Tampere University and TAMK join study voucher trial offering higher education to young people without a study place at no tuition cost to students

Each year, when the results of the joint application process come out, thousands of young people are left without the study place they worked hard to get. A fixed-term study voucher trial begins in Finland in August 2026 to bring relief to the situation and to offer them more opportunities to benefit from gap years.

The objective of this three-year trial, implemented by the Ministry of Education and Culture, is to offer easier access to higher education studies and to help young people find studies that suit them. 

The study voucher is an electronic payment method valued at 30 study credits that a young person can use to pay for open Finnish- or Swedish-language studies at Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences. The voucher is available to under 29-year-olds who have completed their first upper secondary studies (matriculation examination or vocational qualification) after 1 December 2025 and applied for studies in the joint application process in spring 2026 but did not get or did not accept a study place.

A risk-free way to try higher education studies 

The study voucher gives young people the chance to explore different fields of study and, in general, try studying at a higher education institute without taking financial risks or worrying about running out of months of student financial aid.

“The study voucher offers a unique opportunity to get a sneak peek of the studies Tampere University arranges with no cost to the students. The study voucher can be used for getting familiar with the studies in a specific field or fields or completing studies with the intention of gaining a study place at our university, for example, through the Open University route,” says Head of Development Jaana Muttonen from Tampere University.  

According to Vice President for Education Katja Komulainen from TAMK, the study voucher offers young people a new route to higher education.

“The study voucher offers a low-threshold way to experience what studies are like in a university of applied sciences and what is expected of the students. If a student becomes a degree student, the studies completed at Open University of Applied Sciences can be incorporated into their degree,” Komulainen says.

The study voucher will be valid for two years after the results of the joint application round are published and student intake from waitlists is completed. The voucher can be flexibly used to study at one’s own pace.

All services in one place: Opin.fi 

Activate and use the study voucher through the Opin.fi service. Opin.fi is a joint service for Finnish higher education institutions that brings together the open study offerings from universities and universities of applied sciences in one place. Thousands of courses are available through the service, allowing voucher recipients broad opportunities to try studies from different fields and higher education institutions.

You can check if you are entitled to a study voucher in the Opin.fi service starting from 5 August 2026. Logging in to the service is secure with Suomi.fi e-Identification, and young people entitled to the study voucher can start using it immediately by activating it. Students select and enrol in the courses covered by the study voucher directly in the service.

Further information: 

www.opin.fi

Study voucher for Open University | Tampere University 

Study voucher for Open UAS studies | TAMK

Tampere University, Head of Development Jaana Muttonen, jaana.muttonen [at] tuni.fi, +358503439994 

Tampere University of Applied Sciences, Vice President for Education Katja Komulainen, katja.komulainen [at] tuni.fi, +358503640500