Student

A learner studying in other than pre-primary or comprehensive education.

Comment
Students include persons studying in general upper secondary school, vocational upper secondary education and training, tertiary education and liberal adult education.
Adults studying in comprehensive education are also referred to as students.
In Statistics Finland's statistics the concept refers to upper secondary and tertiary level students.
In Statistics Finland's statistics students are required to be registered at an educational institution.

In the statistics on adult education of educational institutions students refer to the students registered at educational institutions during the calendar year and attending education not leading to a qualification or degree. A person is included (as participant) in the gross number of students from each education he/she studies. Thus a student can be included more than once in the number of students in one or more educational institutions during the calendar year. Net number of students means that a person is included as a student only once in one educational institution during the calendar year.

In the statistics on students and qualifications of educational institutions, on progress of studies, on employment of students and on transition from school to further education and work, students refer to the students attending upper secondary general, vocational, university of applied sciences education and university education leading to a qualification or degree and registered at educational institutions on 20 September and, since 2004, in respect of preparatory education for a skills examination and apprenticeship training, between 1 January and 31 December of the statistical reference year. In the statistics on students and qualifications of educational institutions, students also include comprehensive school students according to the situation on 20 September. Up to 2001, data on students in university education describe the situation on 31 December and include attainers of a degree in autumn.

A student is an over 15-year-old person outside the labour force who is studying full-time (or on holiday from an educational institution).

Students in vocational education refer to students who are registered at the educational institution during the calendar year studying in initial vocational education, further vocational education and specialist vocational education.

In the statistics on upper secondary general education, a student of upper secondary general education is a student who is completing the full upper secondary general school syllabus (matriculation examination) or corresponding education (IB examination, Reifeprüfung examination, EB examination or Gymnasieexamen examination).

Data on the number of students attending upper secondary general education describe the situation on 20 September.

In the statistics on discontinuation of education, when discontinuation is examined in the academic year XXXX-XXXX+1, students refer to the students attending post-comprehensive education leading to a qualification or degree and registered at educational institutions on 20 September XXXX with the exception of the following groups:
1) Persons with an incomplete personal ID
2)Persons having been reported as students in September XXXX but having already completed the education concerned before September XXXX
3) Educational institutions abolished in the years XXXX-XXXX+1
4) Education reported by an educational institution as being adult education
5) Students having started upper secondary general education or vocational education studies five years earlier than in XXXX
6) Post secondary and vocational tertiary level education
7) Preparatory education for a skills examination
8) Apprenticeship training
9) Vocational special needs education institutions
10) Students of polytechnic Master's degree
11) Students of licentiate, doctorate and medical specialist's degrees.

A student or a pupil is a person over 15 who is studying full-time in an educational institution and is neither gainfully employed nor unemployed.

When the population is classified by socio-economic status, the lower age limit is 16.

Data on studying have been obtained, among other sources, from Statistics Finland's student register. People in labour market training during the last week of the year are also counted as students. Persons aged 15 are also counted as students. Pupils aged under 15 belong to the main activity class "0-14 year-olds".

In certain examinations all persons studying in post-comprehensive educational institutes can be counted as students. Data on students have been collected according to the situation in September. However, during the last week of the year the main activity of the persons concerned may employed, unemployed or conscript.

In the statistics on university education, students refer to the students attending education leading to a degree. Students attending education leading to a degree comprise students studying for lower and upper tertiary degrees, licentiate degrees, doctorate degrees and vocational further degrees. Since statistical reference year 1993, students studying separate educational science subjects for a subject teacher's qualification have been included in statistics on education not leading to a degree.

As of 2002, data on students describe the situation of 20 September and include students having enrolled at universities during the autumn term. Up to 2001, the data on students described the situation on 31 December.

In the statistics on providers of education and educational institutions, students refer to students studying at educational institutions within the school system at the time of the inquiry. The time of the inquiry is the week containing the 20th of September for study circle centres, the entire autumn term for folk high schools (estimate of number of students) and 20 September for other educational institutions.