Online Study Guide
The online study guide is meant for students studying for graduate or post-graduate degrees at Finnish universities. This guide also helps you find out how to apply for courses provided in the FVU Online Courses Database.
1. The student's virtual university | 2. Where can I find information on online studies? | 3. How do I get the right to enrol in online courses? | 4. How do I get started in studying online? | 5. What is it like to study online? | 6. Ways to complete online courses | 7. Transferring the credits and including them in one's own degree
1. The student's virtual university
The FVU is a form of co-operation and networking among universities, which promotes the use of information and communication technologies in teaching and learning. Students have the flexibility to study online within their own university, or take online courses at other Finnish universities, or attend online courses produced jointly by different universities.
Co-operation improves the level of expertise in teaching, and increases the options available to students
University departments usually have a special focus in their research and teaching. As universities become networked, departments co-operate more closely with each other, which brings in more expertise in teaching the subject, and enables the joint production of courses. This co-operation also provides students with more options to choose from.
For post-graduate students, co-operation among universities in academic networks and doctoral schools provides for extensive expertise and information exchange, which is necessary for successful academic research.
Online studies also create new kinds of student communities, as students from different universities get to know each other in online learning environments and discussion forums.
Online courses provide you the opportunity to study in a way that
- makes use of the broad expertise available in courses provided by academic subject networks
- enhances your degree with courses provided by other universities
- allows you to take online and multiform courses without leaving your home town
- introduces you to new study methods
- brings you new contacts in your field – nation-wide or even internationally
2. Where can I find information on online studies?
You can search for information on online courses provided by all Finnish universities in the Online Courses Database of the FVU portal. In time, the database will include all university courses that are open to students from one or more universities.
The Online Courses Database includes individual courses that may complement your degree, for example as elective courses, or as part of your basic or subject (intermediate) studies. The Online Courses Database also includes larger study programmes, which you can study as your minor subject. There are also courses available in English.
It is worth noting that the database is not quite complete yet. You can also find information on available online courses in the university study guidebooks and on the websites of universities and different academic networks. You can find information on the flexible (JOO) studies provided by universities at the central JOOPAS online service (fi/sv). The service also has links to the study guides of the universities.
Post-graduate students can also find courses on the websites of doctoral schools and academic networks, as well as in the FVU Online Courses Database.
3. How do I get the right to enrol in online courses?
Students enrolled to study for a degree in any Finnish university are in principle entitled to participate in online courses at any other Finnish university.
The course information explains in more detail for whom the courses is meant, and whether participation is limited only to students in a specific university. It is worth reading the conditions for taking the course carefully.
If you want to participate in online courses at your own university, registration for the course follows the internal procedures at your university.
The right to participate in courses organized by other universities can be based on:
- The Nation-Wide Flexible Study Rights (JOO) Agreement
- Agreements within national networks of academic disciplines (participation usually requires enrolment in a member university of the network)
Gaining the right to participate in a course or study programme in another university usually requires a note of acceptance from your own university. It is thus best to discuss the course with your own study counsellor before applying for it.
4. How do I get started in studying online?
1. Draw up a study plan. Are you interested in an area that complements your major subject, and which you want to pursue further than possible in your home university? What is your minor subject? When planning your studies, you can make use of the online study counselling service (fi).
2. Search for courses or study programmes in the FVU Online Courses Database, the university study guidebooks, the websites of academic networks or JOOPAS-web-service (fi).
3. After having found a suitable course or study programme, check the course description:
- Are you included in the target group of the course? You will find this information in the course description in the sections: 'Universities accepting the course', 'Target group of the course' and 'The course is intended for'
- Make sure you fulfil the required pre-requisites.
- Find out whether the study method and requirements are suitable for you, i.e., whether the course requires you to be physically present or not.
4. Consult your study counsellor to learn whether the course is suitable for your degree, and find out about the practicalities of applying for the course. For example, if the right to enrol is based on JOO agreement, you will need a statement of acceptance from your own university.
5. Apply for the course following the instructions in the course description and the advice of your study counsellor.
5. What is it like to study online?
Most courses you will find through the FVU portal are based on multiform studies, i.e., they are based on both distance learning and independent studies over the web, and classroom learning.
Online courses are multiform studies, i.e., they consist of classroom, distance and independent studies. Often, the student's independent work has a central role, and it is complemented by distance and classroom teaching and tutoring. Face-to-face instruction and group work are completely or partly replaced by online communication and instruction.
Learning environments
Online courses are constructed in a web-based learning environment or on a WWW-site. Learning environments usually include specific interactive tools (e.g., a discussion area, teamwork areas and e-mail), assignments and instructions for completing them, course materials, an overview of the course structure, and study guidance and other instructions from the teacher.
The website usually opens when the course begins, and closes when it ends. Students are given a password to access the website. Thus, outsiders cannot follow the course or read the course assignments that you post on the website.
The advantages of multiform courses are:
- You can define your study schedule yourself, at least partly.
- In many courses, you can choose the kind of work that suits your own needs best.
- Study material is compiled on the web, which in some cases replaces difficultly-accessible course literature. Many courses, however, use supporting course literature.
This study method is suitable for you if you
- prefer independent work and web-based communication
- cannot fit regular classroom instruction into your schedule, want to study from home, or live far from the university towns or abroad
- want to study minor subjects or additional courses in other universities but do not want to move to another location
Studying online is different from traditional forms of study especially in terms of students' own responsibility and independence in planning their studies. It also requires different forms of group work than traditional courses.
Your can test and update your learning and teamwork skills using the IQ Form web service.
6. Ways to complete online courses
Different courses involve different kinds of coursework.
The coursework may involve preparing written reports that are completed in the virtual learning environment or e-mailed to the teacher.
The coursework may include an online exam, which means a time-limited online writing assignment based on material you have read.
In addition to written assignments or exams, some courses require participation in an online discussion forum or in other forms of co-operative work in the virtual learning environment.
7. Transferring the credits and including them in one's own degree
The credits awarded for the coursework are usually first entered in the study record of the university in which you completed the studies. Universities have different procedures for transferring the credits into your home university's records.
In some educational networks between universities, transfer of the credits requires no action by the student.
If you have completed a minor subject degree, you usually also need a notation that the courses belong to a single study programme. You can ask for minor study programme notations from the responsible teacher of the study programme.