According to the Unemployment Security Act, as of the start of the autumn term, young persons aged under 25 years with no education are not entitled to receive unemployment benefit paid on the basis of unemployment, if they have without a justifiable reason failed to apply to at least two study places before the studies start in the autumn.

The obligation to apply cannot be avoided by applying to places for which the applicant is not eligible. It is not necessary to be accepted to the study place, however. It is enough to apply for at least two places suited to you.

The purpose of the law is to encourage young people to look after their own education. Research results show that education is important to finding employment.

In joint application it is possible to apply to several different educational establishments with a single application form. The studies applied for may be training leading to a qualification and providing vocational skills. Joint application to upper secondary studies (vocational institutes and upper secondary schools) will start on 22 February 2022 and end on 22 March 2022. The joint application period to universities is from 16 March 2022 – 30 March 2022. Further information can be found at opintopolku.fi.

Although the joint application in the spring is a good and practical time and way to apply to training, the obligation to apply for study place is not limited according to whether the training applied for is included in joint application or not, or whether the training is applied for in joint application. In practice, training programmes starting in the autumn are applied for in the spring, but because the application period is not determined by the law, it is enough to apply for a study place before the beginning of the autumn term.

So if you fail to apply in the joint application, it is important to notice that in addition to joint application, the educational establishments arrange continuous applications through which you can apply to study different vocational basic and special qualifications. By participating in such applications before the beginning of the autumn term you can fulfil the obligation to apply determined in the Unemployment Security Act.

When considering the studies you need not consider too tight restrictions. All studying is useful, and you can find your own career in surprising places. Good luck with the applications!