Applicants report gaining admission from reserve list position 50 at universities of applied sciences

Results for the second joint application round for universities and universities of applied sciences are published today, with reserve list applicants still awaiting their final status.

Student Sofia Forsberg, who switched from a university of applied sciences to the University of Helsinki this spring, has followed discussions among applicants on social media platforms like Jodel. She notes that many report securing a study place despite being ranked as low as 50th on the reserve list—even when their quota only admits 10 students.

Forsberg experienced this firsthand five years ago. As a first-time applicant, she scored 109 points on her matriculation exam and was placed 17th on the reserve list. At the same time, the Opintopolku system showed that 109 points had been the minimum accepted score, meaning someone else with the same points had already been admitted. Yet she was accepted overnight.

“At that time, about 15 first-time applicants were admitted based on matriculation exam scores,” she said.

Forsberg concludes that universities of applied sciences combine first-time applicants and all other applicants in the same reserve list. Since first-time applicants have their own quota, they may suddenly move ahead of others in the queue. She finds this method of reporting reserve positions misleading, particularly for first-time applicants, who may lose hope and accept a lower-preference offer instead.

“You want to accept a place promptly if, for example, you need to relocate for studies. There’s no time to wait and see if the reserve position moves,” she said.

A reserve list applicant gains admission only if someone who received a study place declines it. If a first-time applicant declines, the next first-time applicant in line gets the spot. If a non-first-time applicant declines, the place goes to the highest-scoring applicant on the reserve list, regardless of whether they are a first-time or repeat applicant.

Janni Jokela, a senior specialist at the Finnish National Agency for Education, acknowledges the complexity. She confirms that many universities of applied sciences place all applicants in a single queue, with a defined number of starting places reserved for first-time applicants. If spots remain unfilled in that quota, a first-time applicant may be selected before a higher-ranked non-first-time applicant.

Universities, by contrast, maintain separate queues: one for first-time applicants and another for all applicants. This allows applicants to see their exact reserve position for each queue in Opintopolku.

Jokela does not know why universities and universities of applied sciences differ in their queuing practices. She suggests the question should be directed to the institutions themselves. The National Agency for Education maintains the Opintopolku portal, but the data comes from the higher education institutions. No complaints about the reserve list reporting method have reached the agency.

Accepted applicants have one week to confirm whether they will take the study place. After that, reserve list applicants will begin receiving offers for any vacancies.