More Finnish upper secondary students extend studies to three and a half or four years

An increasing number of Finnish upper secondary school students are extending their studies beyond the standard three years, with significant regional differences in graduation times, according to data from the Finnish National Agency for Education (Opetushallitus) reported by Yle.

In 2021, about one in four students took more than three years to complete their upper secondary education, with roughly one in six graduating in three and a half years and one in ten in four years. While 70 percent still finish in three years, regional disparities are stark. In Ostrobothnia, over 80 percent of the 2021 cohort graduated in three years, compared to just over 50 percent in Kainuu. In North Karelia, the share of students taking three and a half years has grown the most, while Central Ostrobothnia has seen the largest increase in four-year completions.

Martta Västinsalo, a 19-year-old student at Lapua Upper Secondary School, extended her studies to four years to balance academics with her hobbies—pesäpallo (Finnish baseball) and playing the piano and violin. “I got shorter school days and later mornings,” she said. “Choosing my own courses made everything less rushed.”

Emma Ylimäki, 20, who graduated in December 2024, also extended her studies to focus on seven subjects for her matriculation exams. “I wanted time to prepare properly for each one,” she explained. She now works as a substitute teacher at the same school.

School counselor Markus Möykky attributes the trend partly to pandemic-era stress, noting that discussions about academic pressure led many students to preemptively extend their studies. While specialized schools like sports-focused upper secondary institutions see higher extension rates, Lapua Upper Secondary—though not specialized—saw over half of its 2021 cohort take more than three years, with nearly 40 percent graduating in four.

Principal Kaisa Piiparinen called the 2021 cohort exceptional, estimating that typically about a quarter of Lapua’s students extend their studies.