62,900 first-graders join schools this year

Schools will be opened this week in most of the municipalities in the country with about 62,900 first-graders enrolling, said sources at the National Board of Education.

About 60,000 pupils will begin seven-grade this year, while about 35,300 students will join upper secondary schools.

Approximately 46,200 students will be enrolled in vocational training, 25,900 will begin vocational skills demonstration training, and about 18,800 students will begin apprenticeship training.

First-graders this autumn are estimated to be a few percentage points more, and the number of primary school pupils is estimated to be 5 per cent less than two years ago.

The total number of students at primary schools is estimated to be roughly the same as in the year 2015.

This autumn, 366,000 pupils will be enrolled in class one to class six and 175,000 will be studying in grade 7-9.

An estimated 3,980 pupils will join Swedish language primary schools. The number is a few per cent more than in 2015.

The number of students in upper secondary schools has fallen steadily in recent years; however, the decline is no longer visible.