Education and research
Finland in Figures is an information package about Finland and Finns.
On this page
- Population aged 15 or over by level of education
- Population by level of education
- Students and qualifications attained
- Employment of graduates one year after graduation
- Research and development expenditure
Population aged 15 or over by level of education
Source: Statistics Finland, Educational structure of population
Population aged 15 or over by level of education (xlsx)
Updated: 15.9.2025
Population by level of education
| 2023 | % | 2024 | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population aged 15 or over | 4 771 619 | 100 | 4 815 684 | 100 |
| Population with educational qualification, total | 3 581 780 | 75,1 | 3 616 734 | 75,1 |
| - Upper secondary education | 1 913 688 | 40,1 | 1 917 553 | 39,8 |
| - Post-secondary non-tertiary education | 54 730 | 1,1 | 57 845 | 1,2 |
| - Short-cycle tertiary education | 403 701 | 8,5 | 397 499 | 8,3 |
| - Bachelor's or equivalent level | 620 512 | 13,0 | 635 900 | 13,2 |
| - Master's or equivalent level | 534 078 | 11,2 | 551 833 | 11,5 |
| - Doctoral or equivalent level | 55 071 | 1,2 | 56 104 | 1,2 |
| Only basic education | 1 189 839 | 24,9 | 1 198 950 | 24,9 |
Source: Statistics Finland, educational structure of population
Population by level of education (xlsx)
Updated: 15.9.2024
Students and qualifications attained
| Sector of education | Students 1) | Qualifications attained | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 2023 | 2022 | 2023 | |
| Pre-primary education | 60 872 | 52 271 | - | - |
| Comprehensive education | 557 954 | 558 138 | 61 746 | 62 337 |
| General upper secondary education | 109 604 | 110 597 | 30 875 | 31 363 |
| Vocational education | 341 629 | 347 730 | 68 295 | 68 470 |
| University of applied sciences education |
163 993 | 170 775 | 28 534 | 30 957 |
| University education | 163 681 | 168 037 | 30 801 | 33 418 |
| Total | 1 397 733 | 1 407 548 | 220 251 | 226 545 |
Corrected on 5 May 2025. The corrections are indicated in red.
1) Students in education leading to qualifications. The data for vocational education relate to a calendar year. The data for other educational sectors describe the situation on 20 September.
Source: Statistics Finland, students and qualifications
Students and qualifications attained (xlsx)
Updated: 5.5.2025
Employment of graduates one year after graduation, 2023
Source: Statistics Finland, transition from school to further education and work
Employment of graduates one year after graduation (xlsx)
Updated: 5.3.2025
Research and development expenditure
Source: Statistics Finland, research and development
Research and development expenditure (xlsx)
Updated: 5.12.2024
Main topic: Education and research
More statistical figures in the StatFin database
Finland in Figures only includes the key figures on Finland and Finns. You can find more figures on various sectors of society in the easy-to-use StatFin database.
The database also provides regional data, such as the population of municipalities.
Last updated 15 Sep 2025