For the student

Duration and extension of studies

The general upper secondary school syllabus is usually completed in three years. Each school year has been divided into five periods. The general upper secondary school syllabus will be completed in three years, when the students accumulate an average of 12 credits per period. When aiming at completing the studies in a longer or shorter time than three years, it always requires planning the studies with the homeroom teacher or guidance counsellor. 

Completing the general upper secondary school studies requires at least 150 credits, and there must not be too many failed study units. For those graduating in spring, all the study units must be completed by the end of April, and for those graduating at Christmas by the end of October. Of the school-specific study units of Tammerkoski Upper Secondary School, only the study units the student has passed can be included in the general upper secondary school syllabus. 

For the studies to be considered full-time studies, the student must accumulate at least six credits in each period and at least 40 credits in each school year (30 credits in the last year). 

The general upper secondary school syllabus has been successfully completed when:

• the student has accumulated at least 150 credits, including 94/102 credits in compulsory study units (depending on the mathematics syllabus) and at least 20 credits in national optional study units 
• the syllabus does not contain too many failed study units (4) 
• at least six credits have been completed in visual arts and music (study unit 1 or 2 in visual arts, study unit 1 or 2 in music)
• the student studying according to the specific educational mission curriculum has completed basic studies amounting to 22 credits and advanced studies amounting to at least 4 credits in the visual arts and design programme.

General upper secondary school study units 

The general upper secondary school subjects are divided into study units. The number of study units differs from subject to subject. The study units are either national compulsory, national optional or school-specific optional courses. 

The compulsory study units must be completed by everyone before graduating from general upper secondary school (with the exception of students in the visual arts and design programme being able to reduce study units from the general upper secondary school syllabus). Students can choose national and school-specific optional study units according to their own interests. The final accumulation of study units must include at least 20 national optional study units. The subject of religion or ethics is selected in accordance with the possible religious group to which the student belongs. 

The national optional study units are advanced study units directly related to compulsory study units, and their contents are defined in the national core curriculum. The compulsory and national optional study units are part of the syllabus to be managed in the matriculation examination. 

The school-specific optional study units expand the contents of different subjects. They are methodological study units common for different subjects. 

The general upper secondary school syllabus may also include study units completed in other educational institutions that can be considered suitable for the general upper secondary school curriculum. The principal decides whether studies completed in other educational institutions are approved as part of general upper secondary school studies.