News

21.1.2026

The Joint Application 2026 Has Ended – Separate Application Periods to International Programmes Continue

The Joint Application has ended. The application included Centria University of Applied Sciences’ English-taught programmes.

The Joint Application ended on Wednesday, 21 January 2026 at 3:00 p.m. The application round included English-taught Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes.

The final number of applicants will not be known until late February or early March, once all applications have been processed and the number of applicants who have paid the application fee has been confirmed. For this reason, Centria University of Applied Sciences does not publish application statistics immediately after the application period ends.

The application process will continue during the spring with entrance examinations and interviews, depending on the degree programme. Selected students will begin their studies in September 2026 with orientation days.

– Application routes to international programmes at Finnish higher education institutions have diversified and changed significantly in recent years. Higher education institutions have distributed their admissions across separate international certificate-based application rounds as well as the Joint Application that has just ended. Therefore, applicant numbers alone do not provide a comprehensive picture of a university’s attractiveness, says Kirsi Vuotila, Student Affairs Manager at Centria.

– Finland attracts a large number of applicants from South and Southeast Asia, but weak employment prospects will certainly be reflected in applicant numbers nationwide. Centria conducts student recruitment for its international programmes particularly in Europe, including Finland. Centria’s separate application rounds continue until the end of May, meaning that domestic applicants also still have time to apply to our international programmes. Centria aims to focus on quality rather than quantity and takes the requirements of responsible internationalisation into account in its activities, comments Francesca Cucinotta, Director of International Affairs at Centria.

Applications to Finnish-taught Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programmes at universities of applied sciences will take place during the second joint application round , from 10^th to 24^th of March 2026.