If the language of your secondary education is Finnish, you will have to complete 10 cr of studies as follows:
If the language of your secondary education is Swedish, you will have to complete 10 cr of studies as follows:
NB! You will be asked to prove your oral and written skills in all of the languages.
More information on your degree programme's language studies is available in your degree programme's structure in Sisu or in the Degree structure section.
Completion
- Studies in a native language organised by the Language Centre can be completed in different ways. For more information on the different completion methods, see the Native language Finnish (in Finnish) and Native language Swedish (in Swedish) curriculum pages. NB! In some degree programmes, studies in the native language are arranged by the faculty. For more information, see the degree structure of your degree programme.
- Studies in a second national language can be completed either by taking a course or by completing exemption test.
- Studies in a foreign language can be completed either by taking a course or by completing exemption test in any of the languages offered by the Language Centre, except in Japanese, Korean and Portuguese. NB! If your bachelor’s programme has set limits on which language you can choose as the foreign language in your degree, this will be visible in your degree programme’s degree structure.
Exceptions related to second national language
- If you have been exempted from the second national language in the Finnish general upper secondary school or you have not completed the second national language in the International Baccalaureate, European Baccalaureate, Reifeprüfung or Deutsche Internationale Abitur degree, you do not have to complete Swedish/Finnish studies at the second national language skill level (CEFR B1). Instead, you can study 3 cr Swedish/Finnish at a level appropriate for you. In such cases, you should send a copy of your diploma as an confidential email to the Kaisa House Student Advice at kielikeskus-neuvonta@helsinki.fi.
- If you have not completed the Finnish matriculation examination, International Baccalaureate, European Baccalaureate, Reifeprüfung or Deutsche Internationale Abitur degree, you do not have to complete Swedish/Finnish studies at the second national language skill level (CEFR B1). Instead, you can study 3 cr Swedish/Finnish at a level appropriate for you. NB! This instruction is valid from 1.8.2023. In such cases, you should send a copy of your diploma as an confidential email to the Kaisa House Student Advice at kielikeskus-neuvonta@helsinki.fi.
- Please note that in your degree programme’s curricula there might be a decision that all students are required to complete studies in the second national language. In this case, the studies must be completed on the skill level CEFR B1.
- If you have completed your primary or upper secondary or other secondary education at an educational institution operating in the Åland province, you can seek an exemption from the demonstration of Finnish language proficiency as a second national language. Exemption must be requested by completing the relevant electronic form (in Finnish). Please attach a copy your school diploma to it.
Please take into account that if you do not complete the second native language studies at skill level CEFR B1, you cannot use your degree to demonstrate the second national language proficiency, which is required by the Act 424/2003 and Government Decree 481/2003 (in Finnish) for personnel of public bodies in a bilingual authority and is necessary for your field. If you wish, you may include studies in the second national language in your degree. The University also organises beginner’s courses in Swedish and Finnish.