Students are admitted to study for a Master of Science in Technology degree in the Master’s Programme in Telecommunication Engineering on the basis of a polytechnic level Bachelor’s degree, university level Bachelor’s (or Master’s) degree, or suitable Bachelor’s degree (3-4 years) completed outside Finland. The annual intake of the programme is 25 students.
The students are admitted to study Telecommunication Engineering in the field of Computer Science. The degree of accepted students must be completed and the degree certificate awarded by the deadline of accepting the offered study place (31 July 2012).
The applicants who have not yet completed their Bachelor’s degree by the application deadline must submit a transcript of records stating all the completed courses and an estimation of the graduation date issued by the higher-education institution when applying for admission to the programme. The students who have not yet completed their Bachelor’s degree may be offered conditional admission to the programme. This means that the study right is given to the students only if the student graduates and receives his/her degree certificate by the deadline of accepting the opening (31 July 2012).
Students are admitted to the programme on the basis of their application documents. The admission is based on the previous studies of the applicants (e.g. studies in Telecommunication and Mathematics), English language proficiency, work experience, and motivation of the student.
Applications to the programme may be submitted to the university once a year, during the application period starting in early spring. The applications are evaluated and the students selected by the staff of Telecommunication Engineering unit. The admission results are sent to the applicants by the International Office.
The accepted students may be required to complete supplementary studies (maximum 60 ECTS) as part of their degree to supplement the skills and knowledge acquired during their previous studies to the level required in the Master level studies:
- Students who have completed a Bachelor’s degree in the field of technology at a polytechnic are required to complete approximately 30 ECTS of supplementary studies as instructed by the programme.
- Students who have completed an appropriate degree in a university are usually not required to complete any supplementary studies.
If necessary, the need for supplementary studies is estimated case-by-case by the unit based on the applicants previous studies (0–60 ECTS).
The studies in the programme begin in autumn semester. It takes approximately 2-2,5 years to complete the studies in the programme. The programme comprises 120 ECTS as well as the possible supplementary studies.
Admission Criteria
The annual intake of the Master's Programme in Telecommunication Engineering is 25 students. Approximately half of these 25 students are admitted to the programme on the basis of a previous degree completed outside Finland.
Applicants are eligible to apply for admission to the programme if they have completed
- a Bachelor’s degree (3-4 years) in an appropriate field outside Finland or
- a university level Bachelor’s (or Master’s) degree in an appropriate field in Finland
- a polytechnic level Bachelor’s degree in an appropriate field in Finland.
The appropriate fields include e.g. telecommunications, computer science, automation or electrical engineering, or others similar to the aforementioned fields of study.
The Bachelor’s degree must be completed and the degree certificate awarded by the deadline of accepting the study place (31 July 2012). The applicants who have not completed their degree by the application deadline must submit a transcript of records stating all the completed courses in their application. In addition, an explanation of the courses not yet included in the transcript (not yet completed) is required.
The students who have not yet completed their Bachelor’s degree may be offered conditional admission to the programme. This means that the study right is given to the students only if the student graduates and receives his/her degree certificate by the deadline of accepting the opening.
The applicants are required to have skills in the following areas when applying for admission to the programme:
- Mathematics (integral transforms, algebra)
- Basics of Physics (electromagnetism, waves)
- Programming skills
- Basics of theoretical electrical engineering and/or electronics
- Basics of telecommunication engineering
In addition, knowledge of the following areas may be considered as an advantage in the admission process:
- Telecommunication systems
- Embedded systems
- Automatic control engineering / signal processing
- Operating systems
- User interfaces
When applying for admission, the applicants are required to prove their English language proficiency in one of the following ways:
- Official TOEFL -test with minimum score of 550 in paper-based test, 213 in computer-based test or 79 in iBT (The University of Vaasa TOEFL code is 0647)
- Official IELTS test (Academic) with minimum score of 6.0 (each section minimum 5.5)
- Official Certificate of Proficiency in English (CPE) with pass grade A, B or C
- Official Certificate in Advanced English (CAE) with pass grade A, B or C
- Official National Certificate of Language Proficiency (arranged by Finnish National Board of Education) with an average language skill level 5 or 6 in the English language
- Certificate of secondary education completed in English in EU / EEA countries, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa
- Certificate of English as the A language (i.e. mother tongue) as a part of International Baccalaureate degree, or as the LI (i.e. mother tongue) or the LII (i.e. as the official language) as a part of European Baccalaureate degree
- Bachelor's or Master's degree (or equivalent) completed in English in one of the EU / EEA countries, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand or South Africa. If the language of instruction (English) is not clearly stated in the degree certificate, it is to be verified by a certificate signed by a university official
- English as the major subject in Bachelor's or Master's degree
- Certificate of English as a foreign language in a Finnish university degree
Evaluation of the applications (0-40 points):
- Degree certificate (suitability of the major subject in Bachelor's degree to the Master's programme in question, scope of the degree, applicant’s success in the previous studies) 0-25 points
- Work experience 0-5 points (on the basis of the submitted application documents)
- Motivation 0-5 points (on the basis of the Letter of Motivation)
- Skills in Mathematics 0-5 points (on the basis of the submitted application documents)
Accepted students must register as attending students personally at the University by the registration deadline. Students may not register as non-attending for the first semester and cannot postpone the beginning of their studies in the programme. The offer of the study place is valid only for the one particular intake.
Application
Application period starts on 1 January 2012 and ends on 28 February 2012. The electronic applications must be filled and saved to the system by 28 February 2012 at 24.00 (local, Finnish time). The applicants must fill in an electronic application form, print out and sign the form generated by the system, and submit the required application documents together with the printed application form to the university by 13 March 2012 at 16.15 (local, Finnish time) at the very latest.
To be enclosed in the application:
- Degree certificate(s) of previous studies
- Transcript of university records. The transcript should clearly state the completed courses and the grades. An explanation of the grading system should also be enclosed in the transcript.
- Photocopy of passports information page / official ID
- Letter of Motivation
The letter of Motivation is used to assess the applicant's enthusiasm and commitment to studying Telecommunication Engineering at the University of Vaasa. The letter should be a maximum of two pages and should, at the very least, provide clear and compelling answers to the following questions:
I) Why am I applying for admission to this programme at the University of Vaasa?
II) What especially interests me in the programme?
III) How do my previous study and/or work experiences support my application, i.e. why should I be admitted?
IV) The Master's Programme in Telecommunication Engineering requires strong background in mathematics (like matrix analysis and calculus), stochastic analysis, and programming (e.g., C, C++, Matlab). Explain your strengths in these branches. - CV: Please use the Europass CV form
- Proof of language proficiency
The applicants may also enclose other documents to the application (e.g. work certificates, recommendation letters, certificates of studies or courses) if they are relevant in the admission process and support the application. The documents must be submitted to the university in English, Finnish or Swedish. Original documents must be presented in the registration if the applicant is offered a study place in the programme.
The evaluation of the applicants’ previous studies is made by the programme representatives. The Dean makes the final decision about admitted students.
Please see the General Application Instructions for information on how to submit your application to the university.
Detailed programme structure and course descriptions of the Master's Programme in Telecommunication Engineering (please navigate with the menu on the left-hand side of the page)
