Initial vocational qualifications

Most of our programmes are taught in Finnish, so you will need to know Finnish for your studies. If necessary, we will test your language skills. Only the Initial Vocational Qualification in Tourism Industry is available in English.

Initial vocational qualifications consist of 180 competence points and typically take 2–3 years to complete. You can apply for initial vocational qualifications either through the joint application or the rolling admission process.

The joint application procedure is intended for applicants who have finished comprehensive school but have not yet completed a vocational qualification, the general upper secondary education syllabus or a higher education degree.

You can apply through the process of rolling admission if:

• you do not have vocational qualifications
• you want to complement your existing skills
• you already have a degree, but you want to change careers
• you want to complete unfinished studies and learn a trade.

You can also apply through the rolling admission process if you did not receive a study place in the joint application process.

In apprenticeship training, studying takes place mostly at a workplace.

Initial vocational qualifications, as well as further vocational and specialist vocational qualifications, provide general eligibility for further studies in universities and universities of applied sciences.

For more detailed descriptions of initial vocational qualifications, visit the Finnish-language page:

• If you are browsing on a smartphone, find the list of qualifications under Valikko (Menu) at the top right corner.
• If you are browsing the page on a computer, find them in the menu on the left hand side