Languages

A bi-lingual country

Finland has two official languages, Finnish and Swedish. In most institutions the principal language of instruction is Finnish. However, at Åbo Akademi University, in the Swedish School of Economics and Business Administration (HANKEN), ARCADA Polytechnic and Novia Polytechnic, Åland it’s Swedish. At some institutions of higher education you can study either in Finnish or in Swedish.

In many institutions there are complete degree programmes taught in English (see section ‘Study Programmes Database’).

Finnish and Swedish for International Students

Universities usually have a Language Centre where students may carry out additional language studies, which are often included in degree programmes. All international students are encouraged to participate in Finnish or Swedish language courses. For further details, see the section ‘Studying Finnish’, or contact your host Finnish university directly.

Are Finnish skills required?

You do not need to know any Finnish if you apply to degree programmes taught completely in English.

Studying Finnish before and during your studies may, however, not only help you feel more at home in Finland, it can also be an asset if you plan to find employment in Finland either during or after your studies. Please see the section ‘studying Finnish’.

In order to apply for degree programmes provided in Finnish or Swedish, you need to be fluent in the language of instruction already at the time of applying. The Finnish higher education institutions do not offer any language preparation year options.