Entrance to education: documentation of statistics
The documentation of the statistics describes how the statistics were compiled and what methods were used in the compilation. The data help interpret the figures of the statistics and evaluate their reliability and comparability. The quality report is based on the EU's SIMS model. The documentation also contains change releases describing changes in the statistics and possible specifying methodological descriptions.
If you are looking for statistical figures for these statistics, go to the statistics page: Entrance to education
Quality report
Data description (SIMS 3.1)
Statistics on entrance to education describe placement in further education of comprehensive school leavers, passers of the matriculation examination and those who have completed an initial vocational qualification. Data are produced by combining several register data and published once a year.
Sector coverage (SIMS 3.3)
The statistics on Entrance to education cover the data on applying to and placement in education of completers of comprehensive school, matriculation examination students and persons with initial vocational qualifications.
Data on entrance to education derive from the Finnish National Agency for Education’s Student admission register and thus cover applications to education through the service.
In addition, Statistics Finland's Student Register and Register of Completed Education and Degrees are used, which are total data.
Information on students’ placement in education abroad is obtained from Kela’s student financial aid register.
Statistical unit (SIMS 3.5)
The statistical unit of the statistics on entrance to education is a person.
Statistical population (SIMS 3.6)
The population of these statistics are: applicants to different sectors of education either by sector of education and field of education or only by sector of education, new students by sector of education and field of education or only by sector of education.
In addition, the transition to further studies is followed separately for completers of comprehensive school in the statistical reference year and completers of the matriculation examination (incl. international matriculation examinations) in the spring term (1 January to 31 July) of the statistical reference year. Previously, the statistics included completers of the matriculation examination throughout the statistical reference year.
From the statistical year 2015 onwards, students’ placement in further education in Finland or abroad has been monitored.
Starting from the statistical reference year 2019, placement in further education of attainers of initial vocational qualifications has also been monitored.
The data include only persons with a Finnish personal identity code. For this reason, the figures are often lower than in other education statistics. The figures may also be lower compared to other education statistics because one person is calculated only once in the statistics, according to sector of education, level of education or field of education.
Reference area (SIMS 3.7)
The statistics on entrance to education cover data on entrance to education in Finland. The reference area of the statistics is Finland and, in part, other countries.
Data are published at the municipal level and according to other regional classifications.
Time coverage (SIMS 3.8)
The statistical data have been produced annually since the 1990s. Data on applicants and admissions to universities are available starting from the beginning of the 1980s in Statistics Finland’s archives. The statistics are final.
Unit of measure (SIMS 4)
The measurement unit of the statistics on entrance to education is number of persons.
Reference period (SIMS 5)
The reference period of the statistics on entrance to education is a calendar year.
Classifications (SIMS 3.2)
In the Entrance to Education statistics, the data are classified in accordance with the National Classification of Education 2016 by level of education, field of education, and by municipal and regional classifications. In addition, the data are broken down by type of education, prior qualification, and gender. More information is available on Statistics Finland’s Classifications pages.
- National classification of education 2016
- National level of education 2016
- National field of education 2016
- Municipalities (the classification corresponding to the most recent statistical year published in the database tables is always used in the statistics)
- Regions (the classification corresponding to the most recent statistical year published in the database tables is always used in the statistics)
- Sex
Concepts and definitions (SIMS 3.4)
Applicant for education
A learner who has submitted an application for admission to education or teaching.
Completers of comprehensive school
In the statistics on comprehensive school education and on entrance to education completers of comprehensive education refer to pupils who have satisfactorily completed the full comprehensive school syllabus and received a school-leaving certificate from comprehensive school. The full comprehensive school syllabus can be completed in comprehensive schools, upper secondary general schools and folk high schools.
Education
An organised activity, the aim of which is to produce competence based on teaching. Comment: Education can be divided into education and training leading to a qualification or degree and non-qualification studies.
Educational institution
An educational institution refers to an administrative unit with a principal or other head, which has teachers and other personnel in its service (role of employers), and which is liable to keep books and compile other documentation, in which students are registered, whose activities are regulated by a legal act or decree, which follows a national curriculum, and which is financed and controlled by a public authority. An educational institution does not refer to a school building or facility. A new educational institution is established, an educational institution is abolished or merged with another educational institution at the decision of the organiser of education (maintainer of the educational institution) or a public authority. Statistics Finland has assigned an individualised educational institution ID to each educational institution. Educational institutions are classified according to a classification of types of educational institutions.
Further vocational qualification
A vocational qualification demonstrating professional competence tailored to the needs of working life, which is more advanced than an initial vocational qualification or targeted at more limited tasks.
Initial vocational qualification
A vocational qualification demonstrating broad-based basic vocational skills for different tasks in the field, as well as more specialised skills and professional competence required in working life in at least one sub-area related to working life.
Level of education
Category into which programmes leading to a qualification or degree are divided on the basis of the requirement level. Comment: Selection to education on a particular level of education often requires completion of a lower level of education. The level of education is measured on the basis of both the overall duration or target time of the education and the requirement level. Levels of education: early childhood education and care and pre-primary education (duration varies), primary education (6 years), lower secondary education (3 years, in total 9 years from the beginning of comprehensive education), upper secondary education (3 years, in total 12 years from the beginning of comprehensive education), post-secondary non-tertiary education (1-2 years, in total 13-14 years from the beginning of comprehensive education), lowest tertiary education (2-3 years, in total 14-15 years from the beginning of comprehensive education), bachelor's or equivalent level (3-4 years, in total 15-16 years from the beginning of comprehensive education), master's or equivalent level (5-6 years, in total 17-18 years from the beginning of comprehensive education) and second stage of tertiary education (2-4 years, in total 19-22 years from the beginning of comprehensive education). The level of education indicator cannot be calculated directly on the basis of the duration presented in this concept.
Main type of activity
The concept of main type of activity describes the nature of a person's economic activity. The population is divided into people in the labour force and those outside the labour force. These categories can further be divided into subgroups. The classification is based on data on a person's main type of activity during the last week of the year. The following classification is used: Labour force - employed labour force - unemployed Persons outside the labour force - 0-14-year-olds - students, pupils - pensioners - conscripts, conscientious objectors - others outside the labour force. Information on the main type of activity is based on data obtained from various registers. Where the data conflict as to whether a person is in the labour force or outside it, priority is given to the former. If, within the labour force, the data conflict as to whether a person is unemployed or employed, priority is given to the former. The group "others outside the labour force" consists of persons who are not in the labour force and do not belong to the following groups: 0-14-year-olds, students, conscripts, conscientous objectors or pensioners.
Matriculation examination
Matriculation examination refers to a final examination of upper secondary general school which is set by the matriculation examination board and which a student studying the full upper secondary general school syllabus can take. Satisfactory pass of the matriculation examination leads to a matriculation examination certificate.
New student
In the statistics on entrants to education and progress of studies new students in upper secondary general education and university of applied sciences education refer to the students studying on 20 September who had registered into certain studies in the educational institution concerned between 1 January and 20 September. New students in vocational education refer to students who became registered in the educational institution during the calendar year studying in curriculum-based vocational education and attending education preparing for a skills examination, as well as students who have made an apprenticeship training agreement during the calendar year. Before 2013, new students in curriculum-based vocational education were those registered between 1 January and 20 September. From 2010 onwards, new students in university education refer to students having started studies leading to the current university degree at the university concerned and studying on 20 September. Previously, new students referred to students that had enrolled at the university concerned for the first time to study for a lower or upper university degree in any field of education and studying on 20 September. The number of new students is lower than in other statistics by sector of education because it only includes students with a correct Finnish personal ID number and because a new student is only included once in the number of students by sector of education, level of education or some other variable, such as educational institute.
Specialist vocational qualification
A vocational qualification demonstrating professional competence tailored to the needs of working life, with more advanced command of profession or cross-sectional skills than a further vocational qualification.
Student
A learner studying in other than pre-primary or comprehensive education. Comment Students include persons studying in general upper secondary school, vocational upper secondary education and training, tertiary education and liberal adult education. Adults studying in comprehensive education are also referred to as students. In Statistics Finland's statistics the concept refers to upper secondary and tertiary level students. In Statistics Finland's statistics students are required to be registered at an educational institution.
Transition phase
The transition phase is a phase in which a person moves from one phase of education to another so that the teaching methods, contents, goals or study form change significantly, or in which the person moves from one level of education to another or from education to working life.
Transition phase education
Preparatory education for upper secondary education. These include voluntary additional basic education (10th grade), preparatory education for general upper secondary education (LUVA) and preparatory education for vocational education (VALMA) and, starting from 1 August 2022, preparatory education for an upper secondary qualification (TUVA), which combines the previous transition phase education.
University education
Tertiary education provided by universities. Comment: The objective of the education is a bachelor’s or master’s degree or a scientific postgraduate degree, which are licentiate's and doctoral degrees. Education not leading to a qualification or degree can also be completed.
Vocational education and training
Education and training completed after the comprehensive education syllabus, aimed at producing vocational competence. Comment: Initial, further and specialist vocational qualifications can be obtained in vocational education and training. In addition to completing a qualification, parts of a qualification can also be completed in vocational education and training.
Vocational qualification
A qualification intended to increase and maintain professional skills and demonstration of professional competence. Comment: Vocational qualifications are initial, further and specialist vocational qualifications.
Institutional mandate (SIMS 6)
The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. The Statistics Act contains provisions on collection of data, processing of data and the obligation to provide data. Besides the Statistics Act, the General Data Protection Regulation, the Data Protection Act and the Act on the Openness of Government Activities are applied to processing of data when producing statistics.
Statistics Finland compiles statistics in line with the EU’s regulations applicable to statistics, which steer the statistical agencies of all EU Member States.
Further information: Statistical legislation
Data sharing (SIMS 6.2)
The data of the statistics are submitted to the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Finnish National Agency for Education in accordance with the H9098-OKM-OPH information service agreement.
The data of the statistics are reported to UNESCO, the OECD and Eurostat in the UOE data collection and related separate inquiries.
Source data (SIMS 18.1)
The statistics are produced from the Finnish National Agency for Education’s application data (administrative files) on completers of comprehensive school, upper secondary level education and higher education, Statistics Finland's individual-based student data and the Register of Completed Education and Degrees.
Starting from 2017, all application data are obtained from the Finnish National Agency for Education’s Student admission register. The data are divided in the statistics into two application registers of upper secondary and tertiary education.
Frequency of data collection (SIMS 18.2)
The statistics do not have their own data collection, but the statistics are based on data from Statistics Finland's other statistics and on data in the Finnish National Agency for Education’s Student admission register.
Data collection (SIMS 18.3)
The data in the Finnish National Agency for Education’s Student admission register are retrieved annually from the Finnish National Agency for Education.
Data validation (SIMS 18.4)
The data of the statistics on entrance to education are validated in many stages during the statistical process. During data processing, the high quality of the data on applicants to education, students and employment on which the statistics are based is ensured by means of various statistical checking software and by comparison to corresponding previous statistics and other data sources.
Data compilation (SIMS 18.5)
The data do not include all education leading to a qualification or degree outside joint application. Therefore, as replacement data, new students in education outside joint application in Statistics Finland’s Student Register have been included as applicants in the applicant data. The data are corrected to correspond to the classifications of the statistical reference year and the register of educational institutions.
User needs (SIMS 12.1)
The data are used, among other things, for education planning, research, and evaluation. The statistical data are delivered for use by the education administration in accordance with the data service agreement between the Finnish National Agency for Education and the Ministry of Education and Culture. The education administration publishes more detailed data based on the material in its Vipunen statistical service.
User satisfaction (SIMS 12.2)
The contents of the data service agreement materials are negotiated annually with the education administration.
Overall accuracy (SIMS 13.1)
In addition to joint application, the application data for upper secondary education also contain data on applicants and those admitted to preparatory education for upper secondary school and preparatory vocational education and additional education (10th grade) starting from 2014 until 2021 when these kinds of prepatory education and additional education were discontinued. Prepatory education and additional education were replaced by prepatory education for an upper secondary qualification (TUVA) starting from 2022.
The data do not include all education leading to a qualification or degree outside joint application. Therefore, as replacement data, new students in education outside joint application have been included as applicants in the applicant data. The number of new students is usually lower than that of applicants to the education in question.
The statistics also include information on placement in education abroad if the person has received student financial aid from Kela (The Social Insurance Institution of Finland) for studies undertaken abroad.
Non-sampling error (SIMS 13.3)
The quality of the data is affected by the quality of the registers used.
Coverage error (SIMS 13.3.1)
There is undercoverage in the statistics with regard to applicants to upper secondary education. Data on upper secondary education mainly cover those who have applied through the joint application system, which is clearly less than half of all applicants to upper secondary education.
Processing error (SIMS 13.3.4)
Possible errors in the statistical release include, among other things, incorrect figures presented in the release texts, charts, or tables, or the use of incorrect concepts.
Quality assurance (SIMS 11.1)
Quality management requires comprehensive guidance of activities. The European Statistics Code of Practice forms the basis for the common quality system of the European Statistical System.
The Code of Practice is based on 16 principles that concern statistical authorities' independence, accountability and the quality of the processes and data to be published.
The principles are in line with the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics approved by the United Nations Statistics Commission and are supplementary to them. The quality criteria of Official Statistics of Finland are compatible with the European Statistics Code of Practice.
Further information: European Statistics Code of Practice | Statistics Finland and Recommendations of the Advisory Board of Official Statistics of Finland | Statistics Finland
Timeliness (SIMS 14.1)
Statistics on entrance to education are completed about 12 months after the reference date (subject choices of comprehensive school students), subject selection data for upper secondary school students are published with a delay of about one year.
Punctuality (SIMS 14.2)
There is no delay between the release calendar and the actual release date.
Comparability - geographical (SIMS 15.1)
Education statistics are geographically comparable. The data cover the whole of Finland.
Comparability - over time (SIMS 15.2)
The statistical data have been produced annually since the 1990s. Data on applicants and admissions to universities are available starting from the beginning of the 1980s.
Coherence – cross domain (SIMS 15.3)
The statistical data are based on the same data sources and they have been compiled in accordance with the same principles as Statistics Finland's statistics compiled by sector of education. These statistics may well be used side by side, provided the special features of the statistics are taken into account.
The Finnish National Agency for Education maintains register data on applicants to education and publishes statistics from them, the data of which may differ from Statistics Finland's statistics because the specifications, concepts and definitions used in them differ from each another.
Coherence - internal (SIMS 15.4)
Data on applicants to vocational education and upper secondary general school education and completers of comprehensive school education for 2015 are not included in the release of 2016 because the data were not available by the time of the release. The data were updated to the database tables in 2017.
Release calendar (SIMS 8.1)
Statistics Finland publishes new statistical data at 8 am on weekdays in its web service. The release times of statistics are given in advance in the release calendar available in the web service. The data become public after they have been updated in the web service.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics at Statistics Finland
Release calendar access (SIMS 8.2)
Future publications of the statistics can be found on the page of the statistics at: Future publications of the statistics.
User access (SIMS 8.3)
The data are released to all users at the same time. Statistical data may be processed at Statistics Finland and information on them may be given before release only by persons involved in the production of the statistics concerned or who need the data of the statistics concerned in their own work before the data are published.
Further information: Publication principles for statistics
Unless otherwise specifically stated in connection with the product, data or service concerned, Statistics Finland is the producer and copyright owner of the data. The terms of use for statistical data.
Frequency of dissemination (SIMS 9)
Statistics on entrance to education are published twice a year on the Statistics Finland website: in November for those who have completed basic education, and in December for passers of the matriculation examination and those who have completed a vocational upper secondary qualification.
News release (SIMS 10.1)
The releases are published annually on the home page of the statistics during November–December.
From 2023 onwards, two press releases are published.
Online database (SIMS 10.3)
The database tables of the statistics can be found in the StatFin database.
Micro-data access (SIMS 10.4)
The Finnish National Agency for Education’s education application register is available for research use via Statistics Finland’s research services.
Other (SIMS 10.5)
It is possible to produce fee-based ad hoc analyses from the data.
Confidentiality - policy (SIMS 7.1)
The data protection of data collected for statistical purposes is guaranteed. The compilation of statistics is guided by the Statistics Act. Alongside the Statistics Act, the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation and the Finnish Data Protection Act are applied to the processing of personal data. Provisions on the confidentiality of data collected for statistical purposes are laid down in the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.
The data are processed only by persons who need the data in their work. The use of data is restricted by usage rights. All persons employed by Statistics Finland have signed a pledge of secrecy, where they have obliged to keep secret the data prescribed as confidential by virtue of the Statistics Act or the Act on the Openness of Government Activities.
Further information: Data protection | Statistics Finland (stat.fi)
Confidentiality - data treatment (SIMS 7.2)
The central guideline in data protection activities is to avoid publishing statistical data in a form from which an individual person can be identified. The data on students and qualifications of organisers of education and educational institutions are otherwise public because the education they organise is financed or controlled by a public authority (Section 12 of the Statistics Act). The statistics on entrance to education are released once a year. The publications contain tables and several StatFin database tables.
Database tables are more standardised and more detailed than publication tables in terms of data content. The background variables are typically at a more detailed level than the publication tables. The classifying variables are the municipality of education, region of education, gender and level of further education. Completers of comprehensive school and passers of the matriculation examination are given by number of students in the tables.
The data on completers of comprehensive school and passers of the matriculation examination in the statistics on entrance to education are public and the database tables and publication tables do not contain variables defined as sensitive. Protection of the individual is considered in planning the tables when the individual-based data have been made less detailed to the level of the municipality of education for completers of comprehensive school and passers of the matriculation examination. If there are fewer than 10 completers of comprehensive school or passers of the matriculation examination in the municipality, the threshold value rule has been used and the location data have been suppressed.
However, when preparing information service assignments, it must be taken into account that assignments are case-specific and what effect especially small numbers of observations and (possibly) more accurate background variables have on data protection. If the information service table contains variables defined as sensitive, e.g. nationality or main type of activity, less detailed classifications of other variables, e.g. regional data, have been used. Alternatively, data by educational institution on the nationality of foreign citizens are released at the accuracy of continent and data on native languages with the division Finnish-Swedish-other. If there is no desire to make the variables less detailed, the threshold value rule can be used.