Perceptions of Upper Secondary Education: Adult Students in Vocational Education 2022

The survey charted the perceptions and opinions of adult students in vocational upper secondary education regarding upper secondary education in Finland. Main themes included, among others, reasons behind the respondents' choice of education, perceptions of how general and vocational upper secondary education are appreciated, and opinions on studying. The study was commissioned by the Ministry of Education and Culture and Skills Finland. First, adult students were asked what field they were studying and how certain they were that they would pursue further studies at some point after their current studies. In addition, students were asked how different factors affected their choice of upper secondary education (e.g. wanting to have a job with good pay, location of the school/education facility, parents' opinions). Finally, the perceived usefulness of the respondents' studies in their future as well as their satisfaction in their education were examined with some attitudinal statements (e.g. whether they thought their upper secondary education would be useful in their future work and whether they would choose a different path of education if they could reapply). Background variables included the respondent's gender, age group, region of residence (NUTS3), municipality of residence, highest level of education, occupation group and whether they had ever been unemployed.