Welcome

•  Background

Psykonet is a university network of psychology consisting of all the six departments of psychology in Finland that award a legally certified degree needed to work as a practicing or academic psychologist in the country. The network was established at the end of 1980s, as the outcome of a group of academic psychologists´ suggestion to the Ministry of Education that instead of reducing the number of psychology departments, new challenges could be imposed on a network consisting of all of them. From the beginning, there were three clear targets for the joint action: the teaching of psychology, graduate training and continuing education of practicing psychologists.

•  Aim

Psykonet´s mission today is to educate high quality psychologists and researchers with comprehensive professional and scientific knowledge, as well as to ensure that educational demands within the field of psychology are met on all levels of education (basic, licentiate and doctorate). The operational ambition of the network is to combine high quality psychological research and application.

Psykonet is a training organization that consists of the psychological departments of the universities of Helsinki , Eastern Finland, Jyväskylä, Tampere , Turku and Åbo Akademi. In addition, departments of social psychology, developmental & education psychology and work & organization psychology at other universities, as well as the Finnish Psychological Society, Finnish Psychological Association and Psychology Students´ Association cooperate with the network. The establishment of the network is based on a cooperation agreement signed by the six member universities.

The core task of Psykonet is to provide licentiate training leading to special psychologist's qualification. The licentiate in Finland is an academic degree that locates approximately half-way between the MA and the PhD. In 1993 the Licentiate of Psychology diploma was decreed and reserved for continuing professional education at an academic level. The training of special psychologists given by Psykonet is thus based on the university act and decree on university degrees. The training is given in five fields of specialization: development and education, neuropsychology, psychotherapy, health psychology, and work and organizations.

Psykonet´s organization consists of a director, management group, various operational task forces, and teaching and administrative staff. Psykonet has five part-time professors, six part-time lecturers and eight administrative staff members.

Psykonet is an important actor in the Finnish field of psychology. It serves as a common voice of psychological departments in matters concerning developments in the field; providing information e.g. to ministries, analyzing the needs of the field of psychology etc. It enhances cooperation, synergy and profilization between departments of psychology.