Program Details
| Program Length | Start | End | Price | Age on Departure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| August | June | $73,800 | 15.8-18.8 | |
| Overseas Summer Programs | 7 August 2010 | 30 August 2010 | $22,000 | 15.8-18.8 |
Finland is one of the world’s most northern countries. For 600 years Finland had been a part of Sweden and for over a century it was an autonomous Grand Duchy under Russian Rule. But when Finland became independent in 1917 it had already developed its own language, culture, parliament and administration.
The southern area is a land of modern cities, prosperous agriculture and a beautiful archipelago. Finland has a total of 187,888 lakes all having at least one island. The central and eastern regions are green and hilly. Above the Arctic Circle, in Finnish Lapland, is the land of the midnight sun, Santa Claus and reindeer!
The seasons and the climate range from warm, sunlit nights of summer to snow and frosts in winter.
AFS in Finland
AFS Finland was founded in 1948 when the first Finnish AFS students left for the USA. Currently over 250 Finn AFS students go abroad each year and Finland hosts over a 100 foreign students annually. The office of AFS Finland is located in Helsinki.
Host Schools
The education system in Finland is composed of comprehensive schools, upper secondary schools, vocational and professional education institutions and universities. Students commence school in their seventh year and after completing nine years of compulsory education can then elect to continue their studies in upper secondary school, a vocational institute or commercial college. Upper secondary schools are academically oriented. The school year commences in mid-August and ends at the beginning of June. School vacations include Christmas, winter sports week, autumn vacation and summer vacation.
The most popular spare time activities are soccer, aerobics and gym, horseback riding, basketball, volleyball tennis and squash.
Host Families
Most Finnish families are busy and seldom spend much time together on weekdays. It is normal that both parents work. Not eating together is commonplace. It is expected that you help yourself when hungry. The whole family assists with house work. Children are normally brought up to be quite independent having to make decisions for themselves and accepting responsibility for their actions. Meals on the weekend, especially in the evening, are a shared event.
Finland has its own way of enjoying food which is usually kept quite simple. Clean air and plenty of daylight accounts for the excellent quality of the summer harvest of vegetables and berries. With over 187,000 lakes there is an abundance of fish available all year round.
For the official website of AFS Finland, please refer to the front page.
