You should not exclude the possibility of acquiring and organizing a place to study abroad on your own, even if Åbo Akademi University participates in many exchange programs. To do this you can do the following:
- Get in touch with the university or universities that you are interested in. Contact information can usually be found on the university’s webpage.
- Follow the instructions that the university gives you, to apply for a study right.
- Apply for funding. This is perhaps the biggest challenge when acquiring a study right on your own. The following sources can help you:
- Financial aid for students
- ÅAU’s scholarships (applications every September)
- Luckan’s web service about scholarships and grants: fyrk.fi (in Swedish)
- Various scholarship funds, see e.g. the SYL grants database
- Svenska Studiefonden (in Swedish, applications every February)
Check carefully that the university is a serious and accredited university. Studies within the exchange programs Asia Exchange, Academy Access and Opiskelijavaihto qualify for neither scholarships nor credit transfers at Åbo Akademi University according to the Rector’s decision from February 2010.
If you choose to organize a place to study internationally on your own as a freemover, you have to make a study plan and agree on credit transfer within your study programme at Åbo Akademi University.
Remeber to fill in this form and apply for credit transfer as soon as possible after the exchange period.