University of Turku, Turku

The University of Turku, established in 1920, is a multidisciplinary public university located in southwestern Finland, with its main campus in the city of Turku. It is the third-largest university in Finland by student enrollment, following the University of Helsinki and Tampere University. With approximately 22,000 degree students, the University of Turku offers bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in both Finnish and English, across its eight faculties, including the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Science and Technology.

The university traces its roots to The Royal Academy of Turku, founded in 1640, which was later relocated to Helsinki after the Great Fire of Turku in 1827. Notable Finns like Johan Vilhelm Snellman, Elias Lonnrot, and Johan Ludvig Runeberg began their studies in Turku in 1822, with a statue of them commemorated on University Hill. The Old Academy Building, a reminder of the Royal Academy, stands near the university’s campus.

The modern University of Turku was born from a fundraising campaign that attracted contributions from 22,040 people, who sought to establish the first Finnish-language university following Finland’s independence. To honor these donors, the university created a unique liqueur, "22 040," which celebrates Finnish nature’s distinctive fruits, such as cloudberry, rowan, and sea buckthorn.

The University of Turku’s main campus on University Hill was built in the 1950s and continues to expand, including the Medisiina D building for the Faculty of Medicine. In addition to its main Turku campus, the university has facilities in Rauma, Pori, and research stations in Kevo and Seili. The university is also part of the Coimbra Group and the European Campus of City-Universities (EC2U).