MyAccount service (user accounts and passwords)

Log in to the MyAccount service at https://myaccount.helsinki.fi.

• If you already have a University of Helsinki user account and remember your password, log in using the University of Helsinki one-time login (1). Read more about using the login service in the separate instructions.
• If you have a Finnish personal identity code, log in using Suomi.fi (2).

If you do not have a Finnish personal identity code, you can use the following methods:

• If you can use the eIDAS login (3) with the identification service of another EU country, use it.
• If you have an internationally recognised passport or ID card and an Android or iOS device, you can authenticate with the Candour ID app (4) using a video image and an official ID document.

In addition to these, you must be able to receive a verification code at the email address or phone number registered in the university’s system.

If you cannot authenticate using any of the above methods, please contact the IT-Helpdesk, where you will be authenticated by other means and provided with a one-time password (5).

After logging in, you will be redirected to the home page of the service.

If you are about to activate your normal university user account, you can proceed directly to activate your account by selecting Activate account.

You may also have accounts in different stages of creation.

You can change the password of existing accounts by selecting (1) Reset password.

• Note! You can only change the password for the user ID you are logged in with.
• If you have used Suomi.fi, eIDAS or Candour ID, you can reset the password for any of your accounts.

You may have pending account activations (2), for example, waiting for a preferred name to be accepted. These can be continued by selecting Continue.

You may also have access to different accounts, in which case you can activate a new account by selecting Activate (3).

Most university students are only entitled to a basic form of username. For special needs, such as administrative use, other usernames may be used. Read more about the different usernames in the separate instructions.

Start the activation by going to the home page and selecting to activate the desired user account or to continue activation.

There are several steps in the activation process: 

1. Select preferred name
2. Select preferred language
3. Select email address
4. Select username
5. Accept terms of use
6. Set password and create account

Note! You can change your preferred name, preferred language and email address at a later date (see the section 'My information' for more information).

1. Preferred name selection

The official name information is updated at the time of user authentication. If your official name has changed or is otherwise displayed incorrectly, please contact the IT Helpdesk. Official names are used for purposes such as certificates, contracts and user identification.

Preferred names are used in day-to-day operations at the University. You can choose to use one of your official names or part of it.

If you use a name in your daily life that is not part of your official name, you can also request to use it for University services.

Note! If you wish to use a preferred name other than your official name, your request will be subject to review for verification and you cannot activate your user account until your username is approved. Approval may take several business days depending on the workload of the Center for Information Technology.

If you would like to choose a different preferred name, please select Request a custom preferred name and provide your preferred username and an informal justification. Please also read the terms and conditions regarding usernames when choosing one.

2. Choose your preferred language

Select your preferred language. This selection will be forwarded to the services when you log in.

3. Select email address

Select the email address associated with your account. All new personal email addresses at the University of Helsinki consist of three parts. Some services now use the email address as a unique identifier for the user, which is why email addresses are not circulated as frequently as in the past.

As with the name information, you can also suggest another email address and these suggestions require approval before you can activate the username.

External email address

All accounts do not include the right to a university email address or the address is optional. If you do not or cannot select a university email address, you will need to confirm an external email address to be used in your account information.

If you have already confirmed your email address during the login process, you can continue directly with that address or submit a new address for confirmation.

Enter your external email address.

Get the verification code from your email and enter it in the field provided. Select Verify and continue.

You will receive a message that your address has been verified and you can continue.

4. Choose your username

The standard university user accounts currently contain two letters and five digits. These user account are used to identify the user for different services and cannot be changed later.

Note: This format applies to normal user accounts. Special accounts can have different username formats, such as prefixed usernames.

5. Accepting the Terms of Service

If you have already accepted the latest version of the Terms of Service, this step is skipped.

Note! For some user account types, you may have to accept different terms and conditions. For example, with maintenance accounts, you confirm that you have read the rules for the maintenance of information systems.

6. Setting the password and creating a username

The last step in creating an user account is to check the user account details and set a password.

Next steps

After creating the account, it usually takes about an hour before it starts working. To be on the safe side, please wait at least two hours before contacting the IT Helpdesk about activation problems.

Note! The first time you log in, you will need to register for Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) methods. Read more about the MFA setup in the separate instructions.

Please also read more on the help page you will be redirected to after creating your account.

Give feedback on the service

You can also give feedback on the account creation process on the same page.

You can view your account information in the My information section of the top menu.

Under Change external email, you can change your external email address. You must verify your email address using the verification code sent to that address. See the illustrated instructions for adding and verifying an email address under "Activating your user account" (3. Select email address, External email address).

Under Change personal mobile, you can change your personal phone number. You must verify your phone number using the verification code sent to that number.

Enter your personal phone number and click Send verification code.

The verification code will be sent via text message from the sender “HelsinkiUni”. Enter the verification code you have received in the field provided and select Verify. 

You will receive a notification that your personal phone number has been changed and it may take up to 30 minutes for it to be updated in your account details.

Updating your details

You can view and edit your details via the View and manage account link on the home page. 

Under Update account information you can edit your preferred name, preferred language and email address. You edit your details in the same way as during the account activation process (see the illustrated instructions under "Activating your user account"). 

You can also change your account password under Reset password. For more information, see "Changing your password". 

You can choose your own preferred name (first name and last name). This name will be used in day-to-day activities at the University.

You can change or reset your password in MyAccount.

Note! Password change on Mac computers in the University's central administration: Change your password using the IT Helpdesk instructions (and save yourself a lot of trouble).

On the home page, under your account, select Reset password.

First, you will need to Review and accept the terms of use. If you have already accepted the latest version of the terms of use, this step will not be displayed.

In the next step, enter a new password. 

• If you are logged in with your user account you must also enter your current password.
• If you are logged in with strong authentication (e.g. Suomi.fi) and you don't remember your old password, you can leave the old password field blank.