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Finnish universities of applied sciences (UAS) have reported that over two years the number of applications from foreign nationals dropped from 60 000 to 12 000 — a decrease of 80%. The country has 22 state universities of applied sciences in total, specializing primarily in practice-oriented and vocational education. A couple of examples is:
- Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences received around 25 000 applications from foreign nationals in 2023, and only 1,200 in 2026,
- Centria University of Applied Sciences received 13 000 applications in 2023, and around a thousand in 2026.
The Finnish Immigration Service confirms that growth in the number of foreign students coming to Finland has essentially stalled altogether, not only at universities of applied sciences. In 2025, the country received just 12 565 first residence permit applications for the purpose of study: that is 4% fewer than the previous year and the first decline in the figure since 2022.
What is the reason for the sharp decline?
Experts see the main reasons as follows:
- Graduate employment problems and instability of the national labor market. For many foreign families, studying at a Finnish university — a shared investment; many students work part-time to make ends meet, so difficulties finding work turn many away from higher education in Finland.
- Tightening of migration rules. Higher income requirements, stricter oversight of residence permits, and stricter family reunification rules. From January 2025, applicants from outside the EU/EEA/Switzerland pay €100 to apply, and those wishing to study in a language other than Finnish or Swedish must pay full tuition fees.
- A ban on unofficial educational agents: this is currently a proposal, but if adopted, foreign students will only be able to work with agents that have official agreements with universities, and those agents will be able to charge virtually any fees.
- Increased oversight of foreign students.
All of these factors combined are leading foreign applicants to look at other destinations for higher education.
