Registration for courses and study practices for exchange students
The Finnish system of academic education gives students a great deal of freedom in planning and scheduling their studies. This freedom also requires independence and responsibility from the student as choosing subjects and course units. Avoiding overlapping courses and keeping the schedule balanced both with independent and in-person courses throughout the academic year may sometimes be difficult and time-consuming.
Exchange students have to make a preliminary study plan already when applying to the university according to our own and their home universities guidelines, but final registration to any of the courses happens only around a month before the start of the exchange study period and after you have completed your registration with the university. At Tampere University, in some study fields, there might be more courses available as independent studies (self-studying) only without any traditional lectures in English.