Metropolia’s New Occupational Therapy Degree Programme Responds to Finland’s Growing Need for Skilled Professionals
Metropolia University of Applied Sciences will launch a new Bachelor’s Degree Programme in Occupational Therapy in autumn 2027. It will be Finland’s first occupational therapy degree programme taught in English and will follow Metropolia’s bilingual TOKAKO model, integrating Finnish language learning into professional studies. The programme responds to Finland’s growing need for internationally minded professionals and offers a new pathway to becoming a licensed occupational therapist in Finland.
Finland’s health care and social services sector is changing rapidly. The population is ageing, the need for skilled professionals is growing, and clients come from increasingly diverse backgrounds. At the same time, many professionals, particularly in the public sector, are approaching retirement.
Occupational therapy is among the fields that need more professionals who are prepared to work in diverse environments and with people of different ages and cultural backgrounds.
Metropolia is responding to this need by launching its new English-taught Bachelor’s Degree Programme in Occupational Therapy. Applications will open for the first time in the January 2027 Joint Application, with studies beginning in autumn 2027. Approximately 35 students will be admitted to the first intake.
The programme is designed particularly for international students coming to Finland to study as well as applicants already living in Finland whose first language is not Finnish. The Bachelor’s degree comprises 210 ECTS credits and is designed to be completed in 3.5 years.
Finland’s first English-taught degree programme in Occupational Therapy
The new degree programme will follow Metropolia’s established TOKAKO model, in which Finnish language learning is integrated into professional studies from the very beginning. Within Metropolia’s health care and social services education, the model will also be used in the Social Services and Elderly Care degree programmes, with collaboration planned between the three programmes.
A similar bilingual approach has already been successfully used for several years in Metropolia’s Nursing programme. The model has also been applied in Physiotherapy and Biomedical Laboratory Science since 2025.
The aim is not simply to learn Finnish, but to learn to use the language as part of the future profession. Finnish language studies are integrated into occupational therapy studies, helping students develop essential professional vocabulary and the communication skills needed in Finnish working life.
Learning Finnish in a professional context supports students in making the transition to the Finnish labour market after graduation. Stronger language skills also make it easier to work as an occupational therapist and manage everyday life in Finland, supporting international students who wish to build their future in Finland after completing their degree.
More than 55 years of experience in Occupational Therapy education
Although the English-taught degree programme is new, occupational therapy education has a long history at Metropolia.
Jasu Forss, Head of the Occupational Therapy Degree Programme, highlights the strong foundation behind the new programme:
“Metropolia and its predecessor institutions have been educating occupational therapists for more than 55 years. Ours is the oldest and one of the largest occupational therapy degree programmes in Finland.”
During the past ten years, 632 students have graduated from Metropolia’s Finnish-language Occupational Therapy programme. Once the English-taught programme has been launched, the annual number of graduates is expected to exceed 100. This is also influenced by the increased intake in the Finnish-language programme in recent years.
More than five decades of collaboration with working life, an experienced teaching team and a continuously developing curriculum provide a strong foundation for Metropolia’s new international Occupational Therapy degree programme.
Learning by doing
Occupational therapy is fundamentally about working with people, which is why practical learning plays a central role in the programme.
The blended learning format combines independent study with intensive on-campus study days a few times a month. Students largely study theoretical content independently before coming to campus, allowing contact days to focus on applying what they have learned in practice.
At Metropolia’s modern Myllypuro Campus in Helsinki, students develop practical occupational therapy skills through workshops, simulations and a variety of hands-on exercises.
The degree also includes several work placements and numerous projects carried out in collaboration with Metropolia’s working-life partners and other organisations.
“Students have opportunities to build networks with potential future employers already during their studies, which can make the transition into working life easier after graduation,” Forss emphasises.
Finland needs new occupational therapy professionals
Occupational therapists have traditionally worked in hospitals, health centres and rehabilitation services, but today the profession offers a much wider range of career opportunities.
Graduates can work, for example, in mental health services, services for older people, with children and young people, in organisations and associations, in specialist and development roles, or as entrepreneurs. Work ability assessment, wellbeing services and preventive work are also opening up new opportunities.
According to Forss, one of the strengths of an Occupational Therapy degree is its versatility: graduates can work with people of different ages and backgrounds, supporting their ability to participate in meaningful activities and manage everyday life.
The profession is also continuously evolving, and occupational therapy expertise is increasingly being applied beyond traditional health care and social services settings. Entrepreneurship can provide another pathway for building an individual career.
An international degree for building your future
Forss believes that the future of health care and social services requires professionals from diverse backgrounds who understand both international perspectives and the Finnish operating environment.
Students who meet the language proficiency and other professional requirements for practising the profession can pursue a career as an occupational therapist in Finland after graduation.
The new Occupational Therapy degree programme therefore offers international students an opportunity to build their professional future while responding to Finland’s growing need for skilled professionals.
“Metropolia’s Occupational Therapy degree is approved by the World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT), which means that the education also provides a strong foundation for working as an occupational therapist internationally.”