Education system in Finland

WORKING LIFE

Vocational Upper Secondary Education and Training

• Students are mainly aged 16-25 years

• The school-based education system means full-time studies for 3 years at a vocational institution (120 credits).

• Education and training of compulsory studies is primarily organised in year classes. Else, students follow their individual study plans.

General Issues

Vocational upper secondary qualifications and study programmes are defined in a Ministry of Education decree. The fields of education are as follows:

• Humanities and education;• Culture;• Social science, business and administration;• Natural sciences;• Technology, communication and transport;• Natural resources and the environment;• Social services, health and sport;• Tourism, catering and domestic services

Vocational qualifications

-150 VET providers-52 vocational upper secondary qualifications -119 study programmes

The qualifications provide the students with a wide variety of basic skills as well as more specialised skills in some areas.

Students are qualified to find placements in working life, to perform various tasks in their field in changing conditions, and so to develop their vocational skills throughout their lives.

Upper Secondary Vocational Education and Training in a Nutshell

•Admission requirement is the completion of basic education syllabus

•Education providers primarily select their students based on earlier academic achievement but may also hold entrance exams or aptitude tests and may take the applicant’s work experience into consideration

•Application takes place through a joint application system electronically

•The studies primarily aim at obtaining the vocational skills needed in working life

•Additionally, three-year studies give general eligibility to apply for studies at universities and polytechnics

Upper Secondary Vocational Education and Training in a Nutshell

•Opportunities for individual progress in studies

•A vocational upper secondary qualification can be obtained through attending a vocational school, through apprenticeship training, or through a competence test

•20 credits (around 6 months) of the studies are conducted on-the-job

•Skills demonstrations were launched in 2006 as proof of having reached the goals given to vocational studies.

North Karelia College

OUTOKUMPU

North Karelia Collegepart of

North Karelia Municipal Education and Training Consortium

• 8 Colleges

• Adult Education Centers

• 7700 students

• staff: 1050

• Owned by 14 county's municipalities

• 169 000 inhabitants in North Karelia

Facilities are located at different parts of town

Dancer ArtisanVisual ArtisanMedia Assistant

Game development Theather and event technology Graphic design

Sound production Film and sound

Practical nurse

MachinistPlater-welderICT-assemblerPrinting AssistantDesign Assistant

EDUCATION PREPARING FOR UPPER SECONDARY VET (20-40 credits)

Educations 120 credits

Applying to college

-Admission procedure will take place through the joint application system, maintained by the Finnish National Board of Education

-Students are free to choose which educational institution they apply to. If a person does not gain admittance to the school of his or her first choice, other possible schools are considered

-Entrance exams

-> www.haenyt.fi

CURRICULUM 120 credits

• vocational studies 90 credits, including on-the-job learning min. 20 credits skills demonstrations

• core subjects (20 credits, 16 compulsory + 4 optional)the native language the other national language and a foreign language mathematics physics and chemistry social, business and labour-market subjects health education; physical education arts and culture; environmental studies ICT; ethics, other cultures psychology and entrepreneurship free-choice studies, which vary (10 credits)

Studies include at least 1.5 credits of student counselling.

More information:

www.oph.fiwww.koulutusnetti.fi

www.cedefop.europa.euwww.pkky.fi/amoo