Schools for teens in Helsinki

Lukio prepares students for higher education studies. The course load is heftier and studies are more theory-based than in vocational education. Usually after three, or a maximum of four years of study, lukio students sit for the matriculation examination. Performance on these tests is critical for university admission. At present, students can take the matriculation examination in Finnish, Swedish and in some cases – English.

In addition to the standard curriculum schools, Helsinki has several lukio that follow a specialised curriculum or a have special emphasis. You can browse all the city’s lukio with our school finder.

Learn more about general upper secondary education.

Ammattikoulu, colloquially known as amis, is Finland’s name for vocational education and training, or trade school.

In amis, students study towards three different levels of vocational qualification. These qualifications are based on competence in a chosen field and are shown in demonstrations of practical work. Vocational schools have training options from the fields of health, technology and service industry positions to subjects like IT, entrepreneurship and the natural sciences. 

The city's own Helsinki Vocational College, Stadin AO(Link leads to external service) has two study programmes in English: The initial vocational qualification in Tourism Industry and The initial vocational qualification in Restaurant and Catering Services. In addition to Stadin AO, there are many private vocational schools to choose from.

Lukio in English in Helsinki

You can complete your studies fully or partly in English at the following general upper secondary schools run by the City of Helsinki:

• Ressu Upper Secondary School, IB World School, IB programme, fully in English
• Helsinki Upper Secondary School of Languages, choose between the two tracks:
  • a fully English-language study track with the matriculation examination entirely in English.
  • a bilingual Finnish-English study programme, which uses both languages in the teaching. In the bilingual track, you take the matriculation examination in Finnish.

There are also private general upper secondary schools in Helsinki that provide lukio education in different languages. Some serve a certain language group, such as the Deutsche Schule (Link leads to external service), the Finnish-French School (Link leads to external service)and the Finnish-Russian School (Link leads to external service). There are also several international schools, such as the International School of Helsinki (Link leads to external service)and the European School of Helsinki (Link leads to external service). Please note that some private schools in Helsinki may charge fees. Learn more about them and upper secondary education in Helsinki in different languages

Vocational studies in English in Helsinki

The Helsinki Vocational College, Stadin AO has two initial vocational qualifications that are can be studied in English; The initial vocational qualification in the Tourism industry(Link leads to external service) and the initial vocational qualification in Restaurant and Catering Services(Link leads to external service). Learn more about them on the Stadin AO webpage.

In addition, some private vocational schools have some qualifications that can be studied in English. We have listed some of these options on page Vocational education and training in different languages | City of Helsinki, where you can explore your options.

After amis, students can either enter the job market or continue to higher education at university or university of applied sciences. See our Universities and adult education page for more information.

In Finland, compulsory education continues until the year students turn 18. This means that all materials and equipment in schools for teens in Helsinki are paid for by the state. Travel costs for school journeys that are longer than seven kilometres are also covered.

It is not unusual for Helsinki teens to attend a lukio or amis further away from their home. This is especially true if they wish to attend an amis programme in a particular vocational field or a lukio with a special emphasis.

For Finnish citizens, lukio and amis are free, but students arriving outside EU or EEA may need to pay for their upper secondary education here. Read more about tuition fees and other costs in upper secondary education.(Link leads to external service)

Young people may be eligible for school transport subsidies on public transport. Learn more about it on the Kela website: School transport subsidy | Our Services | Kela(Link leads to external service)

All lukios in Finland follow the core curriculum for general upper secondary schools (Link leads to external service). Young people in lukio and amis are expected to be very independent and manage their own class selections, school schedules and study responsibilities. Daily instruction schedules vary.