Master's Programme in Russian and European Studies

The Russian and European Studies Master's programme is a multidisciplinary, cross-cultural programme which focuses on questions of Russian and European politics, society, culture and language. The students can further specialise on EU-Russian relations with a special reference to northern Europe; or aspects of Russian society, or Russian language and culture. The programme emphasises both conceptual and practical knowledge of Russian and European studies and the related methodologies, with an eye on professional work in the fields of Russian politics, society, culture and language. Internships and studies abroad, especially in Russia, are supported. The coursework includes lectures, seminars, group work and workshops; independent reading and writing; supervised research; and events with visiting speakers together with practical training. The students are assigned a personal tutor.

The International Relations specialization option in the programme is organised in cooperation with two Russian partner universities, St.Petersburg State University and Petrozavodsk State University. Students will take courses together with students form the partner universities, mostly in connection with seasonal schools in Finland and in Russia. Opportunities for longer term student exchange between the University of Tampere and the Russian partner universities are also available. Students can also apply for a right to obtain a double degree from the Russian partner universities.

The programme prepares students for professional activity on various aspects of Russian and European issues in the society; for independent research and for postgraduate studies.

Number of study places

The intake of students to the University of Tampere is 45 (IR 15, plus 20 from the Russian partner universities who can apply for a right to complete a Master's degree at the University of Tampere (double degree); Russian language and culture 5, Sociology 5).

Application period

International Master's degree programme application period II, 3.12.2012-15.2.2013

Language of tuition

English

Application procedure

Applications are to be submitted through the centralised University Admissions Finland (UAF) service. Instructions for applicants are available at http://www.uta.fi/admissions/degreeprog/applying.html.

Eligibility

Academic requirements:

• A successfully completed BA degree (or equivalent) in an area appropriate for the content of the Master's Degree Programme
• Fluency in English sufficiently advanced for academic studies, proven by official language test score. (The common requirements for all English taught Master's programmes at UTA are used; (TOEFL 90/Internet-based, 575/paperbased; IELTS 6.5 with no individual score below 5.5; PTE (Academic) 62). Applicants who have taken their Bachelor studies and obtained their Bachelor's degree in English in one of the following countries are exempt from the language test: Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States.
• In addition, the subject of previous studies, relevant work experience as well as other relevant merits and qualifications may be taken into account (e.g. Russian/east European studies; European studies; knowledge of Russian -- except for students specialising in the major subject Russian Language and Culture, where solid knowledge of Russian is required; or other relevant languages).

 

Admission criteria by admission group

Students are selected to the programme from those applicants who fulfil the official admission criteria. The following selection criteria are taken into account in the selection process:

• Evidently high academic motivation to study in this programme at the University of Tampere
• High enough academic performance in Bachelor degree studies
• General quality of all previous university studies
• Specific quality of all previous university studies: evidence of specialisation/documented interest in International Relations, Russian studies and/or European studies. 

Announcement of results and rectification procedure

Admissions results will be announced by 15 May, 2013. All applicants will be informed about the admissions results by mail.

Please see the University's general instructions concerning rectification procedure.