On terminology: the term doctoral candidate refers to a person in the third-cycle degree studies obtaining a doctoral degree at the Theatre Academy.
Doctoral studies in artistic research in performing arts provide the doctoral candidate within the doctoral programme with an option and an ability to conduct artistic research in the fields represented at the Theatre Academy. Artistic research is multidisciplinary and collaborative academic research realized in the medium of art. It entails artistic processes and their articulation, conceptualization and theory formation. Doctoral candidates graduating from the doctoral programme are artist-researchers in performing arts.
In accordance with the learning outcomes of the doctoral training, the artist-researchers have an ability to apply the expertise they have developed as artists, researchers, pedagogues and experts. They develop and renew arts, art making, research and teaching of arts. They engage in diverse and critical dialogues with various actors in society. As experts in their field, they produce knowledge, skills and understanding that can be used and applied both in the arts and in other areas of society.
The learning outcomes are described in more detail in the curricula of the doctoral programme 2015-2021 and 2021-2026.
The doctoral studies are governed by several regulations. The University of the Arts Helsinki degree regulations and Theatre Academy’s general instructions concerning studying define the doctoral degrees obtained at the Theatre Academy, the scope and the demonstrations of learning and skills. Studies supporting the doctoral research more precisely defined in the curriculum are presented in section Teaching below.
The composition and the scope of the doctoral degree are defined in the curricula of the doctoral programme as follows: the scope of the degree is 240 credits (cr), and it comprises doctoral research (180 cr) and studies supporting it (60 cr). The current curriculum 2021-2026 took effect on August 1, 2021, but it is also possible to complete the degree following the requirements of the curriculum 2015–2021.
The target degrees in the doctoral programme as in the curriculum 2015–2021 are Doctor of Arts (Dance) and Doctor of Arts (Theatre and Drama), with the scope of 240 credits. The doctoral research comprises a total of 180 credits that includes artistic parts (20–100 credits) and a commentary (80–120 credits). The commentary is aligned with the artistic part. and it justifies the aims and methods of the doctoral research with respect to the research and practices of the field explored. These research elements include the artistic parts and the commentary of the doctoral research, or combinations of these.
The target degrees in the doctoral programme as in the curriculum 2021–2026 are Doctor of Arts (Dance), Doctor of Arts (Theatre and Drama) and Doctor of Arts (Art and Design), with the scope of 240 credits. The doctoral research, a total of 180 credits, is comprised of 1–4 research elements (30–180 credits). These research elements include the artistic parts and the commentary of the doctoral research, or combinations of these. The research elements can be as follows:
• 1–3 artistic parts and a commentary
• 2–4 combinations of an artistic part and a commentary
• Commentary only when so conferred
The commentary is a written part aligned with the artistic parts, and it motivates the objectives and the method of the doctoral research with respect to the relevant research and practices of the field. In a special case the doctoral research can constitute of the commentary only (thus 180 cr).
The work load required for the studies under one academic year is 1.600 hours, corresponding with 60 credits. The target time for completing the studies is four years. Part-time studying is also possible.
The doctoral studies supporting the doctoral research (60 cr) include joint orientating, theoretical and methodological studies for all doctoral candidates, as well as theme and field specific studies. The study units are accredited so that one credit corresponds with approximately 27 hours of work.
The artistic parts shall show profound understanding of the research topic and an ability to reflect on the research question in a way that critically renews the field of art. Each artistic part to be included in the doctoral research requires a scheduled production plan. Immaterial Property Rights as well as questions of Data Protection need to be considered in the planning phase. (See Research ethics, copyright and data protection for more details)
Appropriate, good quality recordings must be made of all examined artistic parts, as well as of all materials included as source materials in the research. The recordings need to be planned in advance and the required funding taken into account. It is advisable to be realistic about the scope, the arrangements, gathering the work group, the timetables and the funding, and to recognize the artistic part as an integral part of the research.
The artistic parts of the research are examined on completion. It is also possible to include joint projects realized by several researchers as artistic parts of the doctoral degree, provided that the doctoral candidate’s contribution in them can be clearly identified.
The doctoral research can include 1–3 artistic parts. They can be performances, projects, work shops or demonstrations.
The study credits for the artistic parts (20–100 credits) are defined with respect to the realization of the topic, the number of the artistic parts and the intended scope of the commentary:
• first artistic part subject to external examination (20–100 cr)
• optional second artistic part subject to external examination (20–70 cr)
• optional third artistic part subject to external examination (20–50 cr)
Research elements (typically artistic parts) (30–100 credits) are performative or other arrangements addressing the research questions of the doctoral research. They can be performances, demonstrations, experiments, work shops or other performative arrangements.
[Modification of the number of credits for the artistic part: now 30 cr instead of 40 cr, decision by the RC 2/2023 ]
The commentary shall demonstrate an ability to analyse, articulate, conceptualize and theorize the artistic designs of research and to contextualize these in ways that are characteristic of artistic research. The commentary presents the aims, methods, structure and results of the doctoral research. It can be realized in many ways: as a monograph with a recommended length of 150–200 pages, as an article-based research comprising a minimum of three peer-reviewed publications and an integrative chapter; as a web publication or other multimedial research. The publications can include co-authored publications provided that the doctoral candidate’s contribution in them can be clearly identified. The doctoral research can consist of the commentary only when so conferred. The commentary can be published in Finnish, Swedish or English, or in some other language by the decision of the Research Council (RC). The commentary submitted to external pre-examination must be in the same language as the final publication.
The study credits for the commentary (20–100 credits) are defined with respect to the realization of the topic and the number of the artistic parts. The doctoral research can comprise of the commentary only when so conferred (thus 180 cr).
The commentary (minimum of 80 credits) can be realized as an independent research element or a combination of an artistic part and a commentary. In the combinations, the commentary component must be demonstrated to meet with the requirement of a minimum of 80 credits. The doctoral research can consist of the commentary only when so conferred (thus 180 credits).
The curriculum 2021–2026 offers an option for a combination of an artistic part and a commentary as one of the research elements. Such a combination shall display a profound understanding of the research topic and an ability to approach the research problem, constructively renewing the field of art. Also, it shall demonstrate an ability to critically analyse, articulate, conceptualize and theorize artistic research designs, and to contextualize these in ways that are characteristic of artistic research. It shall present the aims, methods, structure and results of the research. The combination of an artistic part and a commentary can be a multimedial online publication or other audio-visual publication.
According to Section 12 of the Constitution (731/1999), “Documents and recordings in the possession of the authorities are public”. This applies to academic dissertations as well. Therefore, one should not include in a dissertation anything that cannot be publicized (such as confidential business information).
Research Data Management Guidelines help in planning the research project. Detailed guidance for data compilation, management and storage from file formats to metadata, from informing the participants to describing the data is available.
Documenting the research means solving several questions. Are video recordings of the presentations required, or work diaries of the workshops? Are participants, members of the work group or the public interviewed? What aspects are essential in the recordings, and what is secondary? Recording afterwards what has already taken place is never possible. It is the nature of artistic research that the significance of certain aspects in the process may become evident only after the process has already ended. On IPR and data protection, see Research ethics, copyright, and data protection.
When planning the productions of the artistic parts, it is a good idea to check the timetables for booking the production and performance spaces, the production grants, and the application schedules for them, as well as the instructions on reserving spaces and venues. See chapter B2. for more information.
One artistic part can be realized in cooperation with the Production Services of the Theatre Academy (Tuotantopalvelut, TTP in Finnish). This presupposes that the doctoral candidate leaves a production grant application to Tutke and a production booking at the Production Services. The application period for the Production Services usually ends at the end of February. The production application must include recommendations from the Contact Teacher and the supervisors. Even if the artistic part is not a Production Services production, it is possible to ask for help in communication by sending in the application form.
The doctoral degree of art (dance, theatre or design) include 60 credits of studies supporting the doctoral research. The required studies comprise six study modules:
1. Joining the research community, (obligatory)
• Curriculum 2015–2021 12–14 cr
• Curriculum 2021–2026 14 cr
2. Approaches to artistic research, (obligatory)
• Curriculum 2015–2021 8–14 cr
• Curriculum 2021–2026 10 cr
3. Foundations of theory formation in artistic research
• Curriculum 2015–2021 8–14 cr
• Curriculum 2021–2026 max. 10 cr
4. Traditions, history and current trends performing arts
• Curriculum 2015–2021 6–12 cr
• Curriculum 2021–2026 max. 10 cr
5. Social and pedagogical dimensions of performing arts
• Curriculum 2015–2021 6–12 cr
• Curriculum 2021–2026 max. 10 cr
6. Specific studies on the research topic
• Curriculum 2015–2021 6–10 cr
• Curriculum 2021–2026 max. 6 cr
Each study module includes study units that are defined in the Curriculum. There are two obligatory modules: Joining the research community, and Approaches to artistic research. The credits that exceed the maximum number of credits are recorded in Other studies.
The structure of the Curriculum is available in the Study Guide.
All teaching offered by Tutke is included in one of the study modules mentioned above, but the teaching varies annually. In the Study Guide, the information about the courses can be found linked to the study units. The courses offered by Tutke include a variety of courses, seminars, and work shops in addition to the obligatory courses.
The course descriptions include information about the timetables, methods, grading, contents, method of completion, prerequisites if any, and the teachers in each instruction weeks and study units. Tutke’s staff plan the course units for the following academic year during the preceding December–February, together with the degree programmes and the Academy of Fine Arts, and Tutke welcomes initiatives and wishes regarding the contents of the studies also from the doctoral candidates. Course descriptions can be found in the Study Guide.
Uniarts Helsinki offers all doctoral candidates joint doctoral studies including courses on inter-art collaboration, ethics of art and research, and communication and career skills. The academies of the Uniarts open their courses for students in the other academies.
Joint doctoral studies
Uniarts optional studies
Registration for the courses takes place in the study system Peppi (Peppi for students). Courses are organized provided that at least four students have enrolled in the course by the end of the enrolment period. The enrolment is binding.
Tutke’s activities also include various kinds of research events, such as the biannual Colloquium of Artistic Research, CARPA. Summer Academy for Artistic Research (SAAR) is an annual summer school for doctoral candidates in artistic research, jointly organized in different Nordic countries by Nordic art universities in August each year. The application round for the summer school is organized during the spring term. Various other conferences and seminars related to artistic research and arts research are organized within the University of the Arts (see the event calendar).
Doctoral candidates may also take some of the required courses outside the Theatre Academy, for example in other arts universities or abroad. Accreditation of such studies must always be settled in advance with the Contact Teacher. The credits for studies completed elsewhere can be transferred according to the regulations for the recognition and validation of prior learning.
A doctoral candidate may apply for a flexible right to study (JOO studies) for a permission to conduct an agreed amount of studies in another Finnish university. The supervisors, the Contact Teacher and also the Planning Officer can help with the arrangements. Tutke encourages its doctoral candidates to engage internationally (see the instructions on how to apply for international student exchange).
A Personal Study Plan (PSP) clarifies the study path. It is created by the doctoral candidate in Peppi for Students by modifying the pre-filled study plan that is based on the curriculum that the doctoral candidate is following.
During the first year the doctoral candidates discuss their PSPs with their mentors focusing mostly on the doctoral research. From the second year onwards the PSP discussions are carried out between the doctoral student and the Contact Teacher. The PSP can be changed and updated as necessary during the years. The Planning Officer can be consulted for technical advice in creating the PSP and in placing the studies supporting the doctoral research in the PSP.
Commencing 1.1.2014, the study attainments will expire ten years after registration. Including outdated study attainments into the degree later requires supplementing or retaking the study units in question. The Contact Teacher has to be contacted in such cases.
The doctoral candidate can, if she or he so wishes, interrupt the doctoral studies and give up the right to study by filling in the form for renouncing her/his study right at Uniarts Helsinki. Please first discuss the matter with your Contact Teacher.
The research plan presents the artistic research setting. It is a starting point for the research process that crosses the borders between different fields of research and artistic practices, or invents and creates new ways of combining theoretical, experiential and methodical elements. It answers the question of what the doctoral candidate intends to do and thus defines the contents of the doctoral studies. The research plan shall clearly state the research topic, that is what will be researched; the methods of the research, that is how the research will be conducted; the artistic specific quality of the research; and its field-specific, pedagogical and societal objectives.
The research plan must summarize the artistic parts and the commentary of the doctoral research, and motivate their role in the research design. It gives the reader an understanding of how different parts are realized, documented, of the timetables and how all these are related to each other. Through the presentation of the source material and the relevant research literature, the research plan is placed in a larger context of artistic research.
The research plan is a road map for the doctoral candidate for processing their thoughts, and it needs regular updating. Artistic research is a process, and so the research plan will probably change and develop during the doctoral studies. The research plan is discussed at the annual PSP meetings, and the need to update it is assessed. If major aspects of the research plan change (e.g. the number of artistic parts changes), the updated plan needs to be approved by the director of the Performing Arts Research Centre (see Theatre Academy regulations at University regulations). The research plan has to be further approved by the Contact Teacher ten years after the admittance as a doctoral candidate.
Artistic research involves specific practical questions that need to be addressed in advance and that influence the research plan. What kind of practical work does the research include? How shall the different phases of the research be documented? Will data or material on the artistic work or the participants be gathered and if so, how and when? What kinds of ethical questions arise? The form of the research is also worth considering well in advance: would research published in articles, or maybe as multi-medial publishing be optimal choices with respect to the research topic? What consequences do these choices have to the practical realization of the research project?
[edit. RC does not approve research plan from 1.5.2024]
Doctoral research at Tutke follows the guidelines for the responsible conduct of research published by The Finnish National Board on Research Integrity TENK. Complying with good practices contributes to the reliability, credibility and acceptability of the research.
Research ethics refers to good research practices. It is advisable to orient oneself to research ethics early on in writing or updating the research plan, and to consider how solid research practices are taken into account in the realization of the doctoral research. Artistic research invites both general and particular ethical issues and questions, and Tutke’s faculty, together with the supervisors, will help to find answers to them. It is the responsibility of the doctoral candidate to make an ethical review already at the onset of the doctoral research. The supervisor must see to that the doctoral candidate is aware of this.
Questions related to research materials and data are to be considered against the background of the research plan and the ethical review, and at least a preliminary data management plan is a good idea, for which the data management planning tool DMPTuuli can be adopted.The questions that arise in drafting the plan include storing the source materials, the personal data they might contain, and whether the data will include special categories of personal data requiring impact assessment – in which case possible risks can be recognized well in advance.
The curricula of the doctoral programme include a study unit Research Ethics that is obligatory for all doctoral candidates.
Appointing external examiners and pre-examiners as well as opponents for the doctoral research also relate to research ethics. The best national and international experts in the field are chosen to function as external examiners and opponents. For special reasons the external examiner can be chosen from within the University of the Arts, but never within the home academy or the research group of the defender, or a research group led by the Contact Teacher or the supervisor.
Sections 27 and 28 in the Administrative Procedure Act (434/2003) apply on the disqualification of the external examiners and the opponents. Anyone who has co-authored publications or research collaboration with the defender within the last five years prior to the examination of the doctoral research shall not function as the external examiner, pre-examiner, or opponent. The external examiners and the opponents must be able to voice their independent evaluation of the doctoral research and they must not function in a too close relationship with the defender, Contact Teacher or the supervisor, in order to secure neutrality. A close relative of the defender cannot function as an external pre-examiner or the opponent. External pre-examiners or opponents shall not be in a direct supervisor-employee relationship with the defender.
The doctoral candidate shall not contact the external examiners or the opponents. The Contact Teacher or the Planning Officer will take care of sending them the relevant information about the examination, e.g. the “linking paper”.
The originality of the commentary is confirmed before external pre-examination (see instructions for the pre-examination of the commentary).
Artistic research typically involves questions of copyright and intellectual property rights. Research is governed by copyright legislation. The Finnish Polytechnics and the Universities have agreed with the copyright society Kopiosto on the use of materials under copyright legislation in teaching and research.
Taking care of copyright issues is integral for the judicial basis of the research projects, teaching, publishing and information dissemination within the Uniarts. More information about the copyright issues can be found in the joint Copyright Guide of the art universities, where also the contact information for the legal counsel helping with copyright issues can be found.
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) entered into force in the EU in 2018 (see Data protection in the EU) and the Finnish national Data Protection Act to regulate the processing of personal data likewise in 2018. All data about a person that lead into identification are personal data, also photos, videos, voice recordings etc. Learn about data protection in research in Artsi.
It is good to remember that although the doctoral research complies with the requirements of TENK, it might still include research ethical or copyright issues. Research ethics and copyright issues are dealt with during Tutke’s orientation periods, but it is advisable that the doctoral candidate discusses these questions also with the supervisor.
Tutke’s doctoral candidates with a valid research plan accepted by the Research Council is entitled to teaching and supervision, as well as advice, facilities and equipment. They are part of Tutke’s community.
Tutke’s doctoral candidate is responsible of updating the research plan and the personal study plan (PSP) and complying with these documents, agreeing on the terms of supervision in a signed contract and enrolling as either present or absent for each academic year. It is also both a right and a responsibility for each doctoral candidate to participate in developing the research community, to represent Tutke’s community and to make its work known. The status of the doctoral candidate as a member of Tutke is to be made visible whenever performing outside the Theatre Academy in public research related contexts.
One of the responsibilities of the doctoral candidate is CRIS reporting (instructions in Artsi). Artistic works, visits, conference presentations, and publications are annually reported in the CRIS system.
One of the purposes of the General Meetings arranged by Tutke at the end of each semester is to collect feedback about the past semester, and ideas about how to improve Tutke’s activities. Feedback is important because it helps Tutke’s faculty and staff to evaluate the teaching methods or other practices in terms of how successful and functional they have been and where there is room for improvement. Feedback can also be given directly to the teachers of the courses and Tutke’s staff.
In the heart of the communication in Tutke’s community is an ability to present one’s own research project and to engage in discussions on other researchers’ and doctoral candidates’ artistic research. For example, shared experience in the field-specific seminars and small group tuition help to understand the challenges and the routines of being a researcher, thus promoting the research project.
The Code of Conduct applies to all members of the university community regardless of their position or role. Each member of the community is expected to know the principles of the ethical conduct and comply with them.
Social media guidelines apply for the employees of the Uniarts, including salaried doctoral candidates. It is useful for all doctoral candidates.
You can find guidelines in cases of inappropriate treatment in Artsi and guidelines in cases of conflicts and inappropriate treatment in Uniarts for Students.