The vocational education and training reform is one of the top development projects of the Finnish government. It reforms the financial system of vocational education and training, its steering and operating models, vocational qualifications and the network of education providers. In the reform, regulations concerning vocational education and training will be reformed by combining the current laws on vocational education and training and vocational adult education into a single new law. The reform will come into effect on 1 January 2018.

It is necessary to reform vocational education and training because future working life requires new kind of competence and professional skills; working life will change, professions will appear and disappear, technology will develop, earning logics will be renewed, the students' needs will become more individualised and competence will be updated through one's entire career path. The reform is crucial also because there will be less money available for education than before.

Key principles of the reform are competence-based and customer-oriented education. In addition, learning and individual study paths on work places will be increased and regulations dismantled. Broadened qualifications will be able to respond more flexibly to the fast changing skills needs of working life.

Education providers, permissions and financing

As part of the vocational education and training reform, a development programme on the education providers' network will be run. Its goal is to ensure that all education providers will have adequate professional and financial operational prerequisites to carry out education as is legislated. Also the steering and regulation system will be reformed. In the future, all vocational education and training will be regulated through a single authorisation lisence. The financing system of vocational education and training will be renewed into one entity.

Qualifications and admissions

In the vocational education and training reform, a qualifications reform will be carried out by broadening qualifications and by reducing the number of different qualifications. Applying to vocational eductaion and training from 1 January 2018 onwards will take place flexibly in a continuous application process throughout the year. The national joint application arranged each spring is meant for those who complete their basic education and do not yet possess a vocational qualification. The student can apply and be admitted to the education throughout the year, when needed.

Learning environments, on-the-job learning and education export

The vocational education and training reform will renew and digitalise the operating models and learning environments of education providers. In order to achieve this, a development programme was launched to help reform the operating models of vocational education and training into competence-based and customer-oriented models, intensify and make the education providers' activities more flexible, slim down administration and to strengthen the knowledge and skills of the teaching staff. In addition, the reform will increase and diversify studying on work places and equalise the customer-oriented service processes of education arranged on work places.

The education export of vocational education and training will be promoted by dismatling regulations.

Read on the Ministry of Education and Culture's website what will change for students, education providers and for work life through the reform!