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Incoming exchange students

Students from our partner institutions are welcome to apply for an exchange semester or for the whole academic year in Centria UAS.

Application process

Students of partner institutions are welcome to apply for exchange studies in Centria University of Applied Sciences. We are glad to host international students for one semester either in the autumn or spring, as well as for the whole academic year. Centria UAS has six main international mobility programmes to receive exchange students. You can find the application instructions for each programme separately below.

Please, first be in contact with the Erasmus Coordinator of your home institution if you are planning to apply for Erasmus+ exchange to Centria UAS. You can send your application to us after being nominated by your home university in email. Centria UAS is using an application system called SoleMOVE, and this is where you will need to fill in your application and send the required documents to us.

How should I apply?

Soon after we received your nomination from your home institution, we will create you a SoleMOVE profile, and contact you shortly in email regarding further details and steps, so you can start your application. Please check your junk folder as well, since our SoleMOVE email will be sent from a noreply address. The steps are described in the email, as well as in the below points:

  1. Before doing any further actions, please thoroughly read this webpage for exchange students. All information and updates can be found here, including courses and other details regarding the 2023/24 academic year.
  2. After reading this webpage and familiarising yourself with the instructions, you can activate your user account for our SoleMOVE application system through the link you find in the email. It is recommended that you use Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browser.
  3. Your userid is mentioned in the email, and you can set up your new password during your first login.
  4. Once you read and accepted the data processing conditions and you are logged into your profile, you need to click on “Application form for incoming student mobility“. Do not click on “Application form for short student mobility”.
  5. Within “Application form for incoming student mobility”, please select either study or traineeship as your mobility type. If you are planning to take courses in Centria UAS, you are applying for studies, if you are planning to spend your practice (e.g. in the hospital), you are applying for traineeship. Except a few cases, students are usually nominated by their home institutions for studies. It is crucial that you select the right mobility type, as the application form appearing will be different. Do not select “Combined study and traineeship”.
  6. Once you selected the right mobility type, an application form will appear. Please fill in all pages of the form, attach your enclosures, and keep saving your progress. Compulsory fields are marked with a *, and the system will not let you proceed until you fill those spots in. Enclosures that you need to attach to your SoleMOVE application are the following:
    • Learning Agreement (or Online Learning Agreement): You may address this document to the responsible person of the degree programme you are applying to. You can get this information from the Centria Factsheet. Besides this, you will also need the lists of courses available for exchange students to prepare the document. When you are ready, please attach the Learning Agreement to SoleMOVE, or send it to us in OLA. We will sign it for you on our part later.
    • A clear portrait photo of yourself
    • Transcript of Records issued in English from your home institution
    • Motivation Letter explaining the reasons why you wish to study in Centria UAS (max. 1 page).
    • Proof of Language Qualification confirming your skills in English. You need to be on a minimum (CEFR) B2 level to study and to communicate with others during your exchange. Proof can be either one of the most common and internationally used academic tests, a certificate from your home country clearly stating your level, or a declaration written by an English language teacher in your home institution. Native speakers do not need to provide a certificate.
    • Passport, or National Identity Card in case of EU citizens
    • Health Insurance Certificate with adequate cover, that you are planning to use during your exchange. In case of EU citizens, European Health Insurance Card is accepted.
  7. If you wish to return later to finish your application, you can always access your SoleMOVE profile if you click on the given link in the email. When entering, please first choose Centria University of Applied Sciences as your institution, then pick “Local” as your login method. After that you will be able to log in with your username and password that you set previously.
  8. Once you are done, it is crucial that you check and send the application. The deadline to send your application is the 1st of November 23:59, according to (EEST) Finnish time, 2023. Any late application sent after this deadline will be disregarded, so it is cucial that you are ready in time. It is highly advised that you start as early as possible, so we can help you if you experience any trouble with the system.
  9. Please note that you will not be able to edit your data once you sent your application. If sending was successful, you will receive an automatic mail from the system, confirming this. At that point, you are done with the application and you are waiting for us to process it. This will happen in the following days after the 1st of November 2023. Due to the increased interest in our exchange programmes, and the large volume of nominations we receive from our partners, please note that the quality of your application and the amount of applicants may influence your chance to be accepted for a mobility to Centria UAS.

When should I apply?

The application period for the Autumn semester and the whole academic year lasts until the 1st of November 23:59, according to (EEST) Finnish time, 2023. If you are a student nominated only for the spring semester of the 2023/24 academic year, you will need to apply during the autumn application round, and as of right now, you do not yet have any tasks regarding this matter. You will receive your SoleMOVE credentials later during the autumn.

Contact details

If you have any questions, please, contact the International Coordinator of Centria UAS via incoming@centria.fi.

Please, first be in contact with the International Coordinator of your home institution if you are planning to apply for exchange studies to Centria UAS. You can send your application to us after being nominated by your home university in email. Centria UAS is using an application system called SoleMOVE, and this is where you will need to fill in your application and send the required documents to us.

How should I apply?

Soon after we received your nomination from your home institution, we will create you a SoleMOVE profile, and contact you shortly in email regarding further details and steps, so you can start your application. Please check your junk folder as well, since our SoleMOVE email will be sent from a noreply address. The steps are described in the email, as well as in the below points:

  1. Before doing any further actions, please thoroughly read this webpage for exchange students. All information and updates can be found here, including courses and other details regarding the 2023/24 academic year.
  2. After reading this webpage and familiarising yourself with the instructions, you can activate your user account for our SoleMOVE application system through the link you find in the email. It is recommended that you use Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browser.
  3. Your userid is mentioned in the email, and you can set up your new password during your first login.
  4. Once you read and accepted the data processing conditions and you are logged into your profile, you need to click on “Application form for incoming student mobility“. Do not click on “Application form for short student mobility”.
  5. Within “Application form for incoming student mobility”, please select either study or traineeship as your mobility type. If you are planning to take courses in Centria UAS, you are applying for studies, if you are planning to spend your practice (e.g. in the hospital), you are applying for traineeship. Except a few cases, students are usually nominated by their home institutions for studies. It is crucial that you select the right mobility type, as the application form appearing will be different. Do not select “Combined study and traineeship”.
  6. Once you selected the right mobility type, an application form will appear. Please fill in all pages of the form, attach your enclosures, and keep saving your progress. Compulsory fields are marked with a *, and the system will not let you proceed until you fill those spots in. Enclosures that you need to attach to your SoleMOVE application are the following:
    • Learning Agreement (or Online Learning Agreement): You may address this document to the responsible person of the degree programme you are applying to. You can get this information from the Centria Factsheet. Besides this, you will also need the lists of courses available for exchange students to prepare the document. When you are ready, please attach the Learning Agreement to SoleMOVE, or send it to us in OLA. We will sign it for you on our part later.
    • A clear portrait photo of yourself
    • Transcript of Records issued in English from your home institution
    • Motivation Letter explaining the reasons why you wish to study in Centria UAS (max. 1 page).
    • Proof of Language Qualification confirming your skills in English. You need to be on a minimum (CEFR) B2 level to study and to communicate with others during your exchange. Proof can be either one of the most common and internationally used academic tests, a certificate from your home country clearly stating your level, or a declaration written by an English language teacher in your home institution. Native speakers do not need to provide a certificate.
    • Passport, or National Identity Card in case of EU citizens
    • Health Insurance Certificate with adequate cover, that you are planning to use during your exchange. In case of EU citizens, European Health Insurance Card is accepted.
  7. If you wish to return later to finish your application, you can always access your SoleMOVE profile if you click on the given link in the email. When entering, please first choose Centria University of Applied Sciences as your institution, then pick “Local” as your login method. After that you will be able to log in with your username and password that you set previously.
  8. Once you are done, it is crucial that you check and send the application. The deadline to send your application is the 1st of November 23:59, according to (EEST) Finnish time, 2023. Any late application sent after this deadline will be disregarded, so it is cucial that you are ready in time. It is highly advised that you start as early as possible, so we can help you if you experience any trouble with the system.
  9. Please note that you will not be able to edit your data once you sent your application. If sending was successful, you will receive an automatic mail from the system, confirming this. At that point, you are done with the application and you are waiting for us to process it. This will happen in the following days after the 1st of November 2023. Due to the increased interest in our exchange programmes, and the large volume of nominations we receive from our partners, please note that the quality of your application and the amount of applicants may influence your chance to be accepted for a mobility to Centria UAS.

When should I apply?

The application period for the Autumn semester and the whole academic year lasts until the 1st of November 23:59, according to (EEST) Finnish time, 2023. If you are a student nominated only for the spring semester of the 2023/24 academic year, you will need to apply during the autumn application round, and as of right now, you do not yet have any tasks regarding this matter. You will receive your SoleMOVE credentials later during the autumn.

Contact details

If you have any questions, please, contact the International Coordinator of Centria UAS via incoming@centria.fi.

Nordplus is the Nordic Council of Ministers´ most important programme for lifelong learning with more than 10,000 participants from the Nordic and Baltic regions every year.                   

Currently, Centria participates in three Nordplus Networks, two in the field of music and one in the field of medical sciences.

Nordtrad (folk music network) – for more details, please, contact annika.myllari@centria.fi.

Sibelius (classical music network) – for more details, please, contact annika.myllari@centria.fi.

Nordlink (Nursing) – for more details, please, contact katja.heikkiniemi@centria.fi.

The Health Africa Network was founded in 1996 and has been actively collaborating with its Southern partners until the present day in the fields of health care, social work and nutrition.

Partners in Africa

Ministry of Education and Sports, Ministry of Health, Uganda
Mpigi Health Centre, Uganda
International Health Sciences University (IHSU) Kampala, Uganda
Maseno University, Kisumu, Kenya

University Partners in Finland

Centria University of Applied Sciences
Häme University of Applied Sciences
Kajaani University of Applied Sciences
Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences
Mikkeli University of Applied Sciences
Tampere University of Applied Sciences
Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences
Vaasa University of Applied Sciences

Application Deadline

Applications concerning student mobility during the next academic year, i.e. both autumn and spring semesters, should be submitted by 10th February to Timo Kinnunen.

Applications Information

More information regarding the application process and application forms are available from Timo Kinnunen.

Please, first be in contact with the International Coordinator of your home institution if you are planning to apply for virtual exchange studies to Centria UAS. You can send your application to us after being nominated by your home university in email. Centria UAS is using an application system called SoleMOVE, and this is where you will need to fill in your application and send the required documents to us.

Due to the limited number of virtual spots on the courses in the remote model of studies, the places will be distributed on a first-come-first-served basis.

How should I apply?

Soon after we received your nomination from your home institution, we will create you a SoleMOVE profile, and contact you shortly in email regarding further details and steps, so you can start your application. Please check your junk folder as well, since our SoleMOVE email will be sent from a noreply address. The steps are described in the email, as well as in the below points:

  1. Before doing any further actions, please thoroughly read this webpage for exchange students. All information and updates can be found here, including courses and other details regarding the 2023/24 academic year.
  2. After reading this webpage and familiarising yourself with the instructions, you can activate your user account for our SoleMOVE application system through the link you find in the email. It is recommended that you use Chrome or Mozilla Firefox browser.
  3. Your userid is mentioned in the email, and you can set up your new password during your first login.
  4. Once you read and accepted the data processing conditions and you are logged into your profile, you need to click on “Application form for incoming student mobility“. Do not click on “Application form for short student mobility”.
  5. Within “Application form for incoming student mobility”, please select either study or traineeship as your mobility type. If you are planning to take courses in Centria UAS, you are applying for studies, if you are planning to spend your practice (e.g. in the hospital), you are applying for traineeship. Except a few cases, students are usually nominated by their home institutions for studies. It is crucial that you select the right mobility type, as the application form appearing will be different. Do not select “Combined study and traineeship”.
  6. Once you selected the right mobility type, an application form will appear. Please fill in all pages of the form, attach your enclosures, and keep saving your progress. Compulsory fields are marked with a *, and the system will not let you proceed until you fill those spots in. Enclosures that you need to attach to your SoleMOVE application are the following:
    • Learning Agreement (or Online Learning Agreement): You may address this document to the responsible person of the degree programme you are applying to. You can get this information from the Centria Factsheet. Besides this, you will also need the lists of courses available for exchange students to prepare the document. When you are ready, please attach the Learning Agreement to SoleMOVE, or send it to us in OLA. We will sign it for you on our part later.
    • A clear portrait photo of yourself
    • Transcript of Records issued in English from your home institution
    • Motivation Letter explaining the reasons why you wish to study in Centria UAS (max. 1 page).
    • Proof of Language Qualification confirming your skills in English. You need to be on a minimum (CEFR) B2 level to study and to communicate with others during your exchange. Proof can be either one of the most common and internationally used academic tests, a certificate from your home country clearly stating your level, or a declaration written by an English language teacher in your home institution. Native speakers do not need to provide a certificate.
  7. If you wish to return later to finish your application, you can always access your SoleMOVE profile if you click on the given link in the email. When entering, please first choose Centria University of Applied Sciences as your institution, then pick “Local” as your login method. After that you will be able to log in with your username and password that you set previously.
  8. Once you are done, it is crucial that you check and send the application. The deadline to send your application is the 1st of November 23:59, according to (EEST) Finnish time, 2023. Any late application sent after this deadline will be disregarded, so it is cucial that you are ready in time. It is highly advised that you start as early as possible, so we can help you if you experience any trouble with the system.
  9. Please note that you will not be able to edit your data once you sent your application. If sending was successful, you will receive an automatic mail from the system, confirming this. At that point, you are done with the application and you are waiting for us to process it. This will happen in the following days after the 1st of June 2023. Due to the increased interest in our exchange programmes, and the large volume of nominations we receive from our partners, please note that the quality of your application and the amount of applicants may influence your chance to be accepted for a mobility to Centria UAS.

When should I apply?

The application period for the Autumn semester and the whole academic year lasts until the 1st of June 23:59, according to (EEST) Finnish time, 2023. If you are a student nominated only for the spring semester of the 2023/24 academic year, you will need to apply during the autumn application round, and as of right now, you do not yet have any tasks regarding this matter. You will receive your SoleMOVE credentials later during the autumn.

Contact details

If you have any questions, please, contact the International Coordinator of Centria UAS via incoming@centria.fi.

Centria UAS is able to provide an applicant with a practical placement in our premises, laboratories, and partner organizations, if availability allows. Usually, we organize the placements in the following fields:

  • Technology (IT, Automatization of Production, Industrial Engineering, Chemistry, etc.),
  • Social Services,
  • Nursing,
  • International Relations,
  • etc.

How to proceed?

To start the whole process, please prepare the following documents:

  • CV to show your qualifications and experience,
  • Motivation Letter in which you discuss what kind of placement you are looking for and what is the field of your interest.

Send the documents to incoming@centria.fi to consult, if Centria is able to provide you with a suitable offer. We will reply to your inquiry later, and let you know whether there is an opportunity for you to spend a traineeship period in Centria UAS. If so, we will let you know how to proceed.

When should I apply?

For most of our fields, there is no specific deadline to apply for practical placements. Centria handles applications for placements all year long. However, for nursing trainees, due to the low number of available spots, we have established application deadlines. In case you wish to apply for the following Autumn, please contact us latest until the 15th of March, and if you are planning to come for the next Spring, let us know latest until the 15th of October.

Contact details

If you have any questions, please, contact the International Coordinators in Centria via incoming@centria.fi.

Courses for exchange students

Exchange students can choose courses from Centria’s degree programmes. All the below courses are lectured in English on our campus located in Kokkola.

A student is allowed to select courses from various different degree programmes, as long as the sending institution approves such a combination in their learning agreement.

The courses available for exchange students during the academic year 2023/2024 can be found here:

Practical information

Academic Calendar

Academic year 2023/2024: 23.08.2023 – 24.05.2024

Autumn semester 2023: 23.08.2023 – 20.12.2023
Autumn holiday – week 42: 16.10.2023 – 20.10.2023
The exchange will start on 23.08.2023 morning, with the orientation programme organised for incoming students. Orientation programme is part of the exchange. On those days, you will receive important information which will be useful throughout your stay. You will need to arrive a few days earlier, to be able to attend orientation. Details are coming soon for those who are accepted for studies.

Spring semester 2024: 04.01.2024 – 24.05.2024
Winter holiday – week 9: 26.02.2024 – 01.03.2024
The exchange will start on 04.01.2024 morning, with the orientation programme organised for incoming students. Orientation programme is part of the exchange. On those days, you will receive important information which will be useful throughout your stay. You will need to arrive a few days earlier, to be able to attend orientation. Details are coming later for those who are accepted for studies.

Accommodation

Centria UAS does not own any dormitories. However, we cooperate closely with the local landlord called Tankkari, offering affordable accommodation for students. Once you send your exchange application to us, and you indicate your need for a student accommodation in your SoleMOVE application form, Centria will reserve a single room in a Tankkari building for you. There is no need to send a separate application to Tankkari. All rooms rented for exchange students are located within a walking distance from the campus. Your room will be in a shared apartment (2 – 3 students in the same flat with a kitchen and bathroom). The rent varies from 230 to 350€/month, depending on the exact building and location. Before moving in, students need to pay for all months at once, plus a refundable security deposit (350€).

Travelling to Kokkola

Kokkola can be reached easily by train or bus. Travelling here is quite simple: in case you are coming by train, take a commuter train from Helsinki/Vantaa Airport to Tikkurila station, and take a long-distance train to Kokkola from there. If you are coming by bus, take a commuter train from Helsinki/Vantaa Airport to Helsinki Central Railway Station, and from there you can travel one stop to Kamppi bus station by Metro line 1, or walk 7 minutes between the two locations. From Kamppi bus station you can get on buses coming to Kokkola many times per day without further transfer. Although our town can be reached easily by train or bus, there are also flight options from Helsinki to Kokkola-Pietarsaari Airport by Finnair.

Campus Life

COPSA – The Student Union of Centria UAS. The main task of the Student Union is to supervise the students’ rights and interests. The organization also arranges events, parties, sport turns and other activities for students. Becoming a member of the Student Union equips you also with an official Finnish Student ID, which enables you to benefit from numerous discounts all over the country.

Tutors – They are students in their later years in Centria UAS, designated to help the newly arrived students at the beginning of their stay. Tutors also help exchange students to get familiar with the school and town, therefore simplifying their adaptation to the new place.

Special needs students – Centria University of Applied Sciences wishes to support equal participation in mobility programmes. Students with physical, mental or health-related conditions can receive support services during their exchange period. If you need any special arrangements during your exchange, let us know about it.

Students with families – Students willing to come to their exchange together with their families are warmly welcome in Kokkola. Please, contact us regarding the special accommodation arrangements beforehand.

Dining – Exchange students with a Finnish Student ID are able to buy a subsidized buffet lunch for only 2,95€ in Centria´s campus restaurant, consisting of a freshly cooked meal with a side salad, bread and drink.

Sports – Kokkola offers a selection of both indoor and outdoor activities such as gyms, swimming pool, bowling alley, sports centres, wall climbing, skate parks, cycle tracks, hiking routes, ski tracks, beaches, skating, playing fields for ball games, etc. The Student Union provides the students of Centria free of charge participation in a variety of sports and happenings.

Health Care – Both healthcare centre and hospital are located in Kokkola within a walking distance from the campus and the student accommodation. Please remember to arrange your health insurance before arriving to Finland. Centria UAS also offers the possibility of meeting a study psychologist free of charge.

Public Safety – Finland is a very safe, secure and transparent country to visit. Finns are calm people, living their life with an honest attitude, which incoming foreigners will also experience once entering the country. The risk of crimes; such as lawbreaking, mugging, pickpocketing or scamming are extremely low, which will make your exchange worry-free and pleasant.

Transportation – There are several bus lines operating in Kokkola. However, pretty much everything is within a walking distance, and having a bicycle allows you to commute easily all year long, as the roads and sidewalks are maintained very well despite the weather conditions. If you do not want to buy your own bike, there is also a possibility to rent one here.

ECTS Course Catalogue

On this page you can find information about Centria as an organisation, what kind of studies we have to offer as well as practical general information.

Contact person