- Go to our feedback to doctoral students
- Go to our feedback to artists who applied for project grants
- Go to our feedback to artists who applied for working grants
- Go to our feedback to individuals and working groups who applied for funding within culture
Feedback to Doctoral Students
All the anonymous external experts we engage to evaluate the applications are experienced and highly qualified researchers within their respective fields, capable of assessing the applicant’s merits, previous publications, and their prospects of completing their research project successfully. They also pay attention to the progress of the doctoral dissertation work. Competition for doctoral grants is tough, and it is worthwhile to apply again if you have received a rejection this year.
Education, Humanities, Social Sciences and Economics
In 2026 we received the following number of applications for doctoral grants:
- Pedagogy: 37 applications, 16 approved
- Humanities: 51 applications, 15 approved
- Social Sciences and Economics: 37 applications, 12 approved
Providing funding for scientific research within pedagogy, the humanities, the social sciences and economics is a very important purpose for the Swedish Cultural Foundation. Due to our mandate, we require that research within these disciplines must be relevant to the Swedish language in Finland for us to grant funding.
Our experts and elected representatives often engage in thorough discussions on this matter, as relevance can be defined in several different ways. Quite often, comparative studies are requested – studies in which a Swedish‑speaking context is compared with, for example, a Finnish‑speaking one, to highlight characteristics specific to Swedish in Finland.
Medicine, Biology, Physics, Chemistry and Other Natural Sciences
n 2026 we received the following applications for doctoral grants:
- Medicine, biomedicine, veterinary medicine: 23 applications, 11 approved
- Physics: 4 applications, 2 approved
- Biology: 21 applications, 9 approved
- Chemistry: 17 applications, 5 approved
- Other Natural Sciences: 12 applications, 4 approved
The number and size of the grants awarded to applicants within natural sciences depend on the annual returns of the special funds whose purpose is to promote research in medicine, biology, physics, chemistry and other natural sciences.
Since the overarching mission of the Swedish Cultural Foundation is to support Swedish‑speaking life in Finland, we can only grant funding to research that has a connection to this. This may, for example, involve research carried out at a Swedish‑ or bilingual university, or that the applicant themself is a Swedish‑speaking or bilingual doctoral student. Read more about how we reason around the concept “Swedish in Finland” on our website.
Common Causes for Rejection
Over the years, we have collected comments from our external experts and compiled a list of tips for people applying for research funding, including doctoral students. Read it on the website of the Swedish Cultural Foundation (in Swedish).
Do Not Apply for Doctoral Grants to Cover Travel Expenses
Through our continuous funding scheme for continuing professional development doctoral students and more advanced researchers can apply for grants at any time of the year for, for example, attending conferences or courses. Therefore, we do not process this type of application in November.
Recommendations for the Application
Everyone applying for a doctoral grant was required to request at least one recommendation in connection with the application. Applications that lacked submitted recommendations by 15 December 2025 were not processed.
You can check whether the people you asked for recommendations have submitted them through the application system. Log in at ansokan.kulturfonden.fi with the user account you used to submit your application. Then go to the application archive. Open the application you wish to check and scroll down until you reach the recommendation section in the form. There you can see whether the recommendations were submitted and when.
Feedback to Artists Who Applied for Project Grants
This feedback is aimed at individuals and working groups who have applied for project grants in the field of art. In this text we address some recurring shortcomings found in this year’s applications, which may be useful to consider for future applications.
In 2026 we received applications as follows:
- Visual Arts: 281 applications, 64 approved
- Literary Activities: 95 applications, 21 approved
- Theatre: 79 applications, 26 approved
- Dance and Circus: 23 applications, 10 approved
- Music: 256 applications, 150 approved
Please note that we only award personal grants to professional artists.
Common Causes for Rejection
Through the headings below, you can read brief information about the most common reasons for rejection within your sector.
Strong Competition for the Grants
By far the most common reason for rejecting a project grant application in the arts is that the experts do not consider the application and its work samples to be competitive compared to other applicants. This does not necessarily mean that they consider you to be a poor artist or writer; rather, the specific work plan or attached samples did not convince them on this occasion. Often, this is because the experts find that the work plan or samples lack sufficient artistic interest, challenge, or originality.
Courses, Pedagogical Materials and Workshops
We receive many applications from individuals or working groups wishing to organise a course, write pedagogical material or hold workshops or camps. We do not award grants for such projects to individuals – only to organisations.
The Application Concerns Purposes Not Supported by The Swedish Cultural Foundation
The Swedish Cultural Foundation is a non‑profit foundation and cannot support commercial projects or products. We also do not grant funding for acquisitions or investments.
We also do not prioritise grants for translations.
Insufficient Connection to Swedish in Finland
A fundamental requirement for receiving funding from the Swedish Cultural Foundation is that the application has a sufficient connection to the Swedish language in Finland. Read more here.
Please note that we cannot support activities carried out in Finnish in Sweden, nor can we support Sweden‑Swedish actors who lack a connection to Swedish in Finland.
Apply For Film and Media Production Funding In February and September
All applications for production, script or development funding must be submitted through the joint funding scheme of the Swedish Cultural Foundation and the Amos Anderson Foundation with application periods in February and September. Any such application submitted in November will be rejected. The Swedish Cultural Foundation only grants film‑promoting activities (primarily to organisations) and working grants in the field of film art.
Feedback To Artists Who Applied for Working Grants
Intense Competition
A working grant is the largest type of grant an artist can receive from the Swedish Cultural Foundation. Therefore, competition and requirements are high. Remember that the single most common reason for receiving a rejection for a working grant is the tough competition among applicants.
You have not necessarily done anything wrong with your application, even if you received a rejection. It also does not necessarily mean that the experts consider you a poor artist or writer. The reason for the rejection might be that the work plan or attached work samples were not sufficiently convincing. Often this is because the experts find that the work plan or work samples are not artistically interesting, challenging or innovative enough.
In 2026 we received applications as follows:
- Visual Arts: 224 applications, 41 approved
- Literary Activities: 37 applications, 8 approved
- Theatre: 45 applications, 10 approved
- Dance and Circus: 14 applications, 1 approved
- Music: 90 applications, 18 approved
- Non‑fiction, Journalism and Criticism: 11 applications, 2 approved
- Memory Institutions and Cultural Heritage: 1 application, none approved
This year we had a budget of 2.7 million euros for working grants. This corresponds to 84 one‑year grants.
Focus On Developing as An Artist
Each year we receive some applications in which the applicant’s intended focus for the grant period is to develop as a pedagogue in a certain art form or to focus on marketing themselves as an artist. These are, in themselves, good and legitimate aims, but they are not suitable purposes for a working grant. A working grant should always have the goal of developing artistically.
A Working Grant Is Not Awarded as Compensation for Work Within a Project
Every year we receive applications for working grants from applicants whose work plan consists largely or entirely of taking part in a production or another project run by someone else. In these cases, the grant is sought to function as the applicant’s salary for participating in the project or production. As a foundation, we cannot award working grants for this type of work. It is the entities behind the project or production, for example a theatre group or an orchestra, who must apply for project funding and then pay salaries to the participants.
Recommendations for the Application
Everyone who applied for a working grant needed to request or attach at least one recommendation to their application. Applications that lacked submitted recommendations by 15 December 2025 were not processed.
You can check whether the people you asked for recommendations have submitted them through the application system. Log in at ansokan.kulturfonden.fi with the user account you used when submitting your application. Then go to the application archive. Open the application you wish to check and scroll down until you reach the recommendations in the form. There you can see whether and when the recommendations were submitted through the system.
Feedback To Individuals and Working Groups Who Applied For Funding Within Culture (Including Non‑Fiction And Journalism)
This feedback is intended for individuals and working groups who applied for project funding within cultural activities, non‑fiction and journalism.
In 2026 we received applications as follows:
- Memory Organisations and Cultural Heritage: 36 applications, 7 approved
- Cultural Activities: 40 applications, 6 approved
- Non‑fiction and Journalism: 56 applications, 10 approved
Please note that most of our approved grants within cultural heritage and cultural activities go to organisations. Grants to individuals and working groups are rare in these areas, since organisations generally have much better conditions for running sustainable and long‑term activities.
Common Causes for Rejection
Through the headings below, you can read brief information about the most common reasons for rejection within your sector.
The Application Concerns Purposes The Swedish Cultural Foundation Does Not Support
The Swedish Cultural Foundation is a non‑profit foundation and cannot support commercial projects or products. We also do not award funding for acquisitions or investments. We also do not prioritise grants for translations.
Insufficient Connection to Swedish in Finland
A sufficient connection to Swedish‑speaking Finland is a prerequisite for receiving any support from the Swedish Cultural Foundation. Read more here.
Please note that we cannot support activities carried out in Finnish in Sweden, nor Sweden‑Swedish actors who lack a connection to Swedish in Finland.
Courses, Pedagogical Material and Workshops
We receive many applications from individuals or working groups who want to organise a course, write some form of pedagogical material or run workshops or camps. We do not award grants for such projects to individuals — only to organisations.
Guidance for future applications
Ensure That Your CV Contains Relevant Information
Your CV must clearly state your education and work experience. If information about education is missing, we assume that you do not have education relevant to the field of the application. Also be clear about when your studies were completed (month and year). We do not award personal grants to students.
Consider Cooperating with an Organisation
Project administration is often better handled by an organisation than by an individual or a small working group. We often receive applications that our experts do not recommend because they consider that individuals do not have the capacity to carry out the type of project described. This is particularly relevant for projects with large budgets or for projects that must pay salaries to participants.
Non‑Fiction Projects Must Have a Publisher
We do not award grants to individuals to cover the costs of self‑publishing or hybrid publishing. If you do not have an established publisher, an alternative may be to ask an organisation active in the field of your book project to act as the publisher. This is especially relevant for local history publications, where a local heritage association could be the publisher. In such cases, the association — not the writer — must submit the application.