tuition fees you will not be required to pay tuition fees starting from the semester following the change of status.

You can find more information on the page linked below.

Tuition fee policy

The tuition listed for each programme is a total for one academic year. You will need to pay the tuition for each academic year / semester that you register for attendance. First-year students are required to pay the tuition fee in one instalment for the whole academic year before the beginning of studies. Starting from the second year, it is possible to pay for one semester at a time.

Please note, that during 2025 admission round, all eligible admitted scholarship applicants are automatically granted JYU Scholarship, which covers 50% of the tuition fee.

For more information:

Scholarships and tuition fees

After you have accepted your study place in the Studyinfo portal and submitted the scholarship acceptance form (if applicable), we will send you the payment instructions by email. If you are a JYU Scholarship recipients, 50% of the tuition fee will be deducted from your tuition fee sum. Please note that:

A first-year student must pay the tuition fee in one instalment for the entire first study year before starting their studies. The deadline is the 31st of July.
The default payment method is online payment with a Visa or Mastercard. If you are unable to use this payment method, we will issue you an invoice to pay the tuition fee via bank transfer.
The payment must be made with no charges to the beneficiary. This means that you are responsible for paying any transaction costs your bank may charge.

You can complete more than 180 ECTS credits in the bachelor's programme and 120 ECTS credits in the master's programmes, if the extra credits can be included in your degree (your faculty will advise you on choosing suitable studies for your degree). The number of credits obtained does not affect tuition fees; tuition fees are tied to the time you use to complete your degree.

If you are liable to pay tuition fees, you need to pay the tuition fee for each semester during which you are registered for attendance at JYU. However, please note that the JYU Scholarship is only granted for the target completion times. Therefore, if your studies are delayed, you will have to pay the full tuition fee for the extra semesters.

The target completion times for the degrees:

Bachelor's degree: 3 academic years
Master's degree: 2 academic years

Maximum completion times for the degrees:

Bachelor's and master's degree: 7 academic years
Bachelor's degree: 4 academic years
Master's degree: 4 academic years

Scholarships

You can apply for JYU Scholarship using the same application form that you use to apply for admission. On the admission application you need to fill in the appropriate section.

The application is open during the application period on Studyinfo portal:

The application period starts on 8 January 2025 at 8 a.m. (EET) and ends on 22 January 2025 at 3 p.m. (EET).

Instructions on how to apply

Yes!

However, in order to receive the JYU scholarship for the second year (and for the third year in the case of the bachelor’s programme), students need to make sufficient progress in their studies. This means they must complete a minimum of 55 ECTS credits during the previous academic year to qualify for the scholarship for the next year.

If you have been admitted to the Bachelor of Business Innovation and Sustainability programme and continue your study path to a master’s degree, you’ll be granted the JYU Scholarship for the master’s studies as well, on the condition that you complete your bachelor’s degree within three academic years.

For more information, please visit:

Scholarships and tuition fees

During 2025 admission round, each eligible successfully admitted applicant, who applied for the scholarship will be offered JYU Scholarshipwhich covers 50% of the tuition fee.

The right to the scholarship will be lost if a student doesn't start their studies in 2025. To receive scholarship for the following year, student need to make sufficient progress in their studies (i.e., complete a minimum of 55 ECTS credits during their first year).

You can find more detailed information along with each programme's tuition fee amount on our webpage linked below.

Scholarships & tuition fees

The JYU Scholarship covers 50% of the tuition fee. The scholarship is awarded for three academic years in the bachelor's degree programme, and for two academic years in the master's degree programmes.

However, receiving the scholarship for the next academic year after the 1st year of studies depends on whether your studies progress as planned: to receive the scholarship for the second year (and the third year in the bachelor's degree programme), you must complete at least 55 ECTS credits of degree studies during the previous academic year.

Please note that the annual tuition fee includes:

Educational expenses such as courses, academic supervision, exams, and counselling.
University support services, e.g. student services, library access, digital services, etc.

The tuition fee does not include:

Personal study-related costs such as study materials (books, computers, stationary, etc.).
Any other costs that may be charged according to university rules or national legislation, e.g. the mandatory fees for Student Union membership and FSHS healthcare services.

You must ensure that you have the financial means to pay your rent, personal expenses, transportation costs, meals, insurance etc. Monthly living expenses for students (including food, accommodation, clothes, travel, etc.) are estimated to be around €800 – €900, depending on where you live and your personal living habits.

The right to the scholarship will be lost if a student doesn't start their studies in 2025. A scholarship may only be postponed over academic years or semesters during which the student is officially registered for non-attendance. If that's your first study year at JYU, you cannot register as non-attending except in situations specified in the Universities Act (e.g., parental leave or personal sickness or injury).

For further information, please see the page linked below.

Registering for non-attendance during the first year of studies

Kaksi opiskelijaa seisoo päärakennuksen takana ja toinen katsoo puhelintaan ja toinen nauraa

Other financial matters

Avoimen yliopiston opinnoissa voit perehtyä talouden kysymyksiin niin henkilökohtaisella kuin yhteiskunnallisella tasolla. (Kuva: Micheile Henderson)

Please note that if you are under 18 years old when you start the studies in Finland, you are legally a minor and you can’t for example make a rental agreement for accommodation, electricity contract or open a bank account by yourself. Therefore, life in Finland as a minor student without parents can be very challenging.

Monthly living expenses for students (including accommodation, food, traveling, phone bills etc) are estimated to be around €800-€900, depending on where you live and your personal living habits. Note that the first month when moving to Finland can be more expensive, due to buying furniture, warm clothes, and other one-time purchases.

In case you are planning to bring your family with you, please note that the monthly sum required by Finnish immigration authorities will be higher. For example, the family of one adult student, another adult, and one underage child should have 2020 € per month at their disposal (800+610+610 €).

You can read more detailed estimations and information about budgeting from the blog post linked below.

Student story: How to budget for student life in Finland

Joining the Student Union is mandatory for degree students, and the membership fee is 76,50€ for the full academic year. However, with the student card you will be entitled to many benefits such as student-priced lunches (starting from € 2,95 at the student cafeterias) and significant discounts on long-distance trains and coaches. Furthermore, many restaurants, stores and other businesses offer student discounts.

The Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS) provides general health, dental and mental health services for Bachelor's and Master's level degree students. Students are required to pay the student healthcare fee (36,80€) each semester, unless they possess an EHIC card.

If you are a EU/EEA national, you have the right to work in Finland without any work permit or restrictions on hours. However, please take into account that all JYU degree programmes require full-time studies on campus.

If you are from outside of the EU/EEA countries, you have the right to work part-time (maximum 30 hours a week on average) with the student’s residence status. Non-EU/EEA are required to have at least 9,600 EUR in their bank account when applying for a residence permit (in April) to cover living expenses for the first year, and are, therefore, expected to acquire funds to support themselves before moving to Finland.

Please note that finding a part-time job in Finland can be difficult, and you should not count on getting a job to finance your studies.

Finding a part-time job in Finland is difficult, especially if you don't possess Finnish language skills. Also, students are a big part of Jyväskylä's population, which makes part-time jobs even more competitive. You should not count on getting a job to finance your studies. However, you are very welcome to use the services of the to improve your employability and learn about job search in Finland. You can also use the services of the , which provides guidance regarding employment, and entrepreneurship and organizes events for the international population of Jyväskylä.

Please note, that non-EU/EEA are required to have at least 9,600 EUR in their bank account when applying for a residence permit (in April) to cover living expenses for the first year.

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