Studying in Open UAS
Open UAS studies are open to all without prior education or age requirements. But what kind of study skills do the studies require and what you should take into account in the different stages of the studies?
Open UAS in general
- Open UAS studies are higher education degree studies.
- Studies are offered on both the bachelor's degree and the master's degree levels.
- It is not possible to complete the entire degree at the Open UAS, but the studies can be recognised as part of the degree at Laurea later.
- One credit corresponds to approximately 27 hours of work.
- We recommend that you complete no more than 30 credits per semester.
- The studies are subject to a fee.
Required study skills
- Self-direction in studies
- Critical information acquisition skills
- Reflection/self-assessment skills
- Skill to right fluently, academic writing skills
- Presentation and interaction skills
- Adequate language proficiency in the teaching language of the course
- Adequate IT skills and a computer
Studies may also have prior learning requirements. For master's level studies a bachelor's degree or equivalent competence is always required.
Study Planning
Before starting your studies, think what you aim at with your studies and learn about the opportunities offered by Laurea Open University of Applied Sciences!
At Laurea Open UAS, you can complement and develop your competence through individual courses or proceed towards a UAS degree through path studies.
See also the enrollment instructions for Open UAS before enrolling. You can enroll for individual courses at the Open UAS three times a year, for spring, summer and autumn semesters. The spring semester begins on 1 January and ends on 31 July. The autumn semester begins on 1 August and ends on 31 December. Summer studies mainly take place between May and August.
Assess also your study skills before enrolling for the courses. For the self-assessment of your language proficiency, you can seek support, for example, from the Dialang language test. Please, note also potential prior learning requirements for the courses.
Study guidance
If you need guidance in the planning of your studies, book an appointment for personal guidance.
Before you start your studies
The instructions below apply to you if you are enrolled for individual courses or sneak peek courses. You can find the instructions related to path studies on their own webpages.
Once you have enrolled for individual courses, you will receive an automatic confirmation message to your e-mail. Instructions related to the start of studies will be sent to you after your enrollment has been processed and entered into the student register.
Below, you will find a summary of the steps you should take before you start your studies.
Before starting your studies
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1. User account activation
Activate your user account before starting your studies to log in to systems maintained by Laurea. If you have a valid Laurea user account, you do not need to activate a new user account.
Instructions for user account activation can be found in the student’s guide and on the Laurea user accounts webpage.
Your student number is your user account name, and the format used for logging in to the systems is usually “useraccount@laurea.fi”
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2. Getting familiar with Laurea systems
After having activated your user account, you will have access to Laurea systems. As an Open UAS student, you have all the rights to the same systems as degree students. Digital services for students page presents the most important online services for students. They are also listed and presented shortly in the student's guide.
You need a computer to study at Laurea. If you do not have one yet, we recommend a laptop that allows you to study anywhere. As your studies progress, you may need a webcam and a headset with a microphone.
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3. Starting your studies
Before starting your studies, get acquainted with the contents, objectives and schedules of the courses. The courses may be completed entirely independently, or they may include projects done in groups. The details on each course are always provided in the study unit information. More detailed information on starting your studies is provided in the student's guide.
During your studies
Student benefits and services
Studies at an open UAS are non-degree studies, so they do not entitle you to financial aid for students or other social benefits for students, such as student housing, or meal subsidies or school transport subsidies provided by Social Insurance Institution Kela.
Open UAS students, who are studying individual courses are entitled to the following Laurea student services:
- library
- Student Affairs Office
- Laurea Servicedesk (IT support)
- university chaplain
Student services for Bachelor's degree path students are presented on Bachelor's Degree Path Studies page.
In Laurea there are two ways of identifying and recognizing your prior competence (Recognition of prior studies and Demonstration of competence). Laurea open UAS students' Recognition of prior studies and Demonstration of competence will be processed case-by-case. If you have questions about identifying and recognizing your prior competence, book an appointment for personal guidance.
The student's guide provides comprehensive information on the student benefits and services of the Open UAS.
Attendance requirements and absence policies
Students must be present in the first contact session of the course or notify the teacher of their absence. Please note that online teaching may also include meetings requiring attendance on the digital platform. If you have enrolled for a MOOC course, there are no attendance requirements, and you can complete the studies at your own pace within your right to study.
If a student fails to notify the teacher of his or her absence from the first contact session of the course, the student’s enrollment will be rejected. If prior competence has been specified as a requirement for the completion of a course/project, the student should, if needed, demonstrate this competence before the course/project begins.
The course teacher defines the absence policies for his or her course. If you cannot attend a teaching session, notify the teacher of the course in question directly.
After the studies
Evaluation
At Laurea, competence is evaluated as follows: 5 (excellent), 4 (good), 3 (good), 2 (satisfactory), 1 (satisfactory) and rejected.
Some course or parts of course may also be graded simply as Pass/Fail.
Transcript of study records
All completed courses are recorded in the Laurea study register, and the student can order a transcript of study records of his or her open UAS studies.
If your Laurea user account isn't active anymore, you can look your study credits from the My Studyinfo service. In order to log in to the service you must identify yourself by using Finnish bank identification codes. From the service you can also share your study credits onwards.
Enrolment for next semester's studies
If you wish to continue your studies at the Open UAS, you must enrol for the next semester in accordance with the enrolment instructions.
If you have paid the annual fee of the Open UAS and you still have one semester left of your one-year right to study, you do not need to pay for the next semester's studies upon enrolment. If you have paid the tuition fee per study unit (15e/1 cr) in the previous semester, you have only been given the right to study for one semester, and you must pay for the next semester upon enrolment.
Applying for a degree student
You cannot complete a degree at an open UAS but based on your studies at an open UAS, you can apply for a degree programme in the separate open UAS application for full-time degree programmes.
The separate application for full-time degree programmes based on open UAS studies is arranged twice a year, in May and in October-November, and the student can only apply to one full-time degree programme. For more detailed information on the application periods and application criteria for the separate application for full-time degree programmes see the website Separate applications for full-time degree programmes.