In Finland, it is seen that educational politics is solving societal problems related to inequalities concerning genders or socio-economical background by providing equal opportunities for educational paths (Tolonen & Aapola-Kari 2021). The aim of a common comprehensive education in Nordic welfare states has been to ensure that equal opportunities for educational transitions remain throughout the age group (Isopahkala-Bouret et al., 2018). Upper secondary education in Finland is divided to general upper secondary education and vocational education and training (VET). General upper secondary education has traditionally been the predominant route to higher education (HE). However, it is possible to transit to HE also from VET. The educational transition from upper secondary education to HE on is highly competitive, one of the most competitives among the OECD countries, and there are fewer study places than tho applicants who have applied for admission to HE (Kosunen et al 2020). According to OECD, the educational transition from upper secondary education to HE in Finland is slower than the OECD average: only a third of new university students have completed their upper secondary education at the same year they started their studying. In the universities of applied sciences, the corresponding number is less than a fifth (OECD 2019).

During the last two decades, OECD has increased its influence by exercising its power throughout international comparisons and benchmarking which has influence in national education policies (e.g. Volmari 2022; Grek, 2009; Mundy et al., 2016). Therefore, a leaner educational transition has been in the interest of recent education politics in Finland. Finland has conducted three educational reforms in order to promote educational transitions to HE and working life and increase the amount of population taking part in higher education. The reforms are the Higher Education admission reform, reform of vocational education and training (VET reform) and the reform of general upper secondary education (MINEDU 2018a; 2019; 2018b). These reforms have together re-shaped the politics of transition and affected educational transition from upper secondary education to HE. As a result of HE admission reform from 2020, universities started increasingly utilising the final certificate from general upper secondary education (matriculation examination) instead of entrance examinations, while universities of applied sciences started utilising the final certificate both from VET and the general upper secondary education (Government proposal 41/2018). Entrance examinations to universities are still available for students whose academic grades are not the best or VET degree

International and national research literature have repeatedly demonstrated that variation in applicants’ social background and gender are intertwined in the educational transition from upper secondary education to HE and may be involved in producing inequality (Nori 2011; Reay, Davies, David & Ball 2001; Tarabini & Curran, 2015). Selection to HE is not equal in Finland and higher education students can be seen as a selective group (Nori et al., 2021).  What is not yet clear is the impact of these reforms on higher education applicants’ positions in Finland. Applicants have different premises when moving on from upper secondary education to HE is depending on their academic success and desired place to study and opens up different prospects of operation to these applicants. Our research question is what kinds of subject positions are available to the HE applicants in relation to the reformed politics of transitions when moving from upper secondary education to HE in Finland after the implementations of three educational reforms? Within this study, subject positioning is defined as a process where students’ understanding of their possibilities are shaped in relation to the social and discursive practices of education (e.g., Davies & Harré 1990, Davies 1995, Foucault 1982, Niemi & Mietola 2017).

The data consists of 22 semi-structured thematic interviews and data production took place in January and February of 2021. Interviewees were either first-year students or young adults who did not secure a study position in HE. All the interviewees have graduated from general upper secondary education. They lived in different parts of Finland and had applied for a place in various fields of HE. Their primary goal in this data was to secure a position in universities instead of universities of applied sciences. At the time, Finland was still closed due to the pandemic of Covid-19. The individual interviews were held remotely via zoom and each interview was from 40 minutes to 1.5 hours. The audio was recorded with a separate recorder and transcribed into text files that were anonymised for the analysis. The analytical process is still ongoing.

The premise is that applicants have to use carefully selected tactics in their upper secondary studies in order to secure success in selection to HE. These tactics vary depending on the position that they take or are able to take in relation to the politics of transition.

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