Curriculum vitae

Academic Background

Hannele Niemi was Professor of Education at the University of Helsinki (1998–2016). As an Emerita, she became Research Director in 2017. Her experience at the University of Helsinki also includes serving as Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs (2003–2009), Dean of the Faculty of Education (2001–2003), Head of the Department of Education (1998–2000), and Vice Dean of the Faculty of Education (1998–2000). Before joining the University of Helsinki, Niemi served as Professor of Education in the Teacher Education Departments of Oulu, Turku, and Tampere Universities in Finland (1987–1998). She also served as Visiting Professor at Michigan State University (1989) and as Visiting Scholar at Stanford University (2010, 2013, and 2015, 7 months in total). She is also Chair of the University Board at the University of Lapland (2018-2020, 2021-2023). 

Professor Niemi has been nominated as UNESCO Chair (Professor) in Educational Ecosystems for Equity and Quality of Learning for 2018-2022 and 2023-2026.

Hannele Niemi graduated with a Master of Philosophy in 1974, a Master of Theology in 1977, and a Doctor of Philosophy in 1978, all at the University of Helsinki. Her main research interests include teachers' professional development and teacher education,  equity in education, the quality of teaching and learning, moral education, and technology-based learning environments.

Scientific contribution

Niemi has been a scientific leader on several large national research projects in Finland, including DAIA (Digital Academies in Africa) 2022-2025, AI (Artificial Intelligence) in Learning (2019–2022), and the Finnable 2020 research programme for advancing educational technology and 21st-century skills in schools (2012–2015). She also served as Director of the national research programme "Life as Learning", supported by the Academy of Finland (2002–2006). She has been a member of the Steering Committee of the British National Research Programme (the Teaching and Learning Research Programme [TLRP]) from 2003 to 2008. She currently serves as an adviser and reviewer for several scientific journals. She was a founding member of the CICERO Learning Network, a collaboration of several Finnish universities promoting multidisciplinary research on learning, brain research, and technology. She chaired it from 2005 to 2010 and served on the Board until 2020.

 She is a member of the advisory board (2018-) in educational sciences at the University of People, a fully online university offering BA and MA programmes without tuition fees for HE students in vulnerable living contexts. She was 2013-2023 the Chair of the Sino-Finnish Joint Learning Institute (JoLii) that includes 9 Finnish universities, working in cooperation with Beijing Normal University and many Chinese Universities.

As a professor, she has supervised more than 400 master's theses and more than 40 doctoral theses. Niemi has contributed to numerous international education research publications and has published books in more than ten languages. She has published over 400 peer-reviewed articles in international journals or books chapters.

Working for the quality of Higher Education

Niemi has served on several scientific councils, including the European Science Foundation, the Academy of Finland, and the University of Helsinki. Niemi has worked as a reviewer for research councils in many countries, including Norway, Portugal, Estonia, and Singapore. She has been invited to act as a panel member and Chair of the Research Evaluation of Educational Sciences at several European universities. She has been a member of the Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council (2004–2009) and has served as Chair of the Finnish Education Evaluation Council (2012–2014). She has been invited to serve as an expert and a steering committee member for the Institutional Evaluation Programme of the European University Association. She has also been invited to act as a panel member for the evaluations of the quality and effectiveness of over ten universities in Europe (2005–2015) and to serve as a reviewer for 4 Higher Education Evaluation Councils in Europe.

Advancing high-quality education globally

Niemi has contributed to numerous European Union [EU] and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [OECD] projects as an expert or researcher, and has served as a keynote lecturer at several international forums, including South Africa, Mozambique, Ethiopia, Uganda, Somaliland, Singapore, Thailand, China, Malaysia, USA, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Hungary, Slovenia, Spain, Portugal, Ireland, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Scotland, England, France, and Estonia. The main topics have been how to promote equity and high-quality education for all, how to use technology as part of this, and the important role of teachers in quality education.

Expert in digital learning and AI
Hannele Niemi has extensive experience in digital learning and online teaching and learning since the 1990s, when Finland launched the Information Society Programmes, and has chaired multi-partner committees and working groups. Her scientific publications include tens of books and articles focusing on the use, benefits and challenges of various information and communication technologies, infrastructure issues for online teaching and learning, the concept and operation of the virtual university and online programmes, and online learning during the COVID period in Finland and worldwide.

In recent years, AI in education has been a central focus of her research and innovation projects with researchers and companies (The book Niemi, H., Pea, Roy, & Lu, y. 2023. AI in Learning – Designing the future. Springer Nature) and of many articles on AI in Education Ecosystems and AI ethics and learning: EdTech companies’ challenges and solutions. Prof Niemi has worked for the European Commission on the review of how Gen AI has been applied in five EU countries (Generative artificial intelligence in secondary education uses and perceptions from the perspective of early adopters across five EU Member States by Villar Onrubia, D., Cachia, R., Rietz, C., Feltrero, R., Niemi, H., Hallissy, M. & Reuter, R., 2025, European Union)

Expert in Teacher Education

Hannele Niemi has a long career in research and development in teacher education in Finland and globally. She has published extensively on how teachers and teacher education can be the keystone of high-quality education. She has chaired several influential committees, evaluation projects and working groups in Finland to develop teacher education programmes, and has participated in Europe as well as in Asian, African and Arabic countries to advance high-quality teacher education and teachers’ competencies. She was a founding member of the international network of Teacher Education Policy in Europe [TEPE] (2005-2020) and served as Chair of the board (2014-2015).

She has published several articles and books on education in Finland and Finnish teacher education (The Miracle of Education: The Principles and Practices of Teaching and Learning in Finnish Schools, 2016 (Revised ed.); Finnish Innovations and Technologies in Schools: Towards New Ecosystems of Learning, 2014; Research-Based Teacher Education in Finland, 2006; and Education as a Societal Contributor, 2007).

International consultant and policy advisor

Professor Niemi has extensive experience as an education policy adviser in Africa and Asia. Recently, she led digital capacity-building for educational institutions and companies, particularly through the co-innovation project Digital Academies in Africa (DAIA 2022-2025), which addressed the skills gap in HE/TVET and the labour market. The project was a co-creation and co-innovation with Finnish and African researchers and companies in South Africa, funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (DevPlat programme), Finland, and Business Finland’s Innovation Fund. Companies in construction, mining, water management, and digitalisation work with researchers in training and curriculum development in HE/TVET to explore how to create ecosystems and new training methods to meet labour market demands. The project compiled highlights into the forthcoming book (Springer Nature, 2026): Towards Industrial Revolution and Sustainable Growth in Africa. Learning Ecosystems of the Future, with over 30 Finnish and African authors, Hannele Niemi as the main editor.

Awards
Niemi has been awarded the honour of Doctor or Professor Honoris Causa at the University of Bucharest in Romania (2010), the J.C. Koh Professorship at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore (2010), the honour of Doctor at the University of Lapland (2012), and the National Defence University in Finland (2013). She was named the most influential person in education in 2013 by the Finnish Teachers' Union and was invited to join the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters (Academia Scientiarum Fennica) in 2004.

Metrics
Her metrics in Google Scholar (May 22, 2026)
Citations: 11274 (all production), 5209 (since 2021)
h-index: 53 (all production), 37 (since 2021)
i10-index: 173 (all production), 86 (since 2021)

Read more about Professor Niemi's recent work:
https://researchportal.helsinki.fi/en/persons/hannele-niemi
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