Thoughts of autumn 2024 graduates

Felix Lowe is graduating from Espoon yhteislyseo upper secondary school. He has plenty of praise for his teachers. His future plans include university studies in either Finland or the United Kingdom.

Graduation marks a significant change. “Graduation is a relief,” Felix remarks. Throughout his education, the daily routine has remained much the same – school from Monday to Friday followed by homework. “Now life is partly in my own hands. There’s no single path I must take," Felix observes.

Since completing his matriculation exams, Felix has been looking after his one-year-old cousin as a temporary job. He already had experience in childcare from looking after his younger siblings.

At Espoon yhteislyseo upper secondary school, Felix particularly appreciated his teachers. “The philosophy and history teachers were especially good – friendly and skilled at teaching,” Felix praises. He adds that the philosophy teachers significantly influenced his enjoyment of the subject; he found he could engage in meaningful debates with them.

Felix’s favourite subjects in upper secondary school were philosophy and religious studies. His results have earned him a place at the University of Helsinki to study theology and religious studies. However, he also plans to apply to study abroad. Felix holds British citizenship, and he finds King’s College London particularly appealing, though he notes: “Rental prices in London are incredibly high.”

Felix was impressed by the large and diverse student body at Espoon yhteislyseo: “I have friends from different countries, cultures and linguistic backgrounds. It has had a huge impact on me and been incredibly valuable.”

He also highlights the school’s many international trips as a major asset. Felix participated in a week-long exchange in Berlin. He also travelled to Norway, where he visited a partner school and explored museums and the surrounding nature: “In Norway, we climbed for four hours to reach a mountain ledge. The views from there were stunning,” Felix recounts. Felix would have liked to go on even more trips abroad, but time constraints prevented it.

Felix’s fondest memory of upper secondary school is the traditional vanhojen tanssit dance. Initially, he did not expect to enjoy the event: “But the day turned out to be amazing,” Felix exclaims. Another cherished memory is receiving his first matriculation exam grades. Felix spread his exams across three sessions and even retook and improved some results.

Felix admits he did not have a realistic understanding of the matriculation exams or upper secondary school before starting. “People make the exams sound terrifying, but they’re really just the equivalent of two course exams combined," he explains.

During his years in upper secondary school, academic concepts became clearer over time. “I had to study more than I thought I would – I was too lazy at first,” Felix admits candidly. He avoided mathematics until his final year.

Felix points out that not all students learn by reading and doing homework. “I’ve always been bad at doing homework,” he admits. Instead, he completed assignments during lessons. “People often judge you if you don’t read, but I learn by listening and discussing in class,” he explains.

To younger students either starting or currently in upper secondary school, Felix advises figuring out early on what learning methods work best for them. “Make sure you sleep well and don’t come to school hungry – it helps you learn better,” Felix recommends.

Virva Mutikainen says Tapiolan lukio music general upper secondary school provided an excellent environment for crafting a personalised path through her studies.

Virva Mutikainen is one of this autumn’s graduates. She reflects: “I’m feeling a bit nostalgic about leaving such an important community where I’ve spent three and a half eventful years.”

In the end, choosing the music general upper secondary school was a natural decision for her, even after some hesitation during the application process. Virva attended lower secondary school in the same building, in Tapiolan koulu lower secondary school’s music class, and has been playing the violin since preschool through the Espoo Music Institute. During her earlier school years, she had the chance to experience the music general upper secondary school’s events and concerts. Her two older brothers, both alumni, were full of praise for the upper secondary school’s warm sense of community.

Virva found that their descriptions of the supportive atmosphere were spot-on. She says the upper secondary school feels relatively small, making it easy for everyone to get to know each other during courses. For students in the music general upper secondary school especially, intense production projects create tight bonds within their form groups, helped along by shared interests and similar mindsets.

Virva feels that the best thing about Tapiolan lukio upper secondary school is the people. “The teachers work hard to ensure students can get involved in all sorts of things. For example, they organise theatre and concert visits as part of their varied teaching,” she says. She recalls a memorable example from her brother’s band course during the COVID-19 pandemic. The music teacher arranged for students to borrow the school’s instruments so the course could still go ahead – in the Mutikainen family’s basement, no less, despite remote learning.

Virva is immensely grateful for the wide range of activities she was able to take part in during her years in the school: “I was part of the student council, contributed to the school’s leadership team, served as editor-in-chief of our school magazine Vitsanen, co-wrote the script for the final year students musical, went on countless trips, and even received free theatre and concert tickets!” She adds, “The teachers go above and beyond on top of their daily work.”

In addition to varied course content, Virva says she learned to be brave and seize the opportunities offered. Though they might mean extra effort, they often open doors to new experiences and insights. At Tapiola, students also have significant influence over their school experience. “My opinion was always sought, and I had so many fascinating conversations with teachers after lessons.”

Virva’s favourite subjects in upper secondary school included biology and geography. She particularly enjoyed elective courses unique to the school, created by the teachers. “These included theatre and museum visits, along with diverse assignments on interesting topics,” she explains. She highlights the Swedish writing course, where the teacher provided personalised feedback after every assignment. Another standout was the Baltic Sea field course, a weekend spent at the Tvärminne Research Station in Hankoniemi.

Writing has always been close to Virva’s heart. In addition to being editor-in-chief of the school magazine, she has excelled in writing competitions. Last autumn, she placed in the top five of the Finnish Language Teachers’ Association’s Pikku Finlandia competition with her essay on Gustave Flaubert’s Madame Bovary, reflecting on its relevance to the modern era.She received a diploma and the previous year’s Finlandia Prize-winning book as a reward. This autumn, Virva earned an honourable mention in the Youth, Conflict & Peace writing competition, organised by The Ulkopolitist online magazine and Finland’s UN Youth.

However, Virva does not plan to turn writing or music into her profession. For now, her future is still undecided, but she’ is considering applying to the University of Helsinki to study biology or geography. Playing the violin, though, will remain a cherished hobby. “It would be nice to have writing as part of my career since it’s such a natural way for me to communicate. I had plenty of chances to practise and use my writing skills in different contexts during upper secondary school.”

Virva completed her studies in three and a half years, spreading her exams across three sessions – common for music students with their additional courses, projects, and events. She is proud of her final results: five laudaturs and two eximias (though she admits she had hoped to turn one of those eximias into a laudatur). “While revising for exams, I found new insights in material I had already studied, and as I went over content from different courses, the big picture started to make more sense,” she explains.

Her advice to current or future students? Approach both your studies and the decisions that come with them with curiosity and flexibility. “Keep an open mind and take advantage of different opportunities. Upper secondary school does not have to be a huge deal, and everyone gets something different out of it,” she sums up.

Otaniemen lukio upper secondary school offers a general curriculum alongside mathematics and natural sciences general upper secondary school, as well as theatre and media line. In autumn 2024, the school will see 46 students graduate, including 12 from the theatre and media line. Among them are Kanerva Koli, Niko Teperi and Jenny Hilo.

Kanerva, Niko, and Jenny feel a sense of relief now that they have graduated. Their focus is firmly on the future. “It’s nice that three and a half years of hard work are finally over. There was a lot to do,” says Kanerva. 

“In a way, it feels like the time flew by, but in another, it feels like it dragged on forever. Now it’s time to move on,” Niko says. Jenny agrees: “I feel so free to have finally finished. I feel ready to move forward. I’ve grown so much as a person over these years.”
 

The future brings questions: What comes next? Further studies? 

Niko points out that their year group was the first under Finland’s new Act on Compulsory Education, which required them to apply for a place at upper secondary school or vocational college.

Niko and Kanerva have had an interest in theatre since primary school. For Kanerva, Otaniemi was the top choice because it was close to home, and the projects showcased on the school’s website looked fascinating. She had already been involved in theatre in Youth Theatre Veikkola during her earlier school years. “However, they didn’t cover lighting or sound techniques, so I didn’t know I could express myself behind the scenes as well,” Kanerva says.

Niko also has a long background in theatre, but he had not had so much experience with the media before. He has participated in Theatre Hyökyvuori from a very young age, later joining its summer theatre productions.

For Jenny, Otaniemi’s proximity was also a deciding factor. She developed an interest in filmmaking in lower secondary school. Transitioning from Swedish-language education to a Finnish-language upper secondary school was a big step for her. “Finnish is my second native language, but at first, I couldn’t understand everything in physics classes,” Jenny says.

Unlike Niko and Kanerva, Jenny had no previous theatre experience and did not see herself as a ‘theatre person’ when she started. In fact, she says she used to struggle with stage fright. “I thought theatre wasn’t for me, but now I absolutely love it.”

Niko highlights Otaniemi’s variety as its biggest strength. “It’s the largest upper secondary school in Espoo. There’s so much on offer beyond theatre and media – it’s also a science-focused school,” Niko says. “We managed to fit comfortably under one roof,” adds Kanerva.

Jenny loved the wide range of arts subjects on offer. She finds the balance between Otaniemi’s size and its sense of community particularly appealing. “You make friends easily,” she says.

For Kanerva, the chance to express herself creatively through theatre and media – using sound, visuals, and even directing – has been the highlight. Niko adds that the freedom to head out mid-day for filming projects was another plus. “The theatre and media lessons were more relaxed compared to, say, mathematics,” Kanerva notes. “They’re a great counterbalance to the logical structure of subjects like mathematics. That said, the excellent teachers made even the tougher lessons enjoyable,” Niko sums up.

The fiction course (involving scriptwriting and filming), editing and animation classes, and director training stand out as particular favourites for Kanerva and Niko.

Kanerva’s top memory is the traditional second-year students’ dance, vanhojen tanssit. “I loved the dancing and the practice sessions,” she says.

For Niko, the technical production course – where he got hands-on with the school’s equipment – was a standout.

Jenny treasured the various events, both in and outside of school. A major highlight for all three was the second-year theatre production Pinnan Alla (“Under the Surface”). Starting in late November, the production culminated in performances at the turn of April and May. The students were responsible for everything, from scriptwriting to final production. Jenny served as an assistant director, Kanerva co-wrote the script and acted in a lead role, and Niko handled sound design and set building.

While Niko and Kanerva do not plan to make theatre and media their careers, they will keep them as hobbies. Niko, for example, will study electrical and automation technology but plans to continue working with sound at Theatre Hyökyvuori.

Kanerva is still exploring her career options but thinks communication might be a good fit. She hopes to continue working with editing in some capacity. “Media and editing are close to my heart,” she says.

Jenny, on the other hand, is keen to pursue further studies in film directing. She is considering applying to Aalto University and/or Metropolia, both of which require rigorous entrance exams and advance assignments. However, Jenny feels well-prepared thanks to Otaniemi’s art-focused preparatory course. Jenny also achieved excellent results in her exams, leaving her the option to pursue other fields if she wishes.

Niko found his theatre experience helpful during his matriculation exams. “I didn’t feel nervous or stressed because I’ve learned to manage those feelings,” Niko explains.

Jenny is also pleased with her exam results. She, too, didn’t feel particularly anxious. “They’re a bit like any other exams, just longer,” she says.

“I came away with a pretty good feeling about the exams as well. There wasn’t as much stress when I’d actually prepared. It’s better to worry less about exams and the matriculation tests, and not stress so much,” Kanerva advises.

Their advice to younger students? Choose subjects you genuinely enjoy, not just what others expect of you. “If some subjects interest you less, you don’t have to approach them with the same passion,” says Kanerva. Everyone knows the pressure to choose in the first year the subjects you want to write exams in, to get into the courses of the subject.

Niko and Kanerva also encourage students to be social. “Be brave and talk to people – it’s the best way to make friends,” they suggest.