More than 19,000 applicants to the University of Oulu Finnish-taught programmes

A total of 19,288 people applied to the University of Oulu in the second joint application round in spring 2026. In the application round, which closed on Tuesday, March 24, there are 2,451 study places available in Finnish-taught degree programmes at the University of Oulu. The number of applicants increased slightly compared to last year. The number of individuals who listed the University of Oulu as their first preference was 5,425.

There were 80 different options to apply for in total. The most popular fields in the joint application were medicine (4,999 applicants), psychology (2,594 applicants), business studies (2,489 applicants), dentistry (1,321 applicants) and classroom teacher education (1,105 applicants).

On average, around 70 per cent of students are selected based on their matriculation examination certificate, with the rest chosen through entrance exams. The results of the certificate-based selection will be published by May 25, 2026 at the latest, and the results of the other selections July 2 at the latest. Applicants can track their own status through the national Oma Opintopolku service.

From this application period onwards, there will be nationally 11 different scoring tables in certificate selection, instead of the previous approximately 50 scoring tables.

University entrance examinations were renewed last spring. Nationally, universities now have only nine different entrance exams, each of which can be used to apply for several fields. All exams can be taken in several cities across Finland.

The Ministry of Education and Culture currently has a draft law on study voucher experimentation under consultation. The experiment would enable 30 study credits of free studies at an open university for young adults who do not secure a place through the joint application process.

Created 26.3.2026 | Updated 26.3.2026