From 24 to 26 March 2026, partners of the CG-International project gathered in Finland for the project’s first study visit, hosted by Omnia Education Partnerships (OEP). The three-day mobility offered participants an inspiring opportunity to explore the Finnish career guidance system and reflect on how its practices can strengthen vocational education and training (VET) centres across the Western Balkans.
The study visit brought together all project partners from across Europe to exchange experiences, learn from the Finnish model, and reflect on how career guidance can be strengthened within their own institutions.
Throughout the visit, participants explored how career guidance can support learners not only at key decision-making moments, but as a continuous and integrated part of education and lifelong learning.
What Makes the Finnish Career Guidance System Unique?
The Finnish approach demonstrated how career guidance can be embedded across institutions, services, and professional roles. During the study visit, partners discovered several key aspects of the Finnish model:
- Career guidance is recognised as a lifelong right, supported by strong legislation and close cooperation between education, employment, and social services.
- Career education starts early and is integrated as a core subject in schools, helping students develop self-awareness, decision-making skills, and career management competences.
- Guidance services are accessible and integrated throughout the learner journey.
- Guidance counsellors are highly trained professionals with specialised qualifications.
The visit provided practical examples of how career guidance can become a shared responsibility across schools, teachers, counsellors, municipalities, and employment services.
Day 1 – Understanding the Foundations of Career Guidance in Finland
The first day focused on introducing participants to the Finnish career guidance framework and creating a collaborative learning environment among partners.
Through presentations and interactive activities, participants explored how career guidance in Finland is supported by legislation and closely connected to education, employment, and student wellbeing services. The group also visited Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences to learn more about how career education and guidance are implemented in Finnish schools and how counsellors are trained.
The sessions offered participants a clear overview of the Finnish system and inspired reflection on how similar approaches could be adapted within their own institutions.
Day 2 – Innovation, Collaboration, and Action Planning
The second day combined practical inspiration with strategic planning.
Participants explored innovative learning environments such as the A Grid startup community, Aalto University, and the Omnia Makerspace, discovering how collaboration between education, entrepreneurship, and local communities can support creativity and career development.
The afternoon focused on workshops dedicated to institutional action plans, where partners reflected on their own strengths and challenges and began designing practical strategies to improve career guidance services in their VET centres.
The day marked an important step from observation to concrete action and future implementation.
Day 3 – Career Guidance as a Connected Lifelong Service
The final day focused on the different professional roles involved in career guidance and the importance of integrated support systems.
Participants learned how study counsellors, career counsellors, and teachers collaborate to support students throughout their educational journeys. The sessions highlighted how career guidance is embedded in everyday educational practice and linked to personalised learning pathways and competence development.
The programme also explored the role of municipal employment services in supporting both unemployed and employed citizens through free counselling and guidance services.
Together, the sessions demonstrated how career guidance in Finland functions as a connected and lifelong service linking education, employment, and social support.
A Valuable Learning Experience for All Partners
The study visit concluded with a final reflection and evaluation session, where participants revisited the expectations and ideas shared at the beginning of the mobility and reflected on the knowledge and inspiration they would bring back to their own institutions.
The feedback from participants was highly positive, confirming the value of the experience and generating enthusiasm for the next mobility planned in the Netherlands.
The CG-International study visit in Finland demonstrated that effective career guidance is not a standalone service, but a continuous, collaborative, and learner-centred process that can empower individuals throughout their educational and professional journeys.
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