University of Oulu
Encyclopedia
The University of Oulu is one of the largest universities in Finland
, located in the city of Oulu
. It was founded on July 8, 1958. The university has around 16,000 students and 3,000 staff. It is ranked in the Academic Ranking of World Universities
as the second best university in Finland along with the University of Turku
and between 303 and 401 worldwide.
The University has a number of research stations and shared locations, most notably:
Institute of Diagnostics
Institute of Dentistry
Institute of Clinical Medicine
Institute of Health Sciences
(Europe), Nordplus (Nordic Countries), FIRST (Russia), ISEP and International to International ISEP (USA, South America, Asia), UNC-EP (USA), north2north (USA, Canada, Russia, Nordic Countries), North-South-South (Africa). Besides, University of Oulu has about 50 bilateral agreements with partner universities around the world.
The application procedure to the Master’s programmes varies according to the programme. There is only one application period per academic year. The university uses an online application system and the application period is open for two to three months.
Each Master’s programme has its own specific admissions requirements. In general, to apply for Master’s level studies in the University of Oulu applicants are required to hold a Bachelor’s level degree with good or excellent merits from a higher education
institution which entitles you to apply for Master’s level studies in their home country and have a good command of English.
New initiatives involve advanced steel research, international business, mining and mineral engineering and science-based education.
The University of Oulu is known among hackers as the home of the Internet Relay Chat
and for the File Transfer Protocol
server x2ftp, named after the basement / blast shelter area in which it was physically located. x2ftp gained its reputation among computer game developers and members of the demoscene
for containing a very good archive of information pertaining to low-level graphics programming.
University of Oulu alumni body is over 40,000. The University of Oulu alumni can meet and stay in contact with their alma mater
at the alumni network
During the year 2011 PSOAS intends to build a new international student house right next to its housing office in downtown Oulu. The house will be accommodated both by international degree students and Finnish students. The main purpose of the new building is to support the internationalization of Oulu and give the international students a better access to Finnish culture and local people. The premises will also support these efforts: More space will be dedicated for casual get-togethers and an international café of high level will be serving both Finnish and foreign customers.
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, located in the city of Oulu
Oulu
Oulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....
. It was founded on July 8, 1958. The university has around 16,000 students and 3,000 staff. It is ranked in the Academic Ranking of World Universities
Academic Ranking of World Universities
The Academic Ranking of World Universities , commonly known as the Shanghai ranking, is a publication that was founded and compiled by the Shanghai Jiaotong University to rank universities globally. The rankings have been conducted since 2003 and updated annually...
as the second best university in Finland along with the University of Turku
University of Turku
The University of Turku , located in Turku in southwestern Finland, is the second largest university in the country as measured by student enrollment, after University of Helsinki. It was established in 1920 and also has faculties at Rauma, Pori and Salo...
and between 303 and 401 worldwide.
History
- 1919 Oulu College Association was founded to manage the establishment of a university in the town
- 1958 Oulu University Act
- 1959 Activities begin. Faculty of Philosophy (programs in biology and mathematics), Faculty of Technology (architecture, civil and industrial engineering) and Oulu Teaching School
- 1960 Faculty of Medicine
- 1965 Teaching begins in humanities
- 1965 Departments of Electrical Engineering and Machine Engineering added to the Faculty of Technology
- 1972 The Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Natural Sciences founded with the division of the Faculty of Philosophy
- 1974 Faculty of Education
- 1985 Professorship in Telecommunications Technology established at the Faculty of Technology
- 1994 Biotechnology, Information Technology and Northern Issues defined as focus areas
- 2000 Founding of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
- 2006 Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre
- 2007 Oulu Mining School
- 2008 Martti Ahtisaari Institute of Global Business and Economics
- 2009 Center for Internet Excellence (CIE)
- 2010 New University Act, new focus areas
- 2011 Center of Microscopy and Nanotechnology founded by joining the Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre and the Institute for Electron Microscopy
- 2011 University of Oulu Graduate School (from 1.8.2011)
Campuses
There are four campus areas:- The main campus is located in Linnanmaa, about 5 kilometres (3 mi) north of OuluOuluOulu is a city and municipality of inhabitants in the region of Northern Ostrobothnia, in Finland. It is the most populous city in Northern Finland and the sixth most populous city in the country. It is one of the northernmost larger cities in the world....
city centre. It includes five faculties, Infotech Oulu, Thule Institute, Giellagas Institute, Martti AhtisaariMartti AhtisaariMartti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari is a Finnish politician, the tenth President of Finland , Nobel Peace Prize laureate and United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work....
Institute, Centre for Wireless Communications (CWC), Centre for Advanced Steel Research (CASR), Center of Microscopy and Nanotechnology, Botanical GardensUniversity of Oulu Botanical GardensUniversity of Oulu Botanical Gardens are located in the main campus of University of Oulu in Linnanmaa district in Oulu, Finland on the shore of Lake Kuivasjärvi. Botanical gardens were moved to Linnanmaa from the Hupisaaret Islands park near the city centre in summer 1983. Gardens are part of the...
and Museum, Zoological Museum, Geological Museum and two science libraries (Pegasus and Tellus). - Faculty of Medicine has its own campus area and it is fully integrated in the regional hospital 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) southeast from the city center, Kontinkangas, Oulu. Clinical Research Centre (CRC), Welltech Oulu and the Medical Library are also located there.
- The third campus area is located in KajaaniKajaaniKajaani is a town and municipality in Finland.It is the capital of the Kainuu region. It is located southeast of Oulujärvi , which drains to the Gulf of Bothnia along the Oulujoki . There are inhabitants and city surface area is of which is water. The population density is . The town is...
, about 185 kilometres (115 mi) southeast of Oulu. - Department of Architecture which is located in the center of Oulu
The University has a number of research stations and shared locations, most notably:
- Kajaani University Consortium
- SodankyläSodankylä-Twin towns: Kola, Russia, since 1968 Berlevåg, Norway, since 1971 Norsjö, Sweden, since 1977 Heiligenblut, Austria, since 1979-External links:* – Official website* * * * * *...
Geophysical Observatory - Oulanka Biological Research Station (KuusamoKuusamoKuusamo is a town and municipality in Finland. It is located in the Oulu province and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is ....
) - Bothnian BayBothnian BayThe Bothnian Bay or Bay of Bothnia is the most northern part of the Gulf of Bothnia, the northern part of the Baltic Sea. Its northernmost point is situated in Töre...
Research Station on Ulkokrunni island - Oulu Southern Institute (NivalaNivalaNivala is a town and municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Oulu and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The town has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water...
), Centre for Underground Physics in PyhäsalmiCentre for Underground Physics in PyhäsalmiCentre for Underground Physics in Pyhäsalmi or CUPP is an underground physics laboratory located in Pyhäjärvi, Finland. It is located in the deepest metal mine of Europe, the Pyhäsalmi Mine and uses some of the infrastructure of the mine... - KokkolaKokkolaKokkola is a town and municipality of Finland.The town is located in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Central Ostrobothnia region. The town has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...
University Consortium Chydenius - RaaheRaaheRaahe is a town and municipality of Finland. Founded by Swedish statesman and Governor General of Finland Count Per Brahe the younger in 1649, it is one of 10 historic wooden towns remaining in Finland. Examples of other Finnish historic wooden towns are Kaskinen , Old Rauma, Porvoo , Jakobstad ,...
Unit
Faculties
The University of Oulu is divided into six faculties (from the biggest to the smallest when measured by the number of students):Faculty of Technology
- Department of Architecture
- Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Department of Process and Environmental Engineering
- Department of Electrical Engineering
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering
- Department of Telecommunications Engineering
- Department of Industrial Engineering and Management
Faculty of Science
- Department of Biochemistry
- Department of Biology
- Department of Chemistry
- Department of Geography
- Department of Geology
- Department of Information Processing Science
- Department of Mathematical Sciences
- Department of Physics
Faculty of Humanities
Degree programmes:- Archaeology
- Cultural anthropology
- English philology
- Finnish language
- German philology
- History
- History of ideas and science
- Information studies
- Literature
- Logopedics
- Nordic philology
- Saami culture
- Saami language
Faculty of Medicine
Institute of Biomedicine- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology
- Department of Physiology
- Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
- Department of Medical Technology
Institute of Diagnostics
- Department of Clinical Chemistry
- Department of Medical Microbiology
- Department of Forensic Medicine
- Department of Pathology
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology
Institute of Dentistry
Institute of Clinical Medicine
- Department of Anaesthesiology
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
- Department of Dermatology and Venereology
- Department of Surgery
- Department of Otolaryngology
- Department of Pediatrics
- Department of Neurosurgery
- Department of Neurology
- Department of Clinical Genetics
- Department of Psychiatry
- Department of Ophthalmology
- Department of Internal Medicine
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
- Department of Oncology and Radiotherapy
Institute of Health Sciences
- Department of Nursing Science and Health Administration
- Department of Public Health Science and General Practice
Faculty of Education
Degree programmes:- Primary Teacher Education
- Intercultural Teacher Education
- Technology Oriented Primary Teacher Education
- Arts and Crafts Oriented Primary Teacher Education
- Early Education
- Music Education
- Educational sciences
- Education and Globalisation
- Teacher Education for Swedish Language Immersion
Faculty of Economics and Business Administration
- Department of Economics
- Department of Accounting and Finance
- Department of Marketing
- Department of Management
International Cooperation
University of Oulu aims to promote mobility among its students. It takes part in a number of international exchange programmes, such as Erasmus ProgrammeErasmus Programme
The Erasmus Programme , a.k.a. Erasmus Project is a European Union student exchange programme established in 1987...
(Europe), Nordplus (Nordic Countries), FIRST (Russia), ISEP and International to International ISEP (USA, South America, Asia), UNC-EP (USA), north2north (USA, Canada, Russia, Nordic Countries), North-South-South (Africa). Besides, University of Oulu has about 50 bilateral agreements with partner universities around the world.
International Master's degree programmes
The official language of teaching is Finnish. There are also 15 international Master's degree programmes which are offered fully in English:- Architectural Design
- Astronomy and Space Physics
- Barents Environmental Engineering (BEE)
- Education and Globalisation (EdGlo)
- Ecology and Population Genetics (ECOGEN)
- Finance
- Financial and Management Accounting (FMA)
- Health and Wellbeing in the Circumpolar Area
- International Business (IB)
- Learning, Education and Technology (LET)
- Magnetic Resonance in Materials (MRM)
- Protein Science and Biotechnology
- Software, Systems and Services Development in Global Environment (GS3D)
- Synchrotron Radiation Based Science and Accelerator Physics
- Wireless Communications Engineering (WCE)
The application procedure to the Master’s programmes varies according to the programme. There is only one application period per academic year. The university uses an online application system and the application period is open for two to three months.
Each Master’s programme has its own specific admissions requirements. In general, to apply for Master’s level studies in the University of Oulu applicants are required to hold a Bachelor’s level degree with good or excellent merits from a higher education
institution which entitles you to apply for Master’s level studies in their home country and have a good command of English.
Research
University works in 70 research areas. At the same time, four focus research areas are:- Information Technology (Machine vision and ubiquitous computing technologies, Wireless communications, High-speed electronics and photonics, Biomedical engineering, Information systems and software)
- Biosciences and Health (Cell-extracellular matrix research, Cardiovascular disease research, Enzyme structure and metabolic research, Genes and the environment)
- Cultural Identity and Interaction (Cultural Identity and Interaction; Language, education and interaction)
- Environment, Natural Resources and Materials (Environmental issues, natural resources and energy economy; materials science, properties and behaviour of matter, catalysts and material innovations; modelling and computational science)
New initiatives involve advanced steel research, international business, mining and mineral engineering and science-based education.
The University of Oulu is known among hackers as the home of the Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat
Internet Relay Chat is a protocol for real-time Internet text messaging or synchronous conferencing. It is mainly designed for group communication in discussion forums, called channels, but also allows one-to-one communication via private message as well as chat and data transfer, including file...
and for the File Transfer Protocol
File Transfer Protocol
File Transfer Protocol is a standard network protocol used to transfer files from one host to another host over a TCP-based network, such as the Internet. FTP is built on a client-server architecture and utilizes separate control and data connections between the client and server...
server x2ftp, named after the basement / blast shelter area in which it was physically located. x2ftp gained its reputation among computer game developers and members of the demoscene
Demoscene
The demoscene is a computer art subculture that specializes in producing demos, which are non-interactive audio-visual presentations that run in real-time on a computer...
for containing a very good archive of information pertaining to low-level graphics programming.
Notable alumni
- Martti AhtisaariMartti AhtisaariMartti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari is a Finnish politician, the tenth President of Finland , Nobel Peace Prize laureate and United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work....
, M.Sc., former President of FinlandPresident of FinlandThe President of the Republic of Finland is the nation's head of state. Under the Finnish constitution, executive power is vested in the President and the government, with the President possessing extensive powers. The President is elected directly by the people of Finland for a term of six years....
, Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
laureate (2008) - Jarkko OikarinenJarkko OikarinenJarkko Oikarinen is the inventor of the first Internet chat network, called Internet Relay Chat , where he is known as WiZ. While working at the University of Oulu in August 1988, he wrote the first IRC server and client programs, which he produced to replace the MUT program on the Finnish BBS...
, D.Sc., the developer of Internet Relay ChatInternet Relay ChatInternet Relay Chat is a protocol for real-time Internet text messaging or synchronous conferencing. It is mainly designed for group communication in discussion forums, called channels, but also allows one-to-one communication via private message as well as chat and data transfer, including file...
(IRC) - Leena PalotieLeena PalotieLeena Peltonen-Palotie was a Finnish geneticist who contributed to the identification of 15 genes for Finnish heritage diseases, including arterial hypertension, schizophrenia, lactose intolerance, arthrosis and multiple sclerosis...
, D.Sc., professor, geneticist - Jussi PesonenJussi PesonenJussi Pesonen is the president and chief executive officer of the Finnish pulp, paper and timber company UPM since 2004.-References:...
, M.Sc. (Tech.), CEO of UPM-Kymmene OyjUPM (company)UPM-Kymmene Corporation is a Finnish pulp, paper and timber manufacturer. UPM-Kymmene was formed by the merger of Kymmene Corporation and Repola Ltd and its subsidiary United Paper Mills Ltd in 1996... - Seppo Säynäjäkangas, D.Sc. (Tech.), professor, inventor of portable heart rate monitor and CEO of Polar ElectroPolar ElectroPolar Electro, or in brief Polar, is a manufacturer of advanced training computers and heart rate monitoring equipment. The company is based in Kempele, Finland. Founded in 1977, Polar introduced the world's first wireless heart rate monitor...
. - Sakari OravaSakari OravaSakari Orava is a Finnish sports medicine surgeon, physician, orthopedist, and professor.Orava has clinics in Turku, Rome and Madrid. He has been dubbed as "Dr. House of sports", and has performed over 20,000 surgeries throughout his career...
, D.Sc., professor, surgeon specializing in sports related injuries. Famous for operating surgeries on many top athletes such as David BeckhamDavid BeckhamDavid Robert Joseph Beckham, OBE is an English footballer who plays midfield for Los Angeles Galaxy in Major League Soccer, having previously played for Manchester United, Preston North End, Real Madrid, and A.C...
. - John Koivukangas, Ph.D., professor of neurosurgery, developer of NeuronavigatorNeuronavigationThe term neuronavigation is a neologism used to describe the set of computer-assisted technologies used by neurosurgeons to guide or "navigate” within the confines of the skull or vertebral column during surgery...
. - Lasse LehtinenLasse LehtinenLasse Lehtinen is a Finnish politician, former Member of the Finnish Parliament and former Member of the European Parliament...
, Ph.D., former Member of the Finnish Parliament and former Member of the European Parliament. - Tero Ojanperä, Ph.D., Executive Vice President of Nokia CorporationNokiaNokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
. - Juha Hulkko, M.Sc. (Eng.), founder of Elektrobit CorporationElektrobitElektrobit Corporation is a Finnish company headquartered in Oulu.Elektrobit, EB is an engineering company in Wireless and Automotive businesses...
.
University of Oulu alumni body is over 40,000. The University of Oulu alumni can meet and stay in contact with their alma mater
Alma mater
Alma mater , pronounced ), was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses, especially Ceres or Cybele, and in Christianity for the Virgin Mary.-General term:...
at the alumni network
Student union
Student Union of the University of Oulu provides services to and supervises the interests of all undergraduate degree students in the University of Oulu. All Bachelor's and Master's degree students in the University of Oulu belong to the Student Union. By paying the Student Union membership fee students are entitled for a student card which allows them to get student services and discounts. This way, students get inexpensive or free medical and dental care from Finnish Student Health Services, traveling discounts in trains and buses, student meals reduction etc.Student guilds
There is a number of students organizations or so called student guilds presented within the university. They cover a variety of interests. Guilds arrange various info events, gettogethers, parties, trips, sports events and often have their own room in the university where students can have coffee, use computers, meet people, play video games or watch TV etc. Each student guild also has its own overalls, with their specific colour. Students usually wear overalls for various parties and outside activities to create a certain feeling of togetherness.Student housing
Student Housing Foundation of Northern Finland is the leading provider of student accommodation in Oulu. The organization operates on a foundation basis which ensures affordable rents for students. Following its mission, PSOAS offers housing services for people studying in Oulu as cheaply as possible.During the year 2011 PSOAS intends to build a new international student house right next to its housing office in downtown Oulu. The house will be accommodated both by international degree students and Finnish students. The main purpose of the new building is to support the internationalization of Oulu and give the international students a better access to Finnish culture and local people. The premises will also support these efforts: More space will be dedicated for casual get-togethers and an international café of high level will be serving both Finnish and foreign customers.
External links
- University of Oulu – official website