TaiYo’s vice chairs and board members Sofía and Baraka – both students from outside of EU and EEA countries – have written a blog post raising awareness about the challenges international students face.
Over the last few months, one of the challenges within all universities in Finland is the current situation of international students. It is becoming more difficult to access education if coming from abroad and particularly from outside EU and EEA. What is concerning is that this increased difficulty is through filters that seem to be more focused on leaving out people because of their economic and ethnical background, than skills, experience or motivation.
For an international student, studying abroad means making a big investment. Uniarts is a well-known institution: many of us dreamt of studying in one of the three academies and we believe that coming here is worth the effort. The cost of living is often significantly higher here than in our home countries and students from outside EU/EEA additionally have to pay tuition fees. The possibility of applying for a 50% tuition fee waiver was offered for the last time to incoming students in 2025, being one of the last economic support available in which many still depend on for the continuation of their studies. Due to the current employment situation in Finland, relying on part-time work is not always a realistic option. What we’re coping with is a system where financial uncertainty threatens the completion of studies, and constant stress has also an effect on students’ well-being. Additionally, everyday life presents several challenges. Accessing healthcare can be particularly difficult, and many students still have to deal with paperwork for various administrative processes months after arrival.
With this, we aim to bring awareness about the mental health state of international students when navigating financial pressure, uncertainty, demanding academic schedules, difficulties when learning the language, the challenges of adapting to a new environment, and how sustainable all of this is in the long term.
Some programs at Uniarts are specifically meant to bring in international students and they are taught in English. At the same time, we come to a university that has diversity, equality and equity in its core values, presenting itself as a welcoming space and supportive environment. The current Finnish government’s decisions will limit access to international talent from outside Europe, making arts education accessible only to a privileged minority. This will result in the loss of the cultural richness we currently have; we have many examples in all the projects that students have outside the classrooms, and how much these have added to the cultural life in the city and in Finland. But we also want to highlight that diversity should not be seen and valued only as an asset, but it comes with the social responsibility of truly supporting and caring for the people who embody it.
We are aware that in the current political and economic situation, local students’ stability has also been threatened. We believe that it is necessary to be mindful of each other instead of living in different worlds and truly build a support network. It is important to remember that every student at Uniarts has gone through a careful admissions process. Everyone who has been accepted brings value to the community, has the ability and skills, and has earned their place here. Something that is also worth bringing to the conversation is that when a student is under financial pressure, it is often other students who are also struggling who are the first ones to offer support from their own limited resources. While solidarity at the grassroots level is powerful and necessary, this dynamic should not be the default solution to structural problems. Support should not rely on those who are already disadvantaged but be strengthened by the institutions that bring us together.
This support could be shown with concrete actions like with building strategies for integration in the first month after orientation through courses and student activities in which students can participate without interfering with the regular schedule, as well as a structured recruitment support for field-relevant internships during studies and after graduation that can also help with the concerns about future opportunities.
While TaiYo is committed to supporting our international student community, we recognize that true change requires solidarity across the entire Finnish higher education and cultural sectors. We call on other student unions, faculty members, university leadership, and cultural institutions to join us in advocating for a system that values international artistic talent not just in rhetoric but in policy. The challenges we face are not unique to Uniarts; they are systemic across Finnish universities. We are aware from The Finnish Transparency Register that there is advocacy being done for international students, and we look forward to knowing more about it, and communicating it to the students. Collective action, shared resources, and unified advocacy can amplify our voices far more effectively than isolated efforts. We invite our colleagues across the sector to share their experiences and join us in demanding that Finland’s commitment to equality, education, and the arts extends fully to those who have traveled here to contribute to these values.
Victoria Sofia Gasca,
Vice Chair, TaiYo Board 2026
Baraka Issabu,
Vice Chair, TaiYo Board 2026
Suomi 
Svenska 
English (UK)