City of Helsinki Research Grants

The research grants are intended for post-graduate students with a Master’s or equivalent degree, working on doctoral or licentiate theses.  Junior post doc researchers are also encouraged to apply.

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Photo: Julia Kivelä

City of Helsinki Research Grants 2026 are open for application

 

The application period for City of Helsinki Research Grants for the year 2026 is now open. A total of EUR 73,000 in research grants is available, intended for post-graduate students who already hold a master’s degree or the equivalent and are working on a doctoral or licentiate thesis. Junior post doc researchers (people who have received their doctorate within the last five years) are also encouraged to apply.

The criteria for awarding the grant are the scientific quality of the research plan, its feasibility and the significance of the research topic for the City of Helsinki.

The City of Helsinki awards grants for research on:

  • issues related to urbanisation and its effects,
  • issues related to Helsinki’s economy, vitality and/or business conditions,
  • organisation and evaluation of services produced or ordered by the City of Helsinki,
  • Helsinki’s living environment, wellbeing, history, everyday life, and urban culture,
  • issues related to Helsinki’s internationalisation, and/or
  • Helsinki’s crisis resilience and preparedness for significant exterior changes.

Applications must include a research plan, CV and, if applicable, references. The City of Helsinki will not consider incomplete applications after the submission deadline. The submission deadline is 9 March 2026 at 23.59.

The application form is available online at Application form 2026, English, pdf 

Please send the completed application to:
Helsingin kaupunginkirjaamo, Tutkimusapurahat, PL 10, 00099 HELSINGIN KAUPUNKI
Visiting address: City Hall, Pohjoisesplanadi 11-13
E-mail: helsinki.kirjaamo@hel.fi

For further information, contact Research Director Eero Aalto at tel. 09 310 35821. 

Research grants 2025

On Helsinki Day, the City of Helsinki also awarded research grants to 11 research projects. The total grant amount is EUR 73,000.

The City of Helsinki research grants 2025 were awarded to the following applicants and research topics:

Milad Malekzadeh: Enhancing Citizen Engagement in Urban Planning through Large Language Models.

Essi Strandén: Varhaiskasvatuksen opettajien ammattiin sitoutuminen työn induktiovaiheessa.

Yanxin Xi: Building Multimodal AI for Urban Imagery and Textual Data to Support Sustainable Development and Urbanization Analysis in Helsinki.

Ilona Kaitala: Ikääntyneiden asiakkaiden kokemuksia Helsingin kaupungin päihteidenkäytön huomioivista senioripalveluista.

Jenni Kuhta: Ammatillisen koulutuksen opettajien kehittäjätoimijuus: ennakointikyvykkyys, tietokäytännöt ja ammatilliset verkostot.

Paula-Kaisa Leppänen: Asuintonttien kasvillisuus ja sen ilmastovaikutukset - skaalaus yksittäisten kasvien tasolta tonteille ja kaupunginosiin.

Jiawei Zhao: From Proximity to Experience: Measuring Green Space Accessibility through Route Quality and Citizen Perception.

Anna-Riikka Rasa: Kielenoppimistilanteet työssäoppimisen ohjauskeskusteluissa sosiaali- ja terveysalalla.

Eurídice Hernández Gomes: Latin America in Helsinki: Unveiling cultural dialogues and identity navigation in the city social infrastructure.

Nanna Wackström: Fysisk aktivitet och motoriska färdigheter bland barn - Betydelsen av familjens rörelsebeteende, urban och rural omgivning och utomhusundervisning.

Boris Brander: Vernacular ritual magic and the magical class struggle of Tattarisuo coven.

For further information, contact Research Director Eero Aalto at tel. 09 310 35821.