The University of Eastern Finland (UEF) is one of the largest and newest universities in the country.
Founded in 2010, UEF is the amalgamation of two independent universities, the University of Joensuu and the University of Kuopio, which joined forces as a means of introducing shared degrees in economics and business administration and, more recently, in natural sciences and social sciences.
As a multidisciplinary university, UEF consists of four faculties offering bachelors and masters degrees, as well as doctoral level programmes, in 13 fields of study including medicine, psychology, law and economics.
Although it is one of the newer universities, it has developed a strong international standing and has a large network of global partners, and around 70 bilateral agreements in place with universities overseas.
Students attending the university number around 13,000, with international students given the opportunity of understanding Finnish culture more deeply via UEF's 'Finnish Friend Program', which assigns a Finnish student to an international one by way of assisting with their adaptations to everyday Finnish life.
UEF prides itself on being an institution dedicated to finding solutions to global problems via interdisciplinary research. It cites its research priorities as ageing lifestyles and health, learning in a digitised society, cultural encounters, mobilities and borders, and environmental change and sufficiency of natural resources.
The university’s commitment to promoting sustainable development recently saw it collaborating with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to tackle the wasting of natural resources caused by office work, earning it a ‘Green Office’ label in the process.
Students of the university can expect to study in a modern environment possessing state of the art facilities. UEF also organises student trips around Finland, as well as several clubs and societies that offer sport, outdoor pursuits, theatre and politics.
Often referred to as the ‘Land of a Thousand Lakes’, and famous for its Northern Lights displays, Finland’s natural beauty attracts millions of visitors to the country every year.
