Ylioppilastutkinto

Overview

The Ylioppilastutkinto (Matriculation Examination) is Finland's national school-leaving examination. It is taken at the end of general upper secondary school (lukio) and checks whether a student has learned what the upper secondary syllabus requires and has reached the level of maturity expected of a graduate. It is organised by Finland's Matriculation Examination Board and held twice a year, in spring and autumn, on the same days in every general upper secondary school in the country.

Passing the required tests, together with completing the general upper secondary syllabus, gives general eligibility to apply to Finnish universities and other higher education. The exam is currently conducted in Finnish or Swedish; an English-language version is planned, with English-medium upper secondary study tracks starting from autumn 2026, but the matriculation tests themselves are expected to be available in English only from autumn 2028.

Who can apply

• Students completing the general upper secondary school syllabus, once they have finished the compulsory studies in the subject they want to be tested in.

• People who have already completed general upper secondary school.

• Holders of, or students working toward, a vocational upper secondary qualification. A vocational qualification of at least 180 competence points that required at least two and a half years of study lets a candidate sit the Matriculation Examination without extra studies. A shorter vocational qualification requires some additional general upper secondary studies, as set by the Matriculation Examination Board.

Exam pattern

A candidate must take a minimum of five tests. The mother tongue and literature test is compulsory for everyone; the other four (or more) tests are chosen from the remaining subject groups. At least one of these chosen tests must be at advanced level.

The humanities and natural sciences tests run on two separate test days: psychology, philosophy, history, physics and biology on one day; the religion and worldview subjects, social studies, chemistry, geography and health education on the other. In physics, chemistry and biology, a candidate answers a maximum of seven out of eleven questions; in the other humanities and natural sciences subjects, a maximum of five out of nine. Each exam period runs over nine test days, with every school in the country testing the same subject on the same day.

Marking and results

Each test is graded on a seven-step scale, from best to fail:

Grade boundaries are not fixed in advance. The Matriculation Examination Board sets them separately for each exam period and each test, mainly using the Average of Standardised Total Scores (ASTS) method, which ranks candidates nationally. Roughly 5% of candidates are awarded Laudatur, 15% Eximia, 20% Magna, 20% Cum laude, 20% Lubenter, 15% Approbatur and 5% Improbatur on a given test, though the exact cut-offs vary by period.

A candidate who has already passed a test may retake it to try for a better grade, with no limit on the number of retakes and no time limit on when a passed test can be retaken. If the retake happens before the Matriculation Examination Certificate is issued, the better grade is simply recorded. If the certificate has already been issued, a retake that improves the grade results in a new certificate being issued.

For 2026, the fee is €38 per test for the spring examination and €41 per test for the autumn examination. Candidates still entitled to free basic/upper-secondary education under Finland's Compulsory Education Act can take their first five tests free of charge.

Important dates

For 2026:

• The spring examination period runs mainly in the second half of March and the first part of April, over nine test days.

• The autumn examination period runs mainly in the second half of September, over nine test days.

• Enrolment for the spring examination closes by 1 December of the preceding year; enrolment for the autumn examination closes by 5 June.

• Results are released by 25 May for the spring examination and by 23 November for the autumn examination.

After the exam

A candidate who passes every required test and completes the general upper secondary syllabus is awarded the Matriculation Examination Certificate. The certificate states the completion date, the language of the examination, and that completing the examination gives general eligibility for higher education; it also records the qualification's placement at level 4 of Finland's National Framework for Qualifications and of the European Qualifications Framework. The certificate can be retrieved digitally through the national My Studyinfo service.

This general eligibility lets a graduate apply to Finnish universities and universities of applied sciences. Many degree programmes also award extra admission points on top of general eligibility, based on which subjects, test levels and grades the applicant achieved in the Matriculation Examination, alongside their own entrance tests or other admission criteria.

Preparation tips

• Decide early which subject group tests to combine with the compulsory mother tongue and literature test, since at least one chosen test must be at advanced level.

• Plan tests across both the spring and autumn periods rather than everything in one sitting, especially the humanities and natural sciences subjects, which are split across two different test days.

• Practise past tests under real time limits, since the humanities and natural sciences and language tests have fixed question-answering limits (for example, seven of eleven questions in physics, chemistry and biology).

• If an early attempt at a test is only a pass, remember it can be retaken later with no time limit to try for a better grade.

FAQs