Doctoral Researcher Positions in ICT (Helsinki, Finland)
The Helsinki Institute for Information Technology is a joint initiative by Aalto University and the University of Helsinki, the two leading universities within this area in Finland. The network involves at present over 80 professors and over 200 doctoral students, and the participating units graduate altogether more than 40 new doctors each year.
Researchers from Aalto University and the University of Helsinki are looking for Doctoral Researchers in multiple areas of ICT. Doctoral Researcher positions are intended for individuals who are wishing to pursue their doctoral degree. We offer an exciting opportunity to join world-class research groups. Our researchers have positions available in the following research areas:
- Ambient Intelligence
- Automated Reasoning
- Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
- Bayesian Inference/ Bayesian Statistics
- Computational Health/ Life science informatics
- Human Computer Interaction
- Software Engineering
In the application you can apply to work with one or a number of supervisors listed in the recruitment call. We actively work to ensure our community’s diversity and inclusiveness. This is why we warmly encourage qualified candidates from all backgrounds to join our community.
The online application form closes on January 21, 2024 11:59pm Finnish time (23:59 EET, Eastern European Time UTC+2).
Our researchers are seeking candidates to fulfill doctoral researcher positions for projects. They are separated out by their research area, and may be listed under multiple areas.
| Name | Research Area | Research Group (If Applicable) |
| Stephan Sigg (Aalto) | Ambient Intelligence, RF perception, Human sensing, Usable Security | Ambient Intelligence |
| Name | Research Interests | Research Group (If Applicable) |
| Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence FCAI | 1) Reinforcement learning, 2) Probabilistic methods, 3) Simulation-based inference, 4) Privacy-preserving machine learning, 5) Collaborative AI and human modeling, 6) Machine learning for science | Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence FCAI |
| Luigi Acerbi (Helsinki) | Probabilistic Machine Learning, Gaussian Processes, Bayesian Inference, Variational Inference | Machine and Human Intelligence |
| Antti Honkela (Helsinki) | Differentially private machine learning, Differential privacy, Private synthetic data, machine learning | Trustworthy Machine Learning |
| Juho Kannala (Aalto) | computer vision, deep learning, representation learning | Computer Vision Group |
| Kimmo Kaski (Aalto) | Computational Science & Digital Data-driven Health, Applications of AI & Deep learning & LLMs, Disease classification and tissue sermentation, Diabetic retinopathy and cancer segmentation | |
| Samuel Kaski (Aalto) | Probabilistic modelling and Bayesian inference, Collaborative machine learning for design and decision making, Machine learning for health, drug design and synthetic biology | Probablistic Machine Learning |
| Kai Puolamäki (Helsinki) | Explainable Artificial Intelligence, Uncertainty Quantification, Machine Learning for Science | Exploratory Data Analysis Group |
| Arno Solin (Aalto) | Machine learning, Uncertainty quantification, Deep learning, Probabilistic methods | AaltoML |
| Koen Van Leemput (Aalto) | medical image computing, mathematical modeling, machine learning, computational neuroimaging | Medical Image Computing |
| Name | Research Area | Research Group (If Applicable) |
| Matti Järvisalo (Helsinki) | Automated reasoning and combinatorial optimization, SAT solving and extensions, Pseudo-Boolean reasoning and optimization, Implicit hitting set computation | Constraint Reasoning and Optimization |
| Name | Research Interests | Research Group Name |
| Luigi Acerbi (Helsinki) | Probabilistic Machine Learning, Gaussian Processes, Bayesian Inference, Variational Inference | Machine and Human Intelligence |
| Samuel Kaski (Aalto) | Probabilistic modelling and Bayesian inference, Collaborative machine learning for design and decision making, Machine learning for health, drug design and synthetic biology | Probablistic Machine Learning |
| Aki Vehtari (Aalto) | Bayesian Workflow, Bayesian statistics, Bayesian modeling, Probabilistic programming | Bayesian Workflow |
| Name | Research Interests | Research Group (If Applicable) |
| Kimmo Kaski (Aalto) | Computational Science & Digital Data-driven Health, Applications of AI & Deep learning & LLMs, Disease classification and tissue sermentation, Diabetic retinopathy and cancer segmentation | |
| Samuel Kaski (Aalto) | Probabilistic modelling and Bayesian inference, Collaborative machine learning for design and decision making, Machine learning for health, drug design and synthetic biology | Probablistic Machine Learning |
| Koen Van Leemput (Aalto) | medical image computing, mathematical modeling, machine learning, computational neuroimaging | Medical Image Computing |
| Name | Research Interests | Research Group (If Applicable) |
| Samuel Kaski (Aalto) | Probabilistic modelling and Bayesian inference, Collaborative machine learning for design and decision making, Machine learning for health, drug design and synthetic biology | Probablistic Machine Learning |
| Name | Research Interests | Research Group Name |
| Tomi Männistö (Helsinki) | Conceptual modelling, Data engineering, Machine learning | Empirical Software Engineering |
How to Apply: Read through the list of supervisors participating in this recruitment call. There are links that provide more information about the supervisor’s research and research group. Click on the link of eRecruitment system to apply to the professor that you are interested working with. You can apply directly to one or multiple supervisors. All the supervisors you indicate on your application form will be informed of your interest, and others also have access to your application documents.
Compulsory attachments
All materials should be submitted in English in a PDF format. Note: files should be 5MB max. You can upload up to 5 files to the eRecruitment system, each 5MB.
- Letter of motivation (two pages max.) which clearly states your motivation for applying to work with said supervisor, how you could contribute to the research produced by the supervisor and research area, and other relevant information.
- A curriculum vitae and list of publications with complete study and employment history
- A study transcript of the MSc and BSc degree provided by the applicant’s university that lists studies completed and grades achieved. In the Finnish university system, a person must have a Master’s degree in order to enroll for doctoral studies. If the degree is still pending, then a plan for its completion must be provided. (The letter describing the completion plan can be free-format)
- Contact details of possible referees from 2-3 senior academic people. We will contact your referees, if recommendation letters are required.
Frequently Asked Questions
In the Finnish university system, a person must have a Master’s degree in order to enroll for doctoral studies. In case you wish to pursue graduate studies with a B.Sc. background, please apply first to one of the participating units’ Master’s programmes (Aalto University School of Science (SCI) or School of Electrical Engineering (ELEC), and University of Helsinki). A number of these programmes provide special “doctoral tracks” with some financial support and study plans oriented towards continuing to doctoral education after the M.Sc. degree.
Applications need to be submitted through the online electronic application system of Aalto University. Applications sent through any other means will not be processed. You can find the application form through the website
All materials should be submitted in English in a PDF format. Note: files should be 5MB max. You can upload multiple files to the eRecruitment system, each 5MB.
- Letter of motivation (two pages maximum)Please describe your background and future plans, and in particular the reasons for selecting the supervisor(s) (you can get more information on the supervisors through their web pages). Try to make your motivation letter as convincing as possible, so that the potential supervisors get interested. You do not have to write several motivation letters in case you apply for multiple projects, but if you prefer you can attach separate letters for individual projects.
- A curriculum vitae and list of publications with complete study and employment history (please see an example CV at Europass pages)
- A study transcript of the M.Sc. and B.Sc. degrees provided by the applicant’s university that lists studies completed and grades achieved.
- A copy of the M.Sc. degree and B.Sc. certificate. In the Finnish university system, a person must have a Master’s degree in order to enroll for doctoral studies. If the degree is still pending, then a plan for its completion must be provided. (The letter describing the completion plan can be free-format)
- Contact details of possible referees from 2 senior academic people. We will contact your referees, if recommendation letters are required.
Funded doctoral students are typically hired as full-time employees for the duration of their doctoral studies. The contract includes the normal occupational health benefits of the employing university. Finland has a comprehensive social security system.
The annual total workload of research and teaching staff at Finnish universities is 1624 hours per year. In addition to doctoral studies, persons hired are expected to participate in the supervision of students and teaching, following the standard practices of the recruiting unit.
A successful applicant must have an excellent command of Finnish, Swedish, or English. The universities participating in HICT have strict language skills requirements for doctoral students (Aalto University, University of Helsinki). International applicants applying for doctoral studies must demonstrate their proficiency in English. For example,an English language proficiency certificate (TOEFL, IELTS, CAE/CPE) is required later in case you will proceed to the recruitment process and apply for a doctoral study right.
Only the following applicant groups can be exempted from the language test requirement: applicants who have completed a higher education degree:
- taught in Finnish, Swedish or English in a higher education institution in Finland.
- in an English-medium programme at a higher education institution in an EU/EEA country, provided that all parts of the degree were completed in English.
- an English-medium higher education degree requiring a physical on-site presence at a higher education institution in the United States, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Australia or New Zealand.
More information on minimum language requirements and language test scores can be found at the programs doctoral programme information pages (Aalto Doctoral Programme in Science (SCI), Aalto Doctoral Programme in Electrical Engineering (ELEC), University of Helsinki) (see “Language requirements” and “demonstrating proficiency in English”). Please be prepared to check the eligibility requirements for doctoral studies and present additional documents in case you will proceed to the recruitment and apply for doctoral study right in Aalto University or University of Helsinki.
Finland is among the best countries in the world with respect to education and many quality of life indicators. Both HICT partner universities (Aalto University and the University of Helsinki) have a wide range of courses offered in English. Boasting the largest technology hub of the Nordic countries, Finland is a world leader in information technology, business, design and many other academically centred fields.
Read more about living and studying in Finland.
You do not need to learn Finnish. The working environment of doctoral students is highly international, and the working language is English. You can normally also cope in English outside work as most Finns have a very good command of English.
The exact starting date can be negotiated between the student and the supervisor. The student must have completed his/her M.Sc. degree by the time of starting doctoral studies.
New students also need to go through the standard doctoral student enrolment process of the hosting university/school before the start of the funding period. The supervisors will help in this process, once the best candidates have been identified and linked to a supervisor.
The maximum length of the funding period is four years.
The exact amount of monthly salary depends on the stage of the doctoral studies and varies between 2,500 and 3,400 euros/month. The level of the salary is sufficient for a funded student to focus on his or her doctoral studies full-time, without the need to resort to other sources of income.
Please find below some links with more detailed information about the eligibility requirements and doctoral studies in general at Aalto University and University of Helsinki:
Living and studying in Finland
For the Aalto Doctoral Programme in Science (SCI) (also, see study guide)
For the Aalto Doctoral Programme in Electrical Engineering (ELEC) (also, see study guide)
For the University of Helsinki
The HICT calls are targeted to prospective new doctoral students who are willing to start their doctoral studies in Aalto University or University of Helsinki under one of the HICT supervisors. Current funded doctoral students in Aalto University or University of Helsinki cannot participate in this call. While all applicants who have submitted an application by the deadline will be appropriately considered, Aalto University and the University of Helsinki reserve the right to consider also other candidates for the announced positions.
If you become selected as a new doctoral student, you need to apply for a study right for doctoral studies either at Aalto University or the University of Helsinki. Your new supervisor will assist you with the application. HICT itself does not award doctoral study rights or doctoral degrees. All doctoral students within the HICT network are doctoral students of either Aalto University or the University of Helsinki.
Contact Information
For questions regarding these positions and the electronic recruiting system, please contact the HIIT coordinator at coordinator@hiit.fi