University of Helsinki Materials Research Master’s Thesis Guide 2026-2027

The Master’s Programme in Materials Research (MATRES) at the University of Helsinki is unusually broad. It combines physics, chemistry, biology and medical sciences, mathematics and computer science around the study of materials. That breadth directly affects thesis planning: a MATRES thesis can be theoretical, computational, experimental or combine several of these approaches, and the right project design depends heavily on the student’s study track, research problem and supervisor.

This guide uses current University of Helsinki sources verified on 25 August 2026. It is a thesis guide, not an admissions guide. Application criteria, fees, scholarships, attachments and language-test thresholds are outside this article.

Current MATRES structure: seven study tracks

The degree is 120 ECTS and is designed for completion in two academic years. All programme teaching is in English. Students can also take examinations in Finnish or Swedish, and the Master’s thesis may be written in English, Finnish or Swedish. Certain medical-physics and radiation-protection studies have separate Finnish-language requirements, so students in those areas should check the current course instructions.

The current programme has seven study tracks:

1. Experimental Materials Physics
2. Computational Materials Physics
3. Medical Physics
4. Polymer Materials Chemistry
5. Inorganic Materials Chemistry
6. Electronics and Industrial Applications
7. Sustainable Materials

There is an important documentation inconsistency here. The general MATRES Studying page contains a sentence saying the programme has six study tracks, but the same paragraph immediately lists seven names. The main programme page explicitly says seven, and the dedicated Study tracks and courses page also explicitly says seven. For this guide, seven is therefore the current publication count. The isolated word “six” is treated as an internal page typo, not as evidence for a different structure.

How the 120 ECTS degree is organised

The current general structure includes:

• 10 ECTS of common courses for all students;
• 0-35 ECTS of study-track-specific mandatory studies;
• a 5 ECTS chemistry or physics course depending on the track;
• 20-75 ECTS of alternative advanced studies;
• the 30 ECTS Master’s thesis; and
• 0-20 ECTS of other relevant studies from other Master’s or Bachelor’s programmes.

The exact balance depends on the chosen track and personal study plan. MATRES uses academic mentoring and programme guidance to help students choose the track and construct the study plan. This matters for thesis preparation because the courses that support an experimental materials-physics thesis can look very different from those supporting polymer chemistry, medical physics, computational materials research or sustainable materials.

What the 30 ECTS MATRES thesis is expected to do

The thesis is worth 30 ECTS and is expected to take approximately one semester of full-time work.

The programme describes the thesis as work on a defined problem in materials research. A strong project should make the research problem explicit and connect it to relevant scientific literature. Depending on the topic, the thesis can contain a theoretical, computational and/or experimental section directed at answering the research questions.

The thesis is still an independent academic work even when the research takes place inside a larger project. MATRES explicitly notes that students often work as part of a research group. The programme also supports international thesis collaboration, which can be relevant for projects connected with major facilities and research networks.

This gives MATRES students several legitimate thesis routes. An experimental project may focus on synthesis, characterisation, irradiation, thin films, polymers, medical applications or other material systems. A computational project may use modelling, simulation or numerical methods. A theory-heavy project may focus on the scientific explanation of material behaviour. Interdisciplinary projects can combine these elements when the research question justifies the combination.

The important rule is not to select a method because it sounds appropriate for the name of the track. The method must fit the research question, available data or material, facilities, workload and supervisor agreement.

Prepare a thesis plan before the project becomes too large

Current University-wide Master’s thesis instructions require students to prepare a thesis plan before starting the thesis project or at its initial stage at the latest. The plan is approved in the way defined by the degree programme and must identify the thesis supervisor or supervisors.

For a MATRES student, a useful thesis plan should make the following clear:

1. the materials-research problem and why it matters;
2. the specific research question or questions;
3. the theoretical, computational or experimental approach;
4. the material, dataset, simulation, instrument or literature base required;
5. the student’s own independent contribution if the work belongs to a larger research group;
6. the expected timetable for one semester of full-time thesis work;
7. the supervision arrangement and meeting rhythm; and
8. any publication, confidentiality or external-collaboration issues that must be handled before submission.

A well-scoped plan is especially important in MATRES because access to laboratories, instruments, computational resources, medical environments or external collaborators can create dependencies that a purely desk-based project may not have.

There is no verified universal MATRES page-count rule

The current MATRES programme-facing pages and the MATRES-specific assessment guidance verified for this guide do not establish one universal thesis page range for the whole programme.

That is a meaningful finding, not missing information to be filled with a guess. MATRES spans physics, chemistry, medical applications, computation, electronics and sustainability. Other University of Helsinki programmes publish their own page guidance, but those numbers should not be copied into MATRES simply because the programmes share a faculty, department or method.

Do not automatically apply Chemistry’s thesis-length guidance, Computer Science’s typical page range, or a Faculty of Humanities range to MATRES. Ask the supervisor and track-specific teaching staff what length and structure are appropriate for the actual project.

The same caution applies to citation style. The current sources verified here do not establish one universal MATRES-wide APA, MLA, Chicago or other citation requirement. Follow the current track, thesis and supervisor instructions that apply to your project.

Be careful with Research Project course codes

MATRES track pages show that research-project studies differ across tracks. Some chemistry-oriented tracks contain specific Research Project courses, while other tracks structure advanced studies differently. The MATRES assessment page also contains Research Project code wording that does not align cleanly with every current track listing.

For that reason, this guide does not publish one universal MATRES Research Project code. If your thesis work is linked to a Research Project course, verify the current course in your study track, Sisu and the instructions given by your supervisor or education coordinator. This avoids registering an old or track-inappropriate code.

E-thesis submission and MATRES assessment

When the thesis is complete and the student and supervisor are satisfied that it is ready for assessment, the final thesis is submitted through E-thesis.

For MATRES, the programme-specific assessment guidance says:

• submit the completed thesis by 23:59 Finnish time on the relevant submission date;
• the supervisor sends the names of the examiners to Kumpula Student Services;
• the examiner information is transferred into E-thesis;
• the assessment is normally completed within 2-3 weeks after submission;
• the maturity test must be completed before the final grade proposal goes forward for the Dean’s decision; and
• the thesis file submitted for assessment is final and must not be changed after submission.

The finality rule is important. Do not treat E-thesis as a draft upload area. Resolve corrections, figure quality, references, accessibility, appendices and supervisor comments before the final submission.

Who examines the thesis?

MATRES has a programme-specific examiner rule. The thesis is assessed by:

• a professor, assistant or associate professor, research director, or senior/university lecturer at the Department of Chemistry or Department of Physics; together with
• another person who has at least a doctoral degree.

The supervisor often acts as one of the examiners and identifies the second examiner.

The thesis is graded on the 0-5 scale using the MATRES evaluation matrix shared with the Chemistry framework. The matrix assesses areas such as the research question, scientific framework and sources, research data/materials and methods, presentation of results, discussion and conclusions, and scientific presentation. Extreme grades 0, 1 and 5 require clear justification.

The examiners prepare the grade proposal, but the Dean makes the final approval and grading decision.

MATRES has a separate supervised maturity test

MATRES does not simply rely on a generic assumption that the thesis abstract is always the maturity test.

The current MATRES-specific guidance says the maturity test is a literary work completed under supervision. It can be completed under personal supervision or as a personal exam in Examinarium. If completed under personal supervision, the guidance says it should be done with pen and paper without a computer.

The literary work can, for example, be a short essay of approximately 1-2 pages on a topic connected with the thesis. The student is given two hours to write it. The MATRES maturity-test course code is MATR399.

Language requirements depend on the student’s educational and language background, so students should check the current University instructions rather than assuming one language rule applies to everybody.

The University states that AI may never be used in maturity tests.

Faculty of Science submission calendar for 2026-2027

For the 2026-2027 academic year, the Faculty of Science schedule gives these thesis submission dates:

The University states that theses are not assessed in July. Supervision and feedback are also generally unavailable in July unless a faculty or programme requires otherwise. Plan backwards from the intended Dean decision rather than treating the submission deadline as the first date that matters.

AI use during thesis work

Current University policy allows AI tools to support learning and writing subject to the restrictions imposed by the teacher, degree programme and faculty. Use must follow the University’s transparency and research-integrity requirements, and the student remains responsible for the academic content.

For a MATRES thesis, that means AI cannot substitute for scientific judgement, independent analysis, laboratory or computational responsibility, source verification, or the student’s own interpretation of results. Follow the current programme and supervisor instructions and disclose use where required.

Again, AI is never permitted in the maturity test.

Public thesis, confidential material and embargo

A Master’s thesis is a public document after approval. Students should therefore discuss confidentiality early when working with a company, medical setting, research group or unpublished research material.

Confidential material must not simply be placed inside the assessed thesis or its appendices. The University has separate rules for secret background material and may allow delayed open publication in appropriate cases, but an embargo does not turn the approved thesis into a secret document.

Discuss publication needs before final submission, especially if the project is connected to a forthcoming paper, patent, company collaboration or research-group result.

A practical MATRES thesis workflow

A reliable sequence is:

1. confirm your current study track and personal study plan;
2. identify a feasible materials-research problem and supervisor;
3. prepare and approve the thesis plan;
4. clarify your independent contribution if you work inside a research group;
5. verify whether your track has a separate Research Project course and use the current track/Sisu code only;
6. choose theoretical, computational and/or experimental methods based on the research question;
7. agree on supervision meetings and resource dependencies;
8. write while the research progresses, not only after the research is finished;
9. check the track-specific formatting and citation expectations;
10. complete the MATRES maturity test;
11. select the correct Faculty of Science submission round;
12. finish all corrections before uploading the final E-thesis file; and
13. keep publication or embargo needs separate from the scientific assessment itself.

Final planning checklist

Before submitting, confirm that:

• you are using the current seven-track MATRES structure;
• your thesis is registered and scoped as the 30 ECTS Master’s thesis;
• your research question and methods fit the actual materials problem;
• your independent contribution is clear if you worked in a larger research project;
• you did not copy a page-count or citation rule from another programme;
• any Research Project course is the correct current one for your track;
• the examiner arrangement is in place;
• the maturity test is completed under the current MATRES rules;
• the final file is ready to become non-editable in E-thesis;
• confidential material has been handled correctly; and
• the submission date gives enough time for the intended Dean decision.

MATRES is multidisciplinary by design. The safest thesis is therefore not the one that copies a generic template most closely, but the one whose research question, method, track-specific requirements and supervision plan are aligned from the beginning.