How to apply to change your study right to a programme at the Sibelius Academy

Uniarts students can apply for a change in their study right in connection with the general student admission process using a separate application form.

Published 30.11.2022 | Updated 2.12.2024

Changing your right to study

Change of degree programme

If the student’s target degree stays the same, the term used is change of degree programme (or main subject/instrument).

The application process for changing your study right is scheduled in tandem with applications and decisions for undergraduate student selection. The application period starts 8 January 2025. Complete and send the change of study right application form no later than at 3pm EET (Finnish time) on 22 January 2025 (a link to the form will be added here at the start of the application period).

If you’re applying for a change of right to study, you must discuss the change in your current department before applying.

In addition to submitting the application form, possible advance assignments and other required supporting documents must be submitted in the required format to the Sibelius Academy Admissions Office no later than at 3pm EET (Finnish time) on 29 January 2025.

The advance assignments and any other video and/or audio material must be delivered to the Sibelius Academy Admissions Office using Funet FileSender (https://filesender.funet.fi/):

Log in with your Uniarts username and password (Haka-login, select ”University of the Arts Helsinki”)
Select the files you want to send
Enter as recipient: siba.admissions@uniarts.fi
Write your name and what materials you are sending in the message field
Put a tick on ‘Include me as a recipient’
Accept the terms and conditions of the service and send

Sibelius Academy recommends that if you are close to graduation, you should complete your first degree and only then apply for a master’s degree programme at Uniarts Helsinki.

Internal transfer

If the student applies to pursue a different target degree at a different academy or within a different field of study at the same academy, the term used is internal transfer.

If you’re applying for a change of right to study, you must discuss the change in your current department and, together with your application form, submit a free-form letter of recommendation for the change of right to study signed by the department head.

In addition to submitting the application form and the letter of recommendation, possible advance assignments and other required supporting documents must be submitted in the required format to the Sibelius Academy Admissions Office no later than at 3pm EET (Finnish time) on 29 January 2025.

The advance assignments and any other video and/or audio material must be delivered to the Sibelius Academy Admissions Office using Funet FileSender (https://filesender.funet.fi/):

Log in with your Uniarts username and password (Haka-login, select ”University of the Arts Helsinki”)
Select the files you want to send
Enter as recipient: siba.admissions@uniarts.fi
Write your name and what materials you are sending in the message field
Put a tick on ‘Include me as a recipient’
Accept the terms and conditions of the service and send

Sibelius Academy recommends that if you are close to graduation, you should complete your first degree and only then apply for a master’s degree programme at Uniarts Helsinki.

Change of study right within the same main subject or instrument (from bachelor’s level to master’s level)

Students may apply to change of study right within their degree programme in the same main subject or instrument based on a higher education degree completed elsewhere (5.5-year programme from Bachelor to Master level studies) in a rolling application procedure.

Students apply for a change of study right by submitting a short, free-form, application stating the grounds for the change by e-mail to siba.admissions@uniarts.fi. The application must be accompanied by a certificate of the degree that serves as the basis for changing the study right, along with any translations. A completed degree must be such that it gives eligibility for the corresponding master’s degree studies.

The Dean of the Sibelius Academy will make decisions on applications to change the right to study within the same degree programme on the basis of the student’s application and the statement provided by the head of the department. The head of the department may require the student to perform a demonstration of their skill in the main subject or instrument. The demonstration will be evaluated by a committee appointed by the head of the department.

The new study right will take effect in accordance with the decision on the day of the decision.

Criteria for decisions on changing the right to study

The academies have defined the requirements for who is eligible to apply in the admission criteria for their bachelor’s and master’s programmes. The same eligibility criteria apply to those seeking to change their right to study. At the Sibelius Academy, decisions on applications for a change of study right are based on the application and the results of examinations organized in accordance with the Dean’s decision on admission requirements. In principle, students who apply for a change of study right participate in the entrance examinations in the same manner as external applicants.

The entrance examinations are the same for students applying for a change of degree programme, main subject, or main instrument and for those applying for an internal transfer. As an exception, students who apply for a change of degree programme, main subject, or main instrument do not take part in General Music Skills Test nor do they need to prove their language skills when applying for a change of study right. The head of admissions can decide whether students seeking to change their study right need to attend all parts of the entrance examination. Students seeking to change their study right will be treated equally when deciding about the matter.

The Entrance Examination Board assesses your skills, knowledge, and suitability for a musical education based on the entrance examination performances. The assessment is based on the programme-specific admission criteria. The applications and performance in entrance examinations of those applying to change study right will be reviewed as a separate group in each programme.

If you’re already completing master’s-level studies in the degree programme, it is no longer possible for you to apply for a change of degree programme for bachelor’s-level studies. In other words, change of degree programme must occur before you graduate as a bachelor, or as a master’s student if you change to a different master’s degree programme. An exception to this is Sibelius Academy’s Music Education and Church Music programmes, in which the applicants to master’s-level studies are required to have completed appropriate qualifying studies for a cantor’s or a music teacher’s position at the bachelor level. If a student, in exceptional cases, changes from the master’s level to the bachelor’s level (Music Education and Church Music), they can be granted additional time for the completion of the degree.

During the first academic year after the change of study right, it is possible to enroll as an absent student only with permission granted by the academy. The right to absence must be applied for in writing no later than at 3pm EEST (Fissinh time) on 10 July 2025. The applications need to be submitted by e-mail to the Sibelius Academy Admissions Office (address: siba.admissions@uniarts.fi).

For students who change their study rights, the amount of individual instruction may be restricted at the beginning of the new study rights.