Tekijät

• Research Foundation for Studies and Education (Otus)

Asiasanat

education, educational certificates, graduates, higher education institutions, qualifications, tertiary education, upper secondary education

Sisällön kuvaus

The survey charted the reasons and factors behind higher education students having multiple rights to study in tertiary education in Finland. In this study, the notion of multiple rights to study covers simultaneous, consecutive or unconnected (at several points in time) rights to study in higher education institutions. The study was funded by the National Union of University Students in Finland (SYL).

First, the respondents' social background was charted with statements concerning, for example, whether their parents had always encouraged them to study, whether their relatives had higher education degrees and whether their family thought that studying in higher education required exceptional talent. The respondents were asked about their reasons for starting their first higher education studies (e.g. it was important for their parents that they applied to higher education, they didn't have a clear idea of what they wanted to study, their friends applied to the same higher education institution).

Next, the respondents' reasons for acquiring a second right to study were examined. Reasons relating to studying included, for example, feeling that the first studies were too difficult and finding a more interesting field of study. Reasons relating to working life and employment included, among others, preferring to be a student over being unemployed and wanting to develop vocational or professional skills. Reasons relating to family, housing and life in general included, for example, feeling a strong calling to the new field of study and wanting to study in the same place where a spouse or partner lived.

Finally, the respondents were asked whether they had more than two rights to study in higher education, how many study credits they had received during their entire higher education studies, and whether they had at present or in the past had a study right for postgraduate studies (doctoral studies) or in a higher education institution abroad. The respondents were also asked to what extent they agreed or disagreed with statements concerning various reasons for applying to higher education (e.g. supporting the welfare and well-being of others, parents' disappointment in not acquiring a higher education degree).

Background variables included the respondent's gender, age group (categorised based on year of birth) and information on the respondent's upper secondary education. Additionally, the highest level of education of the respondent's parents as well as their occupation during the respondent's last year in basic education were charted.