University of Vaasa develops functionally bilingual teaching to strengthen international students’ Finnish skills and employment prospects

Working life in the Vaasa region is highly international and multilingual, yet international students’ transition into the Finnish labour market is often slowed by insufficient Finnish language skills. The aim of the functionally bilingual model is to provide students with stronger opportunities to learn Finnish and to use the language meaningfully during their studies and future careers.

– Functionally bilingual teaching creates situations where language and subject content are intertwined. This allows students to develop their Finnish skills as a natural part of their overall learning process, says Marjut Männistö, University Teacher of Finnish.

The two‑year Kielipolku (Language Pathway) project, coordinated by the Language Centre Linginno and funded with €300,000 by the Ministry of Education and Culture, began at the start of the year. In addition to the University of Vaasa, two other universities also received funding.

The model will be piloted in the University of Vaasa’s English‑taught Bachelor’s Programme in Business Administration (BBA). The programme includes 10 credits of compulsory Finnish language studies, after which students may continue with optional Finnish courses. Finnish studies run parallel with the functionally bilingual approach, offering students a wide range of opportunities to strengthen their language skills.

Pilot to test new solutions in 2026–2027

In Finland, functionally bilingual education has so far been developed and implemented mainly in nursing programmes within universities of applied sciences. The Kielipolku project builds on this earlier development and research to create a model suitable for university‑level education. In 2026–2027, the model will be piloted in the BBA programme, and students from other degree programmes will also be invited to participate.

The University of Vaasa’s model is built around four complementary elements that together support Finnish language learning and active use. Students begin their studies by creating a personalised language study plan (kieli‑HOPS) together with a Finnish language teacher. Clear learning goals are set, and progress is monitored throughout the degree. Finnish is also integrated into disciplinary studies so that students learn both subject content and language at the same time. A third element is language‑aware work placement, where students are supported in using Finnish and developing their language skills in workplace settings. The aim is to strengthen language-aware practices across the entire academic community. Staff receive training and guidance on how to implement functionally bilingual courses and how to support language‑aware work placements. The project also develops a Language Buddy scheme, providing students with informal opportunities to practise Finnish in everyday interactions.

The project further develops co‑teaching between subject teachers and Finnish language teachers as a new form of collaboration.

– We want to build a model in which language becomes a natural part of teaching and learning processes. Our aim is to support students holistically so that their Finnish language skills can develop alongside their subject studies, says Susanna Mantila, University Teacher of Finnish and English.

The goal of the project is to create a scalable model that can be used both across the University of Vaasa’s programmes and nationally in the development of bilingual university teaching.