Doctoral Programme of Social and Behavioural Sciences - Admission Criteria and Instructions for Applicants

Call for applications DPSoc - Autumn 2025 (pdf)

Application forms

Note: The study right for a doctoral degree and the doctoral researcher position with employment contract are applied on separate forms in two different systems.

• Links to the application forms are available on the Graduate School Application forms -page
• The study right for a doctoral degree is applied in StudyInfo (In Studyinfo choose: Fill in application form)
• The doctoral researchers position with an employment contract is applied in Talentti system (TalentAdore)
• The forms are accessible only during the application period and they close at 4 pm (local time in Finland, Europe/Helsinki) on the last day of the application period
• Please familiarize yourself with the application forms well before the end of the application period and allow sufficient time to obtain and/or draw up the necessary attachments

A general prerequisite for the right to pursue postgraduate studies is an applicable higher academic degree, or a relevant degree from abroad which in the country in question provides eligibility for corresponding postgraduate studies.

To gain admission to pursue a licentiate or doctoral degree in social sciences, the applicant must either have a higher academic degree (master’s degree) in the field of social sciences, or be one whom the faculty considers otherwise to have gained sufficient knowledge and skills.

To gain admission to pursue a licentiate or doctoral degree in psychology, the applicant must have a higher academic degree (master’s degree) in psychology, or be one whom the faculty considers otherwise to have gained sufficient knowledge and skills.

To gain admission to pursue a Doctor of Philosophy degree, the faculty must find the applicant eligible for doctoral studies in philosophy, speech-language pathology or psychology.

Language requirements for admission / Right to study for a doctoral degree:

https://www.utu.fi/en/research/utugs/how-to-apply/language

A high-quality research plan is the most essential selection criteria and it demonstrates the applicant's capabilities for doctoral training. The research plan is done independently. Preparing your research plan carefully will help you stand out from other qualified applicants. Please note that the Doctoral Programme of Social and Behavioural Sciences will evaluate the quality of your research plan as well as the suitability of your research topic in relation to the research profile and expertise of the major subject and its faculty.

The research plan must not exceed 6 pages (A4, spacing 1, font 12, excluding list of references).

A research plan needs to include the following components:

1. Abstract
2. Introduction of research setting
3. Research methods, data sets, schedule and supervision
4. Research project’s link to career plan of the applicant

See more detailed instructions from the Research plan guidelines (DPSoc) (pdf) 

By including the research plan to the application the applicant gives permission for checking the research plan with Turnitin OriginalityCheck (system for electrical plagiarism detection). The use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the research plan must be clearly stated in the application.

The application period for the Doctoral Programme of Social and Behavioural Sciences is two times per year:

• September (study right from 1 January)
• March (study right from 1 August)

The exact application periods are listed on the top of this page.

You can apply:

• a right to pursue a doctoral degree at the University of Turku (both application periods)
• a fixed-term funded doctoral researcher position (only in the autum application period)

The applications are submitted during the application period on electronic forms. More information and instructions for applying from the top of this page. Note: applications via email are not accepted. 

The objective of the selection process of doctoral researchers is to have students suitable for a research career track who are skilled, motivated, and committed to research and doctoral studies.

A general prerequisite for the right to pursue postgraduate studies is an applicable higher academic degree, or a relevant degree from abroad which in the country in question provides eligibility for corresponding postgraduate studies. A maximum of 50 students are admitted to the Faculty of Social Sciences each year.

The selection criteria are as follows:

• a sufficient grade in the advanced studies stage of a master’s degree - usually at least a good evaluation is required
• a sufficient grade for the master’s thesis – usually at least cum laude approbatur or 3 on a scale of 1-5
• the quality and feasibility of the applicant’s research plan
• availability of resources for supervision

In addition, the doctoral researcher must have sufficient knowledge of English.

For each application period a call for application is published. The call for applications includes all selection criteria, possibly also others than listed above, as well as instructions for applying.

Please, see general requirements also from: the Faculty of Social Sciences instructions on the applying for the right to study for doctoral degree.

The fixed-term funded doctoral researcher positions with an employment contract can be applied in each autumn. The amount of available positions varies each year. There are usually a couple of four-year doctoral researcher positions available each year, plus a few shorter contracts. For each application period a call for applications is published. It includes instructions for applying and the criteria for evaluation.

The board of the doctoral programme will process the applications and invite external experts to evaluate them.

In the evaluation, particular attention will be paid to the following:

• quality of the research plan (general quality, feasibility, relation to doctoral programme research profile)
• success in previous studies (master’s thesis grade and other studies)
• academic merits and progress in studies towards a doctoral degree (publications, conference presentations, activity in scientific associations, scientific awards, amount of studies in study register, studying speed, etc.).

The evaluation is carried out as an overall assessment, taking into account the stage of the research career. The funding needs of applicants in relation to the funding periods available will also be taken into account. The doctoral programme aims to promote all its research fields, which may be taken into consideration when positions are filled.

Evaluation process of applications:

• doctoral programme checks the applications
• applications that meet the criteria are evaluated in the disciplines/departments
• according to the evaluation in the disciplines/departments about 12 applications will be send for external evaluation
• the Steering Committee of the doctoral programme makes a proposal to the departments of the Faculty of Social Sciences for the selection of the doctoral researchers
• the decision on the appointment is made by the Head of each department

- Philosophy: Helena Siipi, helena.siipi(a)utu.fi
- East Asian Studies: Lauri Paltemaa, lauri.paltemaa(a)utu.fi
- Speech and Language Pathology, Elina Mainela-Arnold, elina.mainela-arnold(a)utu.fi  
- Contemporary History: Vesa Vares, vesa.vares(a)utu.fi
- Psychology: Johanna Kaakinen, johanna.kaakinen(a)utu.fi 
- Social Policy: Veli-Matti Ritakallio and Heikki Ervasti, veli-matti.ritakallio(a)utu.fi / heikki.ervasti(a)utu.fi
- Social Work: Mia Hakovirta, mia.hakovirta(a)utu.fi
- Sociology: Outi Sarpila, outi.sarpila(a)utu.fi
- Economic Sociology: Pekka Räsänen, pekka.rasanen(a)utu.fi
- Political Science: Antti Pajala, antti.pajala(a)utu.fi

Enquiries for a supervisor must be included with an abstract of the research plan and CV. 

When applying for the right to study, the applicant must provide in the application a supervisor from the doctoral programme who meets the requirements of the faculty and who has approved the research plan and agreed to be the first supervisor of the research. A supervisor's commitment to supervise the the dissertation must be attached to the application. The supervisor must have a doctoral degree thesis and one of the supervisors must be from the discipline to which the application is addressed.

You can familiarize yourself with the faculty's disciplines as well as the research and teaching staff on the faculty's website.

Enquiries for a supervisor must be included with an abstract of the research plan and CV.