How to apply
Pupils who move to Helsinki during their comprehensive education and have previously studied in English-language education elsewhere in Finland or abroad can be admitted to an English-language class. If the criteria below are met and there are free places in the group, the school will invite your child to a language test for testing their language skills.
Admission criteria as of 1 August 2026
- Native or near-native English proficiency. The pupil should have sufficient language skills to participate in English-language instruction based on the language test result.
- The pupil is moving or has recently moved to Helsinki and has not yet completed comprehensive education. The application may be sent before moving to Helsinki, but the pupil’s home address must be registered in Helsinki in order to be invited to the language test. If your address information is not yet available in the national Population Information System, we will ask you for a proof of address (such as a rental agreement).
- Within the last 18 months, the pupil has studied abroad in English-language instruction which is similar to Finnish comprehensive education based on the Basic Education Act, or in other fully English-language education following the Basic Education Act elsewhere in Finland.
- Please note: We will ask all applicants to provide certificates of their previous English-language education (where all or majority of teaching was given in English). If necessary, we will check with the pupil's former school to verify the information. Studying the English language as one subject is not sufficient to meet the criteria.
- Applicants for grades 8–9 are also required to have spoken Finnish language skills, equalling the A1 level in spoken interaction in accordance with the European framework. See the Council of Europe's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Self-assessment grid(Link leads to external service).
How to apply in the continuous admission
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Fill in the online application form
Fill in the online application form below. Please attach the most recent certificate or statement of the English-language comprehensive education to your application form.
No Wilma username and password are needed for filling in the application form, but you need to have a valid email address.
- Start by writing your email address in the address field and click “Send verification”.
- Then, go to your inbox, open the email that you received and click on the link in the message, and you can proceed to fill in the application form.
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After submitting the form, you will receive an email confirming that we have received your application.
Online application form: Continuous admission to English-language comprehensive education(Link leads to external service)If you need more information about applying for English-language teaching, please contact us by email at eduguidance@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program).
If you have problems with filling in the form, check the following things: - If you have previously logged in on Wilma using an existing username and password, log out.
- Clear your browsing history.
- Change the language of Wilma to English.
- If none of the above works, try again later.
- If you need to make changes to your application, or you are unable to apply electronically, please contact eduguidance@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program).
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We will process your application
The administration of the Education Division processes your application.
If there are free places on the grade you applied to and the applicant meets the admission criteria, we will transfer the information of the applicant to the school. Schools organise the language test and send you the invitation to the language test if the conditions above are met. Once you have submitted your application, we will contact you by the end of the current month.
Please direct all inquiries about applying to English-language education directly to Education Guidance by email at eduguidance@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program)or by phone on +358 9 310 15087(Link starts a phone call).
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Wait for a contact and invite for the language test.
We will contact you by the end of the current month. If the criteria above are met and there are free places in the group, the school will invite you to a language test for testing the child's language skills.
Please direct all inquiries about applying to English-language education directly to Education Guidance at eduguidance@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program).
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Take the child to the language test
The schools hold language tests one a month. Please note that there is no language test in June and July due to the school holidays. The test takes place either at Ressu Comprehensive School, Maunula Primary School or Maunula Comprehensive School. The school will contact you closer to the test date and informs you about the further details.
Language test dates in the school year 2026–2027
- Thursday 3 September 2026
- Thursday 1 October 2026
- Thursday 5 November 2026
- Thursday 3 December 2026
- Thursday 7 January 2027
- Thursday 4 February 2027
- Thursday 4 March 2027
- Thursday 1 April 2027
- Wednesday 5 May 2027
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Wait for the language test results and admission decision
The decisions on pupil admission are made based on the language test results as soon after the test as possible. If you are accepted as a pupil, the school will contact you to tell you when school starts. You must immediately accept the school place.
If you are not accepted at the school, you should enrol in preparatory education or your own local school. We can assist you with this process.
We wish you all success on your school journey!
Temporary admission to English-language instruction
Temporary admission, or in other words, a study place in a new, primarily English-language class at Ressu Comprehensive School for up to two years, is intended for children who are moving to Finland only temporarily.
The difference from Ressu’s current English-language program is that, in the application process for temporary admission, the applicant’s English proficiency is not tested, whereas for the regular English-language program, the applicant must pass a language test. Applicants are also not required to have previously studied in any English-language program.
The new class consists of students from different grade levels, meaning that students of various ages from approximately 7 to 16 in grades 1–9 may be enrolled in the class. Where possible, instruction is provided so that the students in the class study alongside other students of the same age at the school in English-language instruction groups.
Places in the class are intended for students in grades 1–9 who are in Finland for no more than two years due to a family work assignment or a similar reason. However, students cannot apply for ninth grade in the middle of the school year, as it is the last grade of comprehensive school.
You can apply for temporary admission to English-language instruction if the following criteria are met:
- The student is staying in Finland temporarily and lives in Helsinki (We ask applicants to provide proof of temporary residence).
- The student is not a Finnish citizen.
- The student was not born in Finland.
- The student does not meet the requirements for studying in Finnish.
- The student’s English proficiency is not sufficient for English-language instruction, or the student otherwise does not meet the eligibility requirements for English-language instruction.
You can apply for a temporary admission to English-language instruction all year-round. Applications are processed every two weeks.
If there are places available in the class and the applicant meets the admission criteria, they will receive a positive admission decision. The school will contact you and let you know your child can start school. The school placement must be accepted immediately.
Here’s how to apply:
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Fill out the application form
Submit your application here:
E-application form to temporary admission | Wilma(Link leads to external service)
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Attach the required documents
Attach copies of the following documents:
- The student’s most recent school certificate (does not apply to first-grade students if the student has not previously attended school elsewhere) and its translation into Finnish or English. The attachment must include the school’s contact information, the studies the student has completed there, the date, and the school’s stamp or signature.
- Proof that the student is residing in Finland temporarily. This proof may be, for example, an A permit or B permit issued by the Finnish immigration authorities, or a certificate of the parent or legal guardian’s temporary employment.
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Wait for the decision
Wait for the admission decision and for us to contact you. The school will contact you and let you know when school starts. You must accept the school placement immediately.
The school placement automatically expires when the temporary admission period ends. You can check the details of your child’s admission decision.
If your family decides to stay in Finland for more than two years, you will need to re-apply for a school place for your child. There is no automatic continuation to English-language instruction from the temporary admission class.
If your child needs a school place after the two-year temporary admission, you can choose from the following options:
- If your child does not speak Finnish or Swedish, your family can apply for a spot in preparatory education.
- If your child has previously studied in an English-language program at a school other than one operated by the City of Helsinki, they may apply for admission to the City of Helsinki’s English-language education in accordance with the criteria for continuous admission, even after completing the temporary admission period. In this case, the child may have received English-language instruction for a maximum of 18 months. Find further info and instructions in section Continuous admission to grades 1–9 above.
- If a child has learned enough Finnish or Swedish within two years, they may also apply for a spot in a Finnish- or Swedish-language class at their local school. Check your local school using your home address.
- A child can apply for a spot at a private school.
Schools offering English-language education
English-language education is available at Ressu Comprehensive, Maunula Primary, Maunula Comprehensive and Kulosaari Comprehensive schools. In addition, there are a few private schools that provide instruction in English. Private schools follow their own application procedures.
Learn more about English-language instruction in the city-owned schools via the links below.
About the language tests and studies
- The language of instruction in English-language education is English. The only exception is the subject of Finnish language and literature, which will be taught in Finnish. Applicants must have native or near-native proficiency in English, but prior skills in Finnish are not required.
- English-language education is offered at certain Finnish-language schools.
- Applicants for grades 8 and 9 are also required to have spoken Finnish language skills, equalling the A1 level in spoken interaction in accordance with the European framework. See the Council of Europe's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Self-assessment grid (pdf)(Link leads to external service).
- The objectives and key contents of learning are the same for both English-language and Finnish-language comprehensive education. The English-language education in Ressu Comprehensive School follows the International Baccalaureate (IB) frame of reference.
- English-language education is available at Ressu Comprehensive, Maunula Primary, Maunula Comprehensive and Kulosaari Comprehensive schools. In addition, there are a few private schools that provide instruction in English, and they all have their own application procedures. English-language education is not available in the City's Swedish-language schools.
- In the temporary admission class at Ressu Comprehensive School, instruction is organised, whenever possible, so that the students in that class study alongside other students of the same age in the school’s other English-language instruction groups.
- Every student applying via continuous admission and supplementary admission routes must take a language test to English-language education. There is no language test for the temporary admission class at Ressu.
- The student does not need to prepare for the test in advance and children take the language test according to their birth year.
- For the test for grade 1, no writing or reading skills are expected.
- In all other grade levels from 2 to 9, the test includes tasks of reading comprehension, listening comprehension and writing. The level of these tasks corresponds the level of language skills required at that grade level.
- For students applying for grades 8 and 9, the language test also assesses the applicant’s spoken Finnish language skills in an interview at A1 level. For the description of A1 language level, please see the Council of Europe's Common European Framework of Reference for Languages Self-assessment grid (pdf)(Link leads to external service).
- The language test can only be taken at school. Unfortunately, we cannot organise the tests remotely.
- The test dates and times vary depending on how you apply. Check the different admission routes above.