Limited duration of studies

On this page you can read about the limited study time and find information on how to apply for an extension of study time.

The limited study time is determined in the Finnish University law. The study time always ends at the end of term, either 31.7 or 31.12. You can check the end date of your study time in Sisu under My Profile -> Study rights, open the study right.

Study right for only a Master's degree

Your study time for a master's degree at Hanken is limited: you are expected to complete your studies within a certain time. If you have been admitted to a master's degree programme at Hanken before 2005 your study time is not limited, and the following does not concern you.

The estimated time to complete your studies and to graduate is two years. You also have an additional two years to complete your degree. This means that your time to study for your master's degree is restricted to a total of four years (which means that you are allowed to be registered as present for 8 terms).

Those admitted to Hanken between 2005-2014: you are allowed to be registered as absent during four terms.

Those admitted to Hanken 2015 and later: you are allowed to be registered as absent during two terms, but during your first academic year you may register as absent for the following reasons only:

  • military service (including Non-Military Service or Women's Voluntary Military Service);
  • maternity, paternity or parental leave;
  • if you cannot begin your studies due to being incapacitated by personal illness or injury.

All master's students admitted to Hanken 2005 or later: you are allowed to be absent for the following reasons without it affecting the time you have to complete your studies:

  • military service
  • maternity, paternity or parental leave

Please note that child care leave does not allow absence without affecting the time to complete your studies.

If you forget the annual registration you will be dropped from the study register. The time you are not on register counts into your total study time as if you had registered as present.

You will lose your right to study at Hanken if you do not graduate within the set time. If you have acceptable reasons for a slower study pace, you can apply for an extension of study time. Acceptable reasons are for example health reasons, family responsibilities, societal commitments and systematic training for top-level sports. If your study right has ended and you have lost your study right, but wish to completed your studies, you need to apply for a renewed study right and pay an application fee

You can be granted an extension of study time only if you have a goal-oriented and realistic study plan in Sisu. An extension is always granted for a limited period of time and for complete terms, with a maximum of fours terms per application, even if your study plan would require more than four terms. You can apply for another extension later on, if you complete your studies according to plan. An extension will not be granted if the studies have been completed at a much slower pace than planned, without an acceptable reason. An extension will also not be granted if you have used up your study right without completing a single course at Hanken, without supplying an acceptable reason for it.

An extension of the study right will always be granted for graduation, ie. if you have completed all the necessary studies, but won't be able to graduate within the limits of your study right. The application for an extension of your study right requires an application for graduation in this case.

Application for an extension of your study right

You can apply for an extension of your study right during the last semester of your study right. We process the applications two times a year. If your study right is expiring by the end of spring term (31 July) you shall apply for an extension between 1 May - 31 May, and if your study right is expiring by the end of autumn term (31 December) you shall apply for an extension in between 1 November - 30 November. If you submit your application outside of these times, we will generally reject it.

  • Submit the application in Sisu according to the instructions on this page Opens in new window in May (31 May at the latest) if your study time expires 31 July, or in November (30 November at the latest) if your study time expires 31 December. 
  • If you are invoking medical or other acceptable reasons for the delay of your studies, save a medical (or other) certificate as a PDF on your computer and send it through this electronic form. Please note that you should not enter sensitive personal or health related data in the application in Sisu.

In case you have missed the application deadline, please contact studycounsellor-hki@hanken.fi or studycounsellor-vaasa@hanken.fi.

In case your study time, and therefore right to study, has already expired you can apply for a renewed study right but you need to pay an application fee (35 €). You apply by filling in a separate form which you can get by contacting studycounsellor-hki@hanken.fi or studycounsellor-vaasa@hanken.fi. Submit the form and the receipt of the paid application fee electronically.