How to become a licensed psychologist in Finland
The education of psychologists in Finland constitutes of 330 ECT (about 5,5 years) studies: Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (180 ECT) and Master of Arts in Psychology (150 ECT). The master’s degree includes a clinical traineeship period of about 5 months.
Entrance exams are mandatory, and getting admitted is very difficult; only 1–5 % of applicants are admitted.
Finnish universities offering training in psychology:
- University of Helsinki
- University of Jyväskylä
- University of Eastern Finland
- University of Oulu
- University of Tampere
- University of Turku
- Åbo Akademi (training in Swedish)
The departments or schools of psychology at these universities work together as the Network University of Psychology called “Psykonet”. The network cooperates both on the undergraduate and the postgraduate levels. It is unique, because there are no other university networks in Finland.
Doctorate and specialisation degrees in psychology
After earning the Master’s Degree, it is possible for a psychologist to study for a Doctorate in psychology. It is also possible to earn a professional specialist education in psychology is arranged in five fields of specialization: clinical psychology, health psychology, children and adolescents, neuropsychology, psychotherapy, work and organizational psychology. It means taking part in specialization training programmes at one of the universities. It is also possible for psychologists to receive supplementary training outside of the universities.
More information can be found in English about the specialization training on the Psykonet homepage.