Education System in Finland

The welfare of Finnish society is built on education, culture and knowledge. The flexible
education system and basic educational security make for equity and consistency in results.

The Finnish education system is composed of:

nine-year basic education (comprehensive school) for the whole age group, preceded by one
year of voluntary pre-primary education

upper secondary education, comprising general education and vocational education and training
(vocational qualifications and further and specialist qualifications)

higher education, provided by universities and universities of applied sciences

Learning pathway

In Finland, pre-primary education, basic education and upper secondary education and training,
complemented by early childhood education and before- and after-school activities, form a
coherent learning pathway that supports children's growth, development and well-being.

The Finnish education system has no dead-ends. Learners can always continue their studies on
an upper level of education, whatever choices they make in between. The practice of recognition
of prior learning has been developed in order to avoid unnecessary overlapping of studies.

Students' opportunities to progress from one level of education to the next is safeguarded by
legislation. Both general and vocational upper secondary certificates provide eligibility for further
studies.

Higher education is offered by universities and universities of applied sciences. Both sectors have
their own profiles. Universities emphasise scientific research and instruction. Universities of
applied sciences adopt a more practical approach.

Adult education is provided at all levels of education. Adults can study for a general education
certificate or for a vocational qualification, or modules included in them, take other courses
developing citizenship and work skills, or pursue recreational studies.

Education policy in Finland

One of the basic principles of Finnish education is that all people must have equal access to high-
quality education and training. The same opportunities to education should be available to all
citizens irrespective of their ethnic origin, age, wealth or where they live. Education policy is built
on the lifelong learning principle.

The basic right to education and culture is recorded in the Constitution. Public authorities must
secure equal opportunities for every resident in Finland to get education also after compulsory
schooling and develop themselves, irrespective of their financial standing. In Finland education is
free at all levels from pre-primary to higher education. Adult education is the only form of
education that may require payment.

The key words in Finnish education policy are quality, efficiency, equity and internationalisation.
Geared to promote the competitiveness of Finnish welfare society, education is also seen as an
end in itself. The broad lines of Finnish education and science policy are in line with the Europe
2020 Strategy.

Decisions on the contents of legislation on education and research are made by the Parliament
based on government proposals. The Government and the Ministry of Education and Culture, as
part of it, are responsible for preparing and implementing education and science policy.

Internationalisation is a central strategic goal for Finnish higher education institutions

Back webnews 26-03-2013

An international evaluation team set by the Finnish Higher Education Evaluation Council has
published its report on international degree programmes (IDP) in Finland. The evaluation team
finds that internationalisation has been taken as a serious objective in all strategies of the Finnish
HEIs.

The IDPs are seen as an important instrument for reaching the objectives of institutional
internationalisation. Student bodies of the IDPs are quite diverse and this diversity is also seen in
the variety of learning styles.

Finnish IDP managers are very satisfied with the quality of the teachers and students in the IDPs.
According to the evaluation team, the approachability of teachers is one of the strengths of
Finnish IDPs. Altogether the IDPs do not differ significantly from regular degree programmes with
regard to their structure, management, quality assurance, marketing and recruitment of
students.

One of the main problems discussed during the site visits was the difficulty that international
students have in gaining access to the Finnish labour market. One of the main obstacles
mentioned was an insufficient ability to speak Finnish. One of the issues related to the
employment of IDP students is that HEIs do not follow up them after their graduation.

In their report, the evaluation team makes the following recommendations:

At the system level the size of IDPs should be considered from the economic point of view as
well. The follow-ups on the IDP alumni should be organised more systematically at the
institutional and national level. At the institutional level the evaluation team points out that
developing services for IDP students should not be a separate process. Increasing cooperation
between teachers and support staff, alumni surveys, rewarding teachers for improving their
languages skills as well as more active approach on the extra-curricular activities for IDP
students are suggested actions at the institutional level.

At the IDP level quality boards with internal and external stakeholders and furthermore the role
of the professional field in developing and improving the IDPs are recommended. Also when HEIs
are offering multiple IDPs it is important to share and compare experiences to improve the
quality of the services. Differences in learning styles and cultures should be recognised and
improving multicultural competencies of all students can help the international student to
familiarise with Finnish society.
The chair of the evaluation team was professor Jussi Vlimaa (University of Jyvskyl) and other
members of the team were Katarzyna Fonteyn (Konecranes PLC), Irma Garam (CIMO), Esther van
den Heuvel (Erasmus University, Rotterdam), Christina Linza (Helsinki Metropolia University of
Applied Sciences), Minna Sderqvist (Kymenlaakso University of Applied Sciences) and Jan Uwe
Wolff (VIA University College).

Basic education in Finland

Basic education is a free nine-year education provided for the whole age group (currently c.
60,000 children) in comprehensive schools. Compulsory schooling starts in the year when a child
turns seven and ends after the basic education syllabus has been completed or after ten years.

The local or school curriculum is based on a national core curriculum. Completing the basic
education syllabus does not lead to any qualification, but the school-leaving certificate gives
access to all upper secondary education and training. Nearly all children complete their
compulsory schooling.

Young people who have completed their compulsory schooling can opt for one extra year. This
voluntary education is intended to help and encourage young people to continue their studies at
the upper secondary level.

Basic education is free of charge for pupils

Textbooks and other materials, tools etc. are free of charge in basic education and pupils are
offered a free daily meal. In addition, school health care and other welfare services are free to
the pupils. All pupils of compulsory school age have the right to guidance and support in learning
and other schoolwork as soon as need arises.

The school year, which has 190 working days, starts in mid-August and ends in the beginning of
June. The summer holidays are over 60 days.

The network of comprehensive schools covers the whole country. Education is provided in
neighbourhood schools or other suitable places which make school travel as short and safe as
possible. Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide education for children of compulsory
school age living in their areas.The language of instruction is mostly Finnish or Swedish.

In primary and lower secondary education there are around 25 000 pupils (4,6 %) with immigrant
background, whose integration is supported in many ways.

Highly qualified teachers

Basic education is divided into grades. Year-classes 16 are mainly taught by class teachers and
year-classes 79 by specialised subject teachers. As a rule, all teachers have a Master's-level
university degree.

Teachers themselves can choose the teaching methods they use in order to achieve the
objectives stated in the curriculum. The national core curriculum includes the guidelines for
choosing the methods.
Learning materials are mostly produced by commercial publishers. The schools and teachers
themselves decide on the material and textbooks used. The same applies to the use of ICT.

Laws and regulations

Basic education is governed by the Basic Education Act (628/1998) and Basic Education Decree
(852/1998) and the Government Decree on the General National Objectives and Distribution of
Lesson Hours in Basic Education (1435/2001).

The Government decides on the overall time allocation by defining the minimum number of
lessons for core subjects during basic education.

The national core curriculum is determined by the Finnish National Board of Education. It includes
the objectives and core contents of different subjects, as well as the principles of pupil
assessment, special-needs education, pupil welfare and educational guidance.

The education providers, usually the local education authorities and the schools themselves draw
up their own curricula for pre-primary and basic education within the framework of the national
core curriculum.

Administration and finance

Most institutions providing basic education are maintained by local authorities, which are
obligated to organise basic education free of charge for school-aged children living within their
respective areas.

Private education providers are licensed by the Government. Private provision is often run by
associations and societies with a religious basis or based on a certain language (English, Russian,
and German) or Steiner pedagogy. The private schools follow the same legislation and national
core curricula as public schools.

Responsibility for educational funding is divided between the State and the local authorities.
Funding for basic education forms part of statutory government transfers to local authority basic
services, which are managed by the Ministry of Finance.The education provider makes the
decisions on the use of central Government transfers. The funding is not earmarked.

The Ministry of Education and Culture manages part of the funding for basic education and funds
areas such as voluntary additional basic education and instruction preparing immigrant children
for basic education. The Ministry also manages start-up funding for private education providers
and funding for basic education organised abroad.

Student financial aid in Finland

Financial aid is provided in the form of the following benefits:

study grant

housing supplement

government guarantee for student loans.

Student financial aid is granted for full-time studies aiming at

an upper secondary school certificate,

a vocational qualification,

a polytechnic or university degree, and

for additional studies qualifying for a profession or a post.

Aid is also granted for studies abroad if these are equivalent to studies entitling to aid in Finland.

Study grant, housing supplement and government guarantee for student loan

Student financial aid is granted for a predetermined period, depending on the level of education.
The amount of aid depends on the student's age, the form of housing, the level of education and
means-testing. In higher education, the means-testing usually concerns the student's own
income, at other levels the parents' income also influences the amount of aid.

The aid is granted by the Social Insurance Institution (KELA) in cooperation with the education
institution concerned.

Study grant is available as soon as you are no longer eligible for child benefit. Its amount
depends on your age, housing circumstances, marital status, school and income.

Housing supplement can be paid to students living in rented or right-of-occupancy

accommodation. No age limits apply. Students who do not qualify for the housing supplement
can apply for a general housing allowance.

With the government guarantee for study loan student can apply for a bank loan. No other
security is needed for these loans. The loan is repayable but guaranteed by the Government. The
maximum amount of state-guaranteed loan is determined annually. The student loan is granted
by a bank at its discretion. The interest and other terms are agreed by the bank and the student.
The payback time is usually twice the duration of studies.

Student loan compensation for higher education students

The student loan compensation is a repayment, made by Kela on student loan and it can amount
to as much as one third of your student loan amount. It only applies to students in higher
education who have started their first higher education studies on 1 August 2014 or later. The
condition for the compensation is that the student graduates in the normative time and has
taken a given amount of loan.

Students who have started first higher education studies before 1 August 2014 may be entitled
to a student loan tax deduction. The student loan compensation is 40% and the student loan tax
deduction is 30% of the qualifying debt exceeding EUR 2,500.

Interest assistance is available to all those who have low income and who have not anymore
received financial aid for a specified period.

The other benefits for students

Interest assistance, which is available to those who have a low income.

Assistance for school travel, which is available for full-time student of an upper secondary school
or basic vocational education.
Meal subsidy , which is paid to student cafs and higher education students can buy meals for a
subsidised price. In upper secondary schools, in initial vocational education and in some folk high
schools students get free meals.

International student aid

The availability of financial aid for studies abroad promotes international student mobility.
Different countries' student aid schemes are based on national legislation and therefore vary
from country to country.

In Finland financial aid is available for studies abroad which correspond to studies eligible for
government aid in Finland or which form part of a Finnish degree. Applications for degree studies
abroad are processed by the international section of the Centre for Student Financial Aid.

Foreign students who come to Finland to study are usually covered by the aid schemes of their
own countries.

A foreigner who has come to Finland for a purpose other than studies and is a permanent
resident is eligible for student financial aid. The purpose is assessed in accordance with the
provisions of the Aliens Act.

Social and Economic Conditions of Student Life in Europe

The main aim of the Eurostudent project is to collate comparable data on the social dimension of
European higher education. It focuses on the socio-economic background and on the living
conditions of students, but it also investigates temporary international mobility. The project
strives to provide reliable and insightful cross-country comparisons.

The reporting structure of Eurostudent consists of a comparative report and a more detailed,
searchable database, which enables users to download data and a full National Profile for each
country. The fourth round of Eurostudent was completed in 2011.