Developing your competence

By developing your skills, you can maintain your professional competence or learn new skills. By studying, you can improve your chances of getting a job or you can study in a completely new field.

There are many ways to develop your skills during unemployment. On this page you can learn about the different opportunities to study while receiving unemployment benefits.

How to develop your competencies?

Labour market training

With labour market training, you can develop or supplement your skills and improve your chances of getting a job. Labour market training training is usually arranged for sectors with a shortage of workers.

Labour market training can consists of parts of basic, vocational or specialist vocational qualification, further education or training, entrepreneurship training or integration training.

Labour market training is free for students, but in some training programs the students may need to pay for government fees or card fees. During labour market training, you will be paid unemployment benefit. Labour market training is adult training and is intended for people over 20 years of age.

Browse labour market trainings in Päijät-Häme: Labour market training (Job Market Finland)

Apprenticeship agreement

Through apprenticeship training, you can study and gain work experience at the same time. In an apprenticeship, the student is in an employment contract with an employer and they can completes their studies while working.

Through an apprenticeship, you can complete any vocational qualification or part of a qualification. The apprenticeship can be completed in one or more different workplaces. In addition to learning at the workplace, the apprenticeship includes theoretical studies at an educational institution.

An apprenticeship is usually free of charge for the student, and during the training, they are paid a salary.

For more information, please see: Apprenticeship (oppisopimus.fi)

Independent studies

As a job seeker, you may be able to study on your own initiative with unemployment benefit if the studies promote your employment. Independent studies are studies in which the educational institution decides on the student selection. The studies must be full-time.

You can receive unemployment benefit for independent studies if your employment specialist estimates that the studies will significantly improve your chances of finding employment. Independent studies must be agreed with the employment specialist before the study begins. Employement benefits are not granted for studies that have already begun.

For more information, please see: Studying while unemployed (Job Market Finland)

Short-term study supported by unemployment benefit

As a job seeker, you may be able to study for a short period of time (up to 6 months) with unemployment benefits. The studies must contribute to your employment. Short-term studies are intended for job seekers over 25 years of age.

Discuss the possibility of short-term studies with your employment specialist. During short-term studies, you are obliged to apply for and accept work and participate in any employment-promoting services.