AISS — Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Societies — is an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master worth 120 ECTS over four semesters, taught in English. Tallinn University coordinates it together with Lusófona University in Portugal and Tampere University in Finland.
The programme puts AI and data work next to participatory design, so that students build data-driven solutions with communities, municipalities and NGOs rather than for them. Semester 1 runs in Tallinn, semester 2 in Porto, and semester 3 in Tampere as an interdisciplinary project course with real clients; semester 4 is a professional placement plus the master’s thesis, at whichever of the three cities you choose.
Graduates leave with three master’s degrees, one from each university. Cohorts are small — the 2024–2026 group has 18 students, drawn from across the world — and the ten best-ranked admitted applicants receive the EU scholarship.
Benefits & funding
- Scholarship of €1,400 per month, meant to cover insurance, the travel the mobility scheme requires, housing and food.
- Paid across the 24-month programme, for every entire calendar month studied; recognition of prior learning can shorten the funded period to a minimum of one academic year.
- Ten scholarships per intake, awarded to the ten best-ranked admitted applicants.
- No more than 10% of the scholarships go to students of the same nationality.
- Three master’s degrees on completion: Master of Arts in Social Sciences (Tallinn University), Master of Science in Sustainable Information Technologies (Lusófona University), Master of Social Science (Tampere University).
- Participation fee for tuition-paying places: €2,000 per semester, €8,000 for the full programme. The site does not state whether scholarship holders are exempt.
- Self-funded students may apply for Erasmus+ mobility grants towards travel and living costs during mobility periods; these are not automatic.
- Living costs the programme estimates per six-month stay: Tallinn €4,400–5,000, Porto €4,000–5,000, Tampere €4,500–5,500. Travel between campuses runs about €400 Tallinn–Porto, €400 Porto–Tampere, €120 Tampere–Tallinn.
Eligibility
- A bachelor’s degree, a diploma of professional higher education, or a corresponding qualification.
- Backgrounds in information technology, design, communication or social sciences are the preferred fit; no field is barred.
- English at B2 level. Accepted proof: IELTS Academic or Online 6.5 with no component below 5.5; TOEFL iBT taken before 21 January 2026 with a total of 92 and no section below 20, or the revised scale from 21 January 2026 with 4 overall and 4 in each section; Cambridge B2 First, C1 Advanced or C2 Proficiency at 169; PTE Academic 62 with no component below 59; IB English B HL grade 6 or English A grade 5.
- Having studied in English does not by itself exempt you; exemption needs prior education completed fully in English in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Switzerland or an EU/EEA country, attested by the institution. Finland, Latvia and Lithuania have their own national-exam routes.
- Open to applicants of any nationality. The extra round held 1 April – 13 May 2026 was the exception: tuition-paying places only, for citizens of the EU/EEA and Ukraine and holders of an EU/EEA long-term residence permit.
- No age limit and no required years of work experience are stated; experience is scored as part of the file.
- Anyone who has already held an Erasmus Mundus Joint Master scholarship cannot receive a second one, and no other EU-funded scholarship may run alongside it.
- Admission threshold: 70 points out of 100.
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
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Education required
Bachelor
Appears to have an age limit “below 20”
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Application process
- 1Apply through DreamApply at estonia.dreamapply.com during the announced admission period; applicants with Estonian education documents use the national SAIS system.
- 2Upload the general documents: education documents, the identification page of your passport, proof of English proficiency, and certified translations of anything not in English or Estonian.
- 3Add the programme’s own set — a situated motivation video of at most 1 minute 30 seconds with yourself on screen for at least half of it, a portfolio of up to five individual works each with a short description, a CV of at most two pages, and a self-funding plan as a separate file.
- 4Shortlisted applicants take a 15-minute interview, which may be held by video call, recorded, and preceded by an identity check.
- 5Documents count for 50% of the score and the interview for 50%; each needs at least 35 points out of 50, and 70 out of 100 is the enrolment threshold.
- 6The ten best-ranked admitted applicants are offered the scholarship; other admitted applicants may take a tuition-paying place.
Program timeline
Applications opened for the 2026 intake
Dec 2, 2025
Application deadline, the round that decides the scholarships
Feb 2, 2026
Extra round opens for tuition-paying places (EU/EEA and Ukrainian citizens, EU/EEA long-term residents)
Apr 1, 2026
Extra round closes; applicants through the Estonian SAIS system have until Jun 29, 2026
May 13, 2026
Interviews
Late May to early July 2026
Applications open for the next intake
Dec 2, 2026
Deadline for the next intake
Feb 2, 2027