ÄûÃʵ¼º½

How to prepare a Learning Agreement / Study plan?

• Choose courses for incoming exchange students according to the School specific information.
• You will get school specific instructions from your Aalto coordinator after you have been nominated.
• First version is preliminary, some changes after arrival are possible.
• Note that you might not be accepted to all courses you have chosen, or there may be timetable overlaps and you need to make changes. Have some alternatives ready.

What to take into account?

• You can check from : Learning outcomes, possible prerequisites, teaching language, grading scale, study methods, assessment criteria.
• If updated course information is not available at the time of applying -> make Learning Agreement / Study plan according to the course information of the previous academic year.
• Courses in English are mostly at master level.
• If you need assistance, contact your exchange coordinator.

Your exchange stay starts with mandatory orientation and ends with your last assignments or exams depending on your courses.

Note that if you have been nominated:

• For Autumn term – you can only take courses from Autumn term
• For Spring term – you can only take courses from Spring term

Official dates of the Academic Calendar.

Specific academic calendar information for students coming ÄûÃʵ¼º½ Mikkeli

Credit System

Aalto University uses ECTS European Credit Transfer System. 

One ECTS credit is equal to approx. 27 working hours. These hours include all the work required for completing the course (lectures and other forms of instruction, exercises, seminars and independent work at home and in the library).

The scope of a course can be 1-15 credits depending on the content of the course. 

The Bachelor's degree in Aalto University consists of 180 credits (ECTS) and the Master's degree is 120 credits (ECTS). Grading scale used is 1 (lowest passing grade) to 5 (highest grade) or pass/fail.

The average workload of 1 600 hours needed to complete one academic year of studies corresponds to 60 credits.

Grading scales: numerical and pass/fail

* Please note that the conversion table above is only indicative, because Aalto University does not use the Gaussian Curve for grading.

Your home university is responsible for the conversion of Aalto credits and grades. 

Some courses do not use numerical grading but give only a "pass" or "fail" mark. A "pass" or "fail" mark cannot be converted into a numerical grade. 

Assessment criteria 

The final grade of a course can be based on the final examination only, on a combination of the final examination and course work, or there might be other criteria used and no final exam takes place in that case. The assessment criteria are available in Sisu and are explained at the beginning of the course.

Plagiarism and cheating in an exam are considered serious violations and can lead to disciplinary measures. They are also considered socially unacceptable among Finnish students. It is the responsibility of every student to become familiar with the Exam regulations, the Code of Academic Integrity and the Code of Conduct. Aalto University may contact the home university if necessary.

Aalto University has guidelines for using AI. Student is always responsible for the content of their submitted work. It is important to note that it is not acceptable to have an AI tool writing your assignment and passing it as your own. Teachers may give course specific instructions regarding use of AI, instructions must always be followed. 

Get familiar with Guidance for the use of artificial intelligence in teaching and learning and tips for using artificial intelligence

Each Aalto student has a right to receive reasonable individual study arrangements for medical reasons. A medical reason may be dyslexia, a sensory impairment, mental health condition or learning difficulty. Individual study arrangements should not be seen as a reason to stop aiming for the set learning outcomes. Instead, they are a way of supporting the student in attaining the learning outcomes. 

More information available at Individual study arrangements site.

For any inquiry, please contact your exchange coordinator.

= Student Information System

What you can do in Sisu: 

= Online Learning Environment

What you can find in MyCourses:

• Teacher’s announcements
• Course materials
• Courses’ workspace
• Some information may not be visible for every user, but only for those who are actually enrolled for the course.

Instructions on how to use online tools and complete the course registrations will be given to the new exchange students before/upon arrival.

During your exchange, it is also possible to take some courses where you can students from other Aalto schools. We strongly recomend you taking at least one during your exchange at Aalto. Take the opportunity to try something new!

The best way for you to experience interdisciplinary Aalto and to meet fellow students from various disciplines is to participate in problem based project courses during which cross-school teams solve real life problems. The following courses are examples of Aalto teaching on sustainable design, and user centred, iteractive product development.

More information on interdisciplinary teaching at Aalto and all available courses can be found on the interdisciplinary programme pages, listed below:

Aaltonaut = tackling challenges related to product development

Creative Sustainability = approaching sustainability from different perspectives and disciplinary angles. Important: Courses are popular and of limited size.

 = interdisciplinary creativity courses. Important: Courses are popular and of limited size.

Part of the experience of living in a foreign country is learning its language and culture. Though most Finns speak good English, you might want to learn at least the basics of Finnish language while studying in Finland. Aalto University offers exchange students:

Finnish language and culture courses:

• LC-7003 Survival Finnish Online – learn Finnish before you arrive! Your exchange coordinator will send your more information by email once you are admitted.
• LC-7004 Survival Finnish 1 – learn Finnish when you arrive
• LC-7005 Survival Finnish 2 – continue learning Finnish
• LC-7009 Get to know Finland

Language and communication courses

Intercultural Communication courses: Join our Intercultural Communication courses to engage with diverse peers, broaden your cultural awareness and build practical communication skills for effective collaboration in global work environments. 

Interested in courses that you can complete at your own pace? 

• - design thinking as a process for human-centred creative problem solving
• - great complement to especially project-based courses and volunteering in student organizations
• - learn to think like an entrepreneur and to solve real-world problems by creating something new
• - how businesses can create sustainable value not only for the economy, but also for the environment and society
• - how can I use creativity in my studies, work, and growing as a person?
• - design for non-designers
• - what is studying in Finnish educational system like

Want to boost your skills of self-leadership, leadership and personal development?

• Yes
• No 

• Most courses are held on campus.
• Some courses might be in online, or in hybrid form.
• Exchange students attend the same courses as degree students.

Courses may consist of different components, such as lectures, seminars, laboratory work, essays, group work, presentations, self-study, etc. Your timetable may look different than what you are used to from your home university, since some of the components might not be directly scheduled as lectures and seminars are.

You can find more information about a course in its course description in and .