Vocational School - Finland

Finland

The Finnish system is divided between vocational and academic paths. Currently about 47 percent of Finnish students at age 15 go to vocational school. The vocational school is a secondary school for ages 16–21, and prepares the students for entering the workforce. The curriculum includes little academic general education, while the practical skills of each trade are stressed. The education is divided into eight main categories with a total of about 50 trades. The basic categories of education are

• Humanist and educational branch

• typical trade: youth- and free-time director

• Cultural branch

• typical trade: artisan, media-assistant

• The branch of social sciences, business and merchandise

• typical trade: Vocational Qualification in Business and Administration (Finnish: merkonomi)

• Natural Science

• typical trade: IT worker (Finnish: datanomi)

• Technology and traffic

• typical trades: machinist, electrician, process worker

• The branch of natural resources and environment

• typical trade: rural entrepreneur, forest worker

• The branch of social work, health care and physical exercise

• typical trade: practical nurse (Finnish: lähihoitaja)

• The branch of travel, catering and domestic economics

• typical trade: institutional catering worker

In addition to these categories administered by the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Interior provides vocational education in the security and rescue branch for policemen, prison guards and firefighters.

The vocational schools are usually owned by the municipalities, but in special cases, private or state vocational schools exist. The state grants aid to all vocational schools on the same basis, regardless of the owner. On the other hand, the vocational schools are not allowed to operate for profit. The Ministry of Education issues licences to provide vocational education. In the licence, the municipality or a private entity is given permission to train a yearly quota of students for specific trades. The licence also specifies the area where the school must be located and the languages used in the education.

The vocational school students are selected by the schools on the basis of criteria set by the Ministry of Education. The basic qualification for the study is completed nine-year comprehensive school. Anyone may seek admission in any vocational school regardless of their domicile. In certain trades, bad health or invalidity may be acceptable grounds for refusing admission. The students do not pay tuition and they must be provided with health care and a free daily school lunch. However, the students must pay for the books, although the tools and practice material are provided to the students for free.

In tertiary education, there are higher vocational schools (ammattikorkeakoulu which is translated to polytechnic or university of applied sciences), which give about 3-4 -year degrees in more involved fields, like engineering (see insinööri (amk)) or nursing.

In contrast to the vocational school, an academically orientated upper secondary school, or senior high school (Finnish: lukio) teaches no vocational skills. It prepares for entering the university or a higher vocational school.