The goal in North Savo is to make it as easy as possible to combine work and family life. Dozens of day-care centres, schools and clubs in the region provide flexible education from babies under a year old in early childhood education and care to young people finishing their basic education.

The values of early childhood education and care are service-orientation, confidentiality and the inclusion of children and families. The friendly, genuine nature of the people of Savo ensures that these values are put into practice in everyday life. In addition to municipal day-care services, the region has a number of private day-care centres and family day carers who look after children in their own home in a peaceful, homely environment.

There are 22 primary schools (grades 1 to 6), eight comprehensive schools (grades 1 to 9), four lower secondary schools (grades 7 to 9) and two special schools in the Kuopio region. In addition, basic education for adults is available at the Kuopio Upper Secondary School for Adults. Basic education is also provided by private institutions in the city, namely Steiner School Virkkula and the Kuopio Christian School.

Early childhood education and care, education, and youth services in Kuopio

Early childhood education and care in Iisalmi is provided by five municipal day-care centres and 18 municipal family day carers. Early childhood education and care services are also provided by five private day-care centres, nine private family day carers and two private group family day-care centres, operating under the supervision of the city. The City of Iisalmi provides education at 11 comprehensive schools: ten primary schools and one lower secondary school. In addition, Iisalmi has one institution that offers upper secondary education. Iisalmi aims to be the best school city in Finland, offering an excellent foundation for further studies.

The other municipalities in the region also offer good early childhood education and school services. More information can be found on the website of each municipality.

There are nearly 20 upper secondary schools in North Savo, including an upper secondary school for adults. In addition to the standard syllabus, upper secondary schools also offer a wide range of specialised upper secondary programmes. For example, Lumit, Kuopio Senior High School of Arts, is an upper secondary school specialising in music and dance, while Kuopio classical upper secondary school has a sports programme, and Kuopion Lyseo upper secondary school offers an international IB Programme in addition to the traditional upper secondary programme. There is also an upper secondary school in Joroinen, for example, where students can study with a focus on volleyball. All the upper secondary schools in Kuopio offer the same upper secondary school syllabus and studies leading to the matriculation examination. In addition, the upper secondary schools offer various school-specific applied courses that are available to all upper secondary school students. Students can also combine higher education studies and vocational studies with their studies at upper secondary school, and it is also possible to complete two certificates or qualifications at the same time.

• Kuopio classical upper secondary school
• Lumit, Kuopio Senior High School of Arts
• Kuopion Lyseo upper secondary school
• Kuopio Upper Secondary School for Adults

• Joroinen upper secondary school

More information about upper secondary school studies can be found on the website of each municipality.

In Kuopio, it is possible for an athlete to build a dual career from lower secondary school until they transition from school to work. Two lower secondary schools, six upper secondary institutions and two higher education institutions are involved in the activities of the Kuopio Region Sports Academy. The academy operates as part of the national sports academy programme, providing coaching in 11 different sports. The remote and online learning options offered by each institution make it easier to study during camps and competition trips and the school guidance counsellors or the executive manager of the Sports Academy can help students plan their studies, for example during the competition season. The expert services provided together with coaching include health and medical services and mentoring for business partnerships.

• Kuopio Region Sports Academy

The Kuopio region offers a wide range of cultural studies for all age groups, from early childhood to old age. Children can start studying music already before school age at the Kuopio Conservatory, Finland’s largest and most versatile music and dance school. Among the school’s alumni is blues queen Erja Lyytinen who studied there in the early days of her career. Education in the arts is also available at the Kuopio Unit of Uniarts Helsinki’s Sibelius Academy, which provides education for music professionals pursuing a career in Finnish churches. In addition to these, cultural studies are also offered by the Ingman College of Crafts and Design; Lumit, Kuopio Senior High School of Arts; and the multidisciplinary Savonia University of Applied Sciences.

• Ingman College of Crafts and Design
• Lumit, Kuopio Senior High School of Arts
• Savonia UAS
• Kuopio Conservatory
• Kuopio Unit of the Sibelius Academy

With campuses in Savilahti, Iisalmi, Siilinjärvi and Varkaus, the Savo Vocational College (Sakky) offers a study place to approximately 18,000 students each year. The college is a pioneer in environmentally friendly school construction, and the campuses in Iisalmi and Kuopio have been awarded the Nordic Swan Ecolabel for educational buildings in Finland.

Vocational education and training is also available at the Portaanpää Christian Institute, one of the largest folk high schools in Finland. Palvelualan opisto Kuopio, a vocational school for service industries, provides home economics education and training with over 100 years of experience. In addition, basic studies in sign language at the Northern Savonia Folk High School provide a good basis for pursuing sign language interpretation studies at Humak University of Applied Sciences. Kuopio is also home to Finland’s only Emergency Services Academy.

• Savo Vocational College (Sakky)
• Ylä-Savo Vocational College (YSAO)
• Palvelualan opisto Kuopio (PAOK)
• Northern Savonia Folk High School (PSKO)
• Humak
• Emergency Services Academy Finland

Savonia University of Applied Sciences is one of the largest and most versatile universities of applied sciences in Finland. Savonia educates strong professionals in six different fields of study.

Savonia UAS operates on three campuses: in Iisalmi, Kuopio and Varkaus. Savonia actively serves not only its more than 8,000 students, but also the surrounding business community, fostering close connections between teaching and learning and industry.

• Savonia UAS

Kuopio is also home to one of the campuses of the Humak University of Applied Sciences, where students can study to become a community educator or a sign language interpreter, for example.

• Humak

The University of Eastern Finland is the most multidisciplinary university in Finland with its 11 fields of study and 100 major subjects. The university has 16,000 degree students, 17,700 adult education students and a staff of 2,700 people. There are four faculties: the Philosophical Faculty, the Faculty of Science, Forestry and Technology, the Faculty of Health Sciences, and the Faculty of Social Sciences and Business Studies.

In addition, Kuopio is home to the Snellman Summer University. Located on the shores of the clear waters of Lake Kallavesi, the Kuopio University Hospital, the University of Eastern Finland and the growing hub of expertise in Savilahti together form a community that provides a strong foundation for multidisciplinary collaboration and research, development and innovation.

• University of Eastern Finland (UEF)
• SnellmannEDU