KAMK Pathway

Eligibility for the Pathway for Bachelor’s Degrees is given by

• Previous education
  • Higher/upper secondary school certificate (e.g., high school diploma)
  • Bachelor’s degree, Master’s degree, postgraduate licentiate, or doctoral degree
  • Note! Official English translations must be provided. Certificates submitted in other languages are not accepted.
• Language skill requirement
  • Applicants must have good written and oral skills in English language
  • Language proficiency can be demonstrated with a previously completed degree that has been completed entirely in English. The language of instruction must be clearly indicated in the official degree certificate. An official separate document issued by the higher education institution confirming the language of instruction is also accepted.
  • Accepted language test certificates and minimum result levels
    • IELTS Academic or IELTS Online: minimum 5.0 (IELTS General not accepted)
    • TOEFL iBT: minimum 45
    • PTE Academic: minimum 41
    • Overall Cambridge English Scale score of 154, achievable in B1 Preliminary, B2 First or C1 Advanced.
  • Direct admission for Pathway is granted with an IELTS score of 6.0 or an equivalent recognized language certificate. If no language test is available, or if the score is below 6.0, applicants will be invited to an online interview.
• Video task: Bachelor’s Degree in Sports Coaching and Business Management
  • Applicants to the Sports Coaching programme must submit a sports video according to separate instructions.

Eligibility for the Pathway for Master’s degrees is given by

• Previous education
  • Global Business Management: A lower or higher higher-education degree (Bachelor, Master, postgraduate licentiate, doctoral) in business, engineering, or information technology
  • Tourism Business Management: A lower or higher higher-education degree in the field of tourism, business or technology. (Degree must include a minimum of 20 ECTS of tourism/business studies). In addition, a minimum of two years (24 months) of relevant work experience in tourism, business or technology is required.
• Language skill requirement
  • Language proficiency can be proven by a language test. The following language test results / levels are accepted:
    • IELTS Academic or IELTS Online: minimum 5.5
    • TOEFL iBT: minimum 60
    • PTE Academic: minimum 45
    • Overall Cambridge English Scale score of 162, achievable in B2 First or C1 Advanced.
  • Language proficiency can be demonstrated with a previously completed Bachelor’s degree or a higher‑level university degree that has been completed entirely in English. The language of instruction must be clearly indicated in the official degree certificate. An official separate document issued by the higher education institution confirming the language of instruction is also accepted.
  • Note! No other methods of proving English proficiency to master studies are accepted. Applications lacking the required proof will be rejected.
• Video task: Motivation video based on separate instructions.

• Please note! To be eligible for a Master’s Degree in a university of applied sciences in Finland, a minimum of two years (24 months) of relevant work experience after the completion of the Bachelor’s degree is required. The work experience requirement must be fulfilled by the time the Pathway studies are finished.
  • Global Business Management: Applicants must have 24 months (two years) of relevant work experience in the field of business, commerce or technology/computer science.
  • Tourism Business Management: Applicants must have 24 months (two years) of relevant work experience in tourism, business or technology. Applicants who hold a Bachelor´s degree in tourism may present work experience from any of the three fields: tourism, business or technology. However, applicants with a Bachelor´s degree in business or technology must demonstrate the required work experience specifically in the field of tourism.

Application process

Application to pathway studies is done via online application. The link is accessible only while the application period is open.

1. Fill in the application online. You can apply for a maximum of two programmes with one application. Check the requirements carefully and prepare the necessary documents and possible videos accordingly to submit a full application within the application deadline. Please note that the applications are processed already during the application period and the application may be closed if the study places are full.
   • Identification document ie. passport
   • Certificates of prior education, including official English translations if the certificate is not awarded in English.
   • Language test result
   • Sports video (applicants for Sports Coaching and Business Management)
   • Motivation video (applicants for Master’s degrees)
   • Work certificates (applicants for Master’s degrees)
2. KAMK Admissions team will check the applicants’ eligibility based on the applications.
   • Bachelor’s degree applicants without a language test or language test result lower than IELTS level 6.0 will be invited for an online interview.
3. Selected applicants will receive an acceptance letter with instructions for confirming their study place in the Pathway programme and paying the pathway fee. The Pathway Fee is paid through Flywire.
4. After paying the pathway fee, the students will be asked to go through an identification process using Candour platform. After successfully completing the identification process, the students will receive userID’s for KAMK platforms with instructions to start the studies.
   • If the student fails to pay the pathway fee or does not go through the Candour verification within the given deadlines, the offered study place will be cancelled.

There are two application rounds yearly for the Pathway studies:

15 April – 15 May
15 October – 15 November

Application to pathway studies is done via online application. The link is accessible only while the application period is open.

The tuition fee for the online pathway (one semester) is

• €5,000 for Bachelor’s Degree
• €4,500 for Master’s Degree.

The fee is non-refundable.

Pathway studies do no lead to a degree and do not require attendance in Finland. The studies are fully completed online.

Upon successful completion of the pathway, students may apply to on-campus studies as full-time students, for studies leading to a degree. From that point onward, tuition fees will be applied in accordance with KAMK’s standard tuition fee policy.

After successfully finishing the Pathway and being accepted to study on campus, the student must immediately apply for a residence permit for studies in Finland. Familiarize yourself with the requirements.

The study right for Pathway studies is granted for one semester. Please note that the pathway takes place fully online and does not require attendance in Finland.

• Spring semester: 15 January – 31 May
• Autumn semester: 15 August – 15 December

The pathway studies should be completed within the given study right. After successful completion of the full pathway, you can apply to become a full-time student at KAMK.

The studies are conducted entirely online. The workload varies based on the programme the student has chosen, ranging from 15 to 32 ECTS credits. Courses are measured in ECTS credits, where one credit equals approximately 27 hours of student work. Most courses carry 3 to 5 credits, which translates to about 81–135 hours of work per course. A typical full-time workload is 30 credits per semester which equals a workload of 40 hrs per week, so it’s important to plan sufficient time for regular study.

To support smooth progress, joint guidance sessions for all pathway students will be held via Teams. Depending on the course, there may also be online lessons, but also assignments, exams and independent work.  This requires strong time-management and self-management skills.

In case some of the courses or assignments are failed, any retakes should be taken according to KAMK retake policy and within the given study right. It is possible to apply for extension for the Pathway study right by paying for an extra semester.

The courses to be completed for the Pathway are degree-specific, depending on the degree that was applied to.

The studies will be completed independently and fully online. Courses may include online-sessions led by teachers, but mostly the studies will be completed independently according to given instructions.

Master’s degree courses include weekly/biweekly online lessons via Teams. The lessons take place in the evening, Finnish time 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Check the local time

In addition to the online lectures, there will be independent learning, assignments and group tasks.

After you have successfully completed all the required courses in the Pathway, you can apply to become a degree student at KAMK. The studies leading to a degree will take place in Kajaani, on campus.

The application periods for studies on campus are as follows:

• 25 – 29 January 2027 for studies starting in autumn 2027
• 26 – 30 April 2027 for studies starting in autumn 2027
• 23 – 27 August 2027 for studies starting in spring 2028
• 25 – 29 October 2027 for studies starting in spring 2028

Please note that the residence permit application process may take several months. Check the residence permit requirements carefully already when applying for the degree studies and start the application process for the residence permit for studies in Finland immediately after being offered the study place.

No. Pathway studies do not lead directly to a degree. However, successful completion of the Pathway programme provides you with eligibility to apply for degree studies.

The studies do not lead to a degree and are completed fully online, thus it is not possible to apply for a residence permit to Finland based on the Pathway studies.

In case some courses are not fully completed within the given study right ie. one semester, you may continue completing the Pathway courses for an additional semester by paying a fee that is 50% of the Pathway fee. This must be agreed and discussed with the Pathway coordinator before the end of the semester.

The tuition fee at KAMK for the academic year 2026 – 2027 is 10,000 € on Bachelor level and 12,000 € on Master level. It is a good idea to consider the cost of full degree as well as living costs in Finland for the whole duration of the studies in advance.

The up-to-date information on the tuition fees can be found on KAMK website: https://kamk.fi/en/study-at-kamk/apply-to-kamk/tuition-fees-and-scholarship/.

There are no scholarships available for the Pathway studies.

After finishing the Pathway and being accepted as a degree student at KAMK, an early bird scholarship is available under certain conditions.

Pathway programme fees are non refundable.

Pathway studies are delivered fully online, allowing you to study from your home country. After successfully completing the Pathway, you can apply for degree studies that take place in Finland.

Yes. A laptop or computer is required. Studying only with a mobile phone is not sufficient.