Located in the city of Rovaniemi, on the Arctic Circle, the University of Lapland is an international, multidisciplinary university whose areas of expertise include Arctic affairs and tourism research.As a research-based higher education institution, our teaching and research facilities offer students and scholars the opportunity to pursue academic excellence, at all levels – all the way up to PhD studies – in the fields of arctic issues, tourism, art and design, law, education, and the social sciences. Our state of the art research facility, the Arctic Centre, conducts internationally recognized, cutting-edge research on the interactions between people and the environment in the Arctic.

A sense of community is very important to people here in the far north and it is essential to us that the university’s research, educational, and artistic activities actively support the local community, businesses, and society here in northern Finland. But our efforts do not end there – the work we do here is relevantly geared to the North and the globalized world.Originally established in 1979 to provide higher education opportunities for those living in the far reaches of northern Finland, the university has now become an important educational institution for the entire country. The University of Lapland has turned out every fourth lawyer, every third university-educated expert in art and design, close to ten percent of the social scientists, and many talented educational professionals here in Finland.

Our graduates occupy numerous positions of responsibility in society and business throughout Finland and the world – this is something we take great pride in.