Eligibility
Eligibility requirements
You are an eligible applicant for Master-level studies if
you have a nationally recognized first cycle degree – typically a Bachelor’s degree – from an accredited institution of higher education (if applicable in the country of the degree) from a nationally accredited degree programme
your degree corresponds to at least 180 ECTS (European credits) or to three years of full-time study
your degree gives eligibility to master-level studies in the country where it was issued
Please see How and when to apply for more details.
If you have not graduated by the end of the application period the possible admission will be conditional until you have presented the University with a finished degree certificate and transcript of records at the latest by 31 July (Finnish degrees) or 15 August 2027 (degrees completed outside Finland). (Information added 21 Oct 2026.) If you do not provide the required documentation by the deadline you will lose your study place.
Language requirements
Verified proficiency in the English language is needed. Please see recognized qualifications, required levels, and exemptions.
Relevant fields of previous studies
In addition to general degree requirements, the Master's degree programme in Biomedical Imaging has programme-specific degree requirements. The applicant’s previous degree based on which s/he is seeking admission to the Master’s Degree Programme in Biomedical Imaging must be in a relevant field of study.
Biomedical Imaging
biochemistry
bioinformatics
biology
biomedical sciences
chemistry
computational biology
engineering
medical sciences
pharmacology
physics
The applicants should also be familiar with the basics of laboratory practice relevant to the programme.
Note that based on the background of the applicant, the admitted student may need to conduct 0-15 ECTS of supplementary studies in cell biology, biophysics, laboratory skills or programming if needed in the beginning of the studies. This is to bring everyone to the same level for advanced studies in biomedical imaging. The admitted student’s need for supplementary studies is determined by the teaching staff at the beginning of the studies. Supplementary studies can be included in the degree as elective studies.
Admission
Admission quota
The yearly quota for the Master’s Degree Programme in Biomedical Imaging at the University of Turku is 15 students.
Admissions procedure
Biomedical Imaging in two universities in Turku
Biomedical Imaging programme is organized collaboratively by the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Turku and the Faculty of Science and Engineering, Biosciences at Åbo Akademi University. Biomedical Imaging students from both universities study as a united group, but each student will graduate only from the university they were admitted to.
To increase the chances of being admitted to the Biomedical Imaging programme, applicants are advised to apply to both the University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University. Note that the applicant must then complete two applications (one for each university) with full sets of enclosures on the joint application form. The applicant can be admitted only to one of the organizing universities. The admission committee reserves the right to decide to which university the applicant will be admitted if the applicant has applied to Biomedical Imaging programme in both universities, Åbo Akademi University and the University of Turku. The preferred choice of the applicant will be considered when possible.
All applicants will be informed about the admission result by email. All students are required to start at the beginning of the autumn semester.
Application evaluation
All applications are individually evaluated and scored by the admission committee of the Master’s Degree Programme in Biomedical Imaging. The admission committee scores the selected applicants by the application components listed below. The admission committee also interviews (using Zoom or other conference call software) the best-scoring applicants (maximum of 50). If the applicant is not invited to the interview, the application is not processed further.
Please note that the motivation letter is required as part of the admission process. The motivation letter must be uploaded as pdf attachment on the application form by the application deadline.
Scoring based on the application
Compatibility of the background studies 0-4 p. (0 p. = insufficient, 1p = sufficient relevance, 2 p. = good relevance, 3 p. = very good relevance, 4 p. = excellent relevance)
Previous academic success 0-4 p. (0 p. = insufficient, 1 p. = sufficient, 2 p. = good, 3 p. = very good, 4p. = excellent. Here it should be noted, that if the applicant has already an MSc degree(s) or higher, or is already studying at the University of Turku, it is not necessarily considered to be beneficial.)
Relevant laboratory working experience 0-4 p. (0 p. = no experience, 1 p. = little to no experience in working in the laboratory, 2 p. = some experience in working in the laboratory, 3 p. = above average practical knowledge in the laboratory work, 4 p. = extensive experience working in the laboratory coupled with work-life experience)
Motivation letter 0-4 p. (0 p. = insufficient, 1 p. = somewhat motivated, 2 p. = sufficient and well-justified motivation, 3 p = good motivation, 4 p. = excellent motivation)
Please note that the applicants are required to write the motivation letter in their own words, and it may be checked for plagiarism. The motivation letter is uploaded to the application form as pdf attachment. The maximum length of the motivation letter is 1 page. Required font style is Calibri or Arial, size 11.
The total maximum score from the application is 16 points. If the applicant scores 0 p. in any of the components, the application will not be processed further. Applicants with the highest scores are invited to the interview. The interviews will take place on March 2027. The interviews will be organized remotely, and all applicants need to use a video connection. The applicant will be given a pre-assignment for the interview.
Scoring based on the interview
Interview performance 0-5 p. (0 p. = insufficient, 1 p. = passable, 2 p. = satisfactory, 3 p. = good, 4 p. = very good, 5 p. = excellent)
Pre-assignment task 0-5 p. (0 p. = insufficient, 1 p. = passable, 2 p. = satisfactory, 3 p. = good, 4 p. = very good, 5 p. = excellent)
Motivation shown during the interview 0-6 p. (0 p. = insufficient, 1 p. = somewhat motivated, 2 p. = sufficient motivation, 3 p. = sufficient and well-justified motivation, 4 p. = good motivation, 5 p. = very good motivation, 6 p. = excellent motivation)
The total maximum score from the interview is 16 points.
If the applicant scores 0 p. in any of the components, the application will not be processed further. In case of equal scores, all applicants with the same score will be selected.
All eligible applications are individually evaluated and scored by the admission committee of the Master’s Degree Programme in Biomedical Imaging. The best scoring applicants will be invited to an interview as part of the admission process. The interviews will be organized remotely using Zoom or other conference call software, and all applicants need to use a video connection.
Detailed instructions for the interview will be sent via e-mail along with the interview invitation. The applicant is responsible for the correctness of their email address filled in the application as well as for checking the junk mail in case the possible invitation email ends up there.
If the applicant cannot be reached for the possible interview with a video connection (or by phone, only used in case the internet connection is lost during interview) the application will not be processed further.
The applicant will be given a pre-assignment for the interview. In the interview the pre-assignment will be presented orally only, the use of visual aids (PowerPoint, posters, sketch boards, etc.) is not allowed.
The Master's Degree Programme in Biomedical Imaging aims to train professionals with thorough theoretical understanding and practical skills in a wide range of imaging methods and technologies. This international programme is intended for students with a B.Sc. degree in areas of biochemistry, bioinformatics, biology, biomedical sciences, chemistry, computational biology, engineering, medical sciences, pharmacology or physics.
After completion of the studies, the graduating M.Sc.:
are expected to conceptualize different imaging modalities and modern imaging technologies, which includes light microscopy, advanced fluorescence techniques, super-resolution imaging techniques, electron microscopy and vivo imaging techniques such as nuclear imaging and magnetic resonans imaging are expected to learn to analyze imaging data using a broad range of bioimage informatics analysis techniques, related IT skills and statistical analysis. will be able to conceptualize a broad spectrum of state-of-the-art knowledge in biomedical imaging related to many different areas in cell biology, biophysics and biomedicine. will be able to obtain hands-on experience in laboratory and practical research work with analysis and evaluation, in projects that include imaging components. Depending on the advanced studies specialization, students will have basic to advanced knowledge and skills in medical imaging, microscopy or data analysis.
Studies in the Biomedical Imaging programme provide the students with an excellent basis for careers in life sciences, for example, academic or industrial research se