Aalto University (; ) is a public research university located in Espoo, Finland. It was established in 2010 as a merger of three major Finnish universities: the Helsinki University of Technology, the Helsinki School of Economics and the University of Art and Design Helsinki. The close collaboration between the scientific, business and arts communities is intended to foster multi-disciplinary education and research.
The Finnish government, in 2010, set out to create a university that fosters innovation, merging the three institutions into one. The university is composed of six schools with close to 17,000 students and 4,000 staff members, making it Finland's second largest university. The main campus of Aalto University is located in , . Aalto University Executive Education and Professional Development also operates in Otaniemi. In addition to the Helsinki metropolitan area, the university also operates its Bachelor's Programme in International Business in and the Metsähovi Radio Observatory in .
The university is named in honour of , a prominent Finnish architect, designer and alumnus of the former Helsinki University of Technology, who was also instrumental in designing a large part of the university's main campus in .
History In 2004, a workgroup led by of the Finnish Ministry of Finance concluded that Finland had too many universities and other institutes of tertiary education which should be consolidated. Following this, , president of the University of Art and Design Helsinki at the time, proposed the merger of Aalto University's founding schools in his president's opening speech in 2005. 's line of reasoning was that this move would create a unique interdisciplinary university that was needed to create new innovative thought.
The idea received attention within the Finnish Ministry of Education, which appointed , a leading official at the Ministry of Finance, to investigate the possibility of a merger. After Sailas' group reported that it considered the merger to be beneficial to the Finnish academic world and economy, the Finnish government decided to go on with the project on 11 November 2007.
On 29 May 2008 the government announced that the new university would be named after the Finnish architect in honor of his achievements in technology, economics and art. The Finnish minister of education at the time, , together with representatives of Finnish industries and professional organisations, signed the Aalto University charter on 25 June 2008 in . On 19 December 2008 was selected by the board to be the first president of Aalto University.
Aalto University started operating on 1 January 2010. During the establishment of the university, Finland's university law was revised to permit the institution to collect endowments. The university managed to reach its goal of collecting 200 million euros in private donations. The sum was augmented by 2.5 times by the Finnish state.
In a 2017 analysis by The Times Higher Education, Aalto University ranked 55th among technology challenger universities.
Helsinki University of Technology
As the Aalto University was founded the four schools of science and engineering were formed out of the departments of the Helsinki University of Technology (TKK), founded in 1849 by Grand Duke Nicholas I. It received university status in 1908. In 1966, the University of Technology moved from in downtown Helsinki to its current campus, designed by . At the time of creation of Aalto University, TKK had about 250 professors and approximately 15,000 students. This means the largest part of the Aalto University is formed from the former Helsinki University of Technology.
In 2011, the former University of Technology (then known as Aalto University School of Science and Technology) was split up into four schools, corresponding to the former TKK faculties: School of Chemical Technology (CHEM), School of Electrical Engineering (ELEC), School of Engineering (ENG), and School of Science and Technology (SCI).
Helsinki School of Economics
The Helsinki School of Economics (HSE) was established in in 1904 by the business community and was given the status of a university in 1911. It operated as a private university until 1974, when the state of Finland was given the financial responsibility of the university.
Following the merger, the university was briefly renamed Aalto University School of Economics, and is currently known as Aalto University School of Business (Aalto BIZ).
University of Art and Design Helsinki
The University of Art and Design Helsinki has been the largest art university in the Nordic countries. It was founded in 1871. Media Centre Lume – the National Research and Development Center of audiovisual media – is also located in the university. The university awarded the following academic degrees: Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, and Doctor of Arts.
The university has been active in establishing research projects and industrial collaborations via the private sector. During the rectorship of the university was active in integrating design into Finnish innovation networks.
Following the merger, the university was briefly renamed Aalto University School of Art and Design. In 2012, the Department of Architecture, which historically has been a part of the Helsinki University of Technology, was moved to the school, and the name was changed to Aalto University School of Art, Design and Architecture (Aalto ARTS).
The department of photography at Aalto University School of Art, Design and Architecture (Aalto ARTS) is home to what is known as The Helsinki School, a selected group of photographers from Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture that has been the model for a new approach to education as well as a vehicle for collaborative thought and cooperation.
Administration and organisation Governance The university, which is incorporated as Aalto University Foundation, is governed by the seven-member Aalto University Foundation Board. The board decides on the foundation's strategy, operation and financial issues, is responsible for any far-reaching plans and appoints the university president and vice rectors. Formerly working as the provost of Aalto University, was elected president of Aalto University in 2017. The first president of Aalto University was Tuula Teeri. The university is organized into six schools with their respective deans and administrative structures.
Schools The university is organized since the beginning of 2011 into six schools formed out of the three merged universities. Each school has several departments and separate laboratories as well as a number of separate research and other units. School of Arts, Design and Architecture (Aalto ARTS) School of Chemical Engineering (Aalto CHEM) School of Business (Aalto BIZ) School of Electrical Engineering (Aalto ELEC) School of Engineering (Aalto ENG) School of Science and Technology (Aalto SCI)
Other units and institutes Aaltoes (Aalto Entrepreneurship Society), student-run entrepreneurship community Aalto University Learning Centre Aalto University Executive Education Factories – interdisciplinary collaboration networks: Design Factory Media Factory Aalto Science Institute – interdisciplinary research initiative Helsinki Institute for Information Technology (joint research unit with University of Helsinki) Helsinki Institute of Physics (operated jointly with University of Helsinki, University of Jyväskylä, Lappeenranta University of Technology and Tampere University of Technology) Metsähovi Radio Observatory as part of Aalto ELEC.
Academics
Studies Study in Science and Technology
All engineering programmes offered by the schools of science and technology lead to the degree of (M.Sc. (Tech.), Master of Science in Technology), a five-year taught master's degree, which is fairly similar to the German degrees. From 2005, according to the Bologna process, all students must also complete a bachelor's degree (B.Sc. (Tech), Bachelor of Science in Technology), in Finnish or , before the DI or architect's degree. However, the schools of science and technology do not offer programs terminating in a bachelor's degree; a student may only be accepted to study for the Master's level degree. The schools of science and technology require a bachelor's degree from foreign students studying in English, because only Master's studies are offered completely in English.
Undergraduate studies are generally quite similar in between different programs with a considerable part being taken by a tuition of a solid base in mathematics and physics.
Apart from numerous programs in Finnish/Swedish, various international Master's programs are offered exclusively for studies in English. The postgraduate degrees given are (Lic.Sc. (Tech.), Licenciate of Science in Technology) and (D.Sc. (Tech.), Doctor of Science in Technology).
Finnish students are accepted mainly on the basis of result in the national DIA entrance exam. The exam variant taken by most entrants mainly tests quantitative ability in mathematics, physics and chemistry, but specialized tests are available for students applying to a number of programs. The score required for entry to the Aalto University varies much depending on the intended field of study, however, in general the scores required for the Aalto University are higher than for any other university granting entry through the DIA exam. For example, the mean sum of mathematics and physics DIA exam scores was 7.2 in the year 2010, whereas the mean minimum sum of mathematics and physics exam scores for gaining admission to an Aalto program was 17.1–20.1, depending on the priority point distribution. Aalto also contains five of the most selective programs with respect to the matriculation exam scores, out of approximately total of 50 university technology programs in the nation, of which approximately 30 are outside of Aalto, and the three most selective programs with respect to entrance exam and combined scores. The minimum scores required for these top programs are in the 95th–99th percentile range of the whole applicant pool, and approximately 98th-99.8th percentile of what would be the score distribution of the whole age group.
Study in Arts, Design and Architecture
The School of Arts, Design and Architecture has been a leader in art and design education in Finland for over 138 years. It is an international postgraduate university institution with students from over 50 countries. It offers doctorate, master and bachelor's degrees in a wide range of disciplines – fine art, design, new media, art education, visual culture, motion picture and production design. School of Arts, Design and Architecture is a pioneer in research and in developing interdisciplinary study programmes.
The school received its current name in the beginning of 2012 when the architecture department moved in from the School of Engineering (previously part of Helsinki University of Technology). The architecture programmes lead to the Master of Science degrees in architecture and landscape architecture.
In 2021, Aalto University was ranked the sixth globally according to the QS World University Rankings by the subject Art and Design. The school maintained this position in the QS World University Rankings by Subject published in March 2023, once again placing sixth globally in art and design. In the same ranking, Aalto University was also placed 48th in architecture and the built environment.
Study in Business
The School of Business offers degrees in economics and business administration at the Bachelor, Master, Licentiate and Doctoral levels, along with MBA programs targeted to business professionals. Many of the degrees and programs are offered in English.