The thesis process also includes a Maturity Test, taken after the completion of the thesis.
Based on the Decree of the Council of State (Valtioneuvoston asetus ammattikorkeakouluista 1129/2014, 8 §), the student shall, in order to earn the Bachelor’s Degree at a University of Applied Sciences, write a Maturity Test related to their field of study, which demonstrates their acquaintance with the field and knowledge of Finnish or Swedish. The University of Applied Sciences decides on the Maturity Test when the student is not required to have the language proficiency stipulated by Subsection 1 of Section 8 of the Decree (Valtioneuvoston asetus ammattikorkeakouluista 1129/2014). This group consists of students whose school language is other than Finnish or Swedish or who have gone to school abroad.
The Degree Regulations of Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences include the following instruction on the Maturity Test:
To earn their Degree, the student shall take a Maturity Test during which they write about a topic related to their Final Project/thesis. Its topic is assigned by the supervisor of the Final Project/thesis. At the Maturity Test, the student demonstrates their acquaintance with the topic of their Final Project and their language skills as follows:
A student whose school language is Finnish:
The language of the Maturity Test is Finnish, in which case the student earns the grade of ‘Excellent’ in their oral and written skills in the language in question (Valtioneuvoston asetus suomen ja ruotsin kielen taidon osoittamisesta valtionhallinnossa 481/2003, Section 15). The second national language is Swedish.
If the student earned at least the grade of ‘Magna cum laude approbatur’ at the test of Finnish as a native language at their Matriculation Examination (demonstrating excellent knowledge in the language in question), the language of the Maturity Test can also be Swedish or the language of the Degree Programme.
A student whose school language is Swedish:
The language of the Maturity Test is Swedish, in which case the student earns the grade of ‘Excellent’ in their oral and written skills in the language in question (Valtioneuvoston asetus suomen ja ruotsin kielen taidon osoittamisesta valtionhallinnossa 481/2003, Section 15). The second national language is Finnish.
If the student has earned the grade of at least ‘Magna cum laude approbatur’ at the test in Swedish as a native language at the Matriculation Examination (demonstrating excellent knowledge in the language in question), the language of the Maturity Test can also be Finnish or the language of the Degree Programme.
A student whose school language is Finnish (Swedish) but whose first language is other than Finnish (Swedish):
If the student’s school language is Finnish (Swedish) but their home or first language is other than Finnish (Swedish), the President of the University of Applied Sciences may exempt the student from the language-related requirements of the Maturity Test. In order to demonstrate their familiarity with the topic of their thesis, the student shall take the Maturity Test, but its language will not be assessed. At the Maturity Test, the student writes in Finnish (Swedish). In consequence of exemption from the language-related requirements of the Maturity Test, a language proficiency clause corresponding to Decree Valtioneuvoston asetus suomen ja ruotsin kielen taidon osoittamisesta valtionhallinnossa 481/2003, Section 19, will not be included in the student’s Degree Certificate.
A student whose school language is neither Finnish nor Swedish:
If the student’s school language is other than Finnish or Swedish, the Head of Programme can agree with the student on taking the Maturity Test in another language.
The Maturity Test is written. It is taken independently, under invigilation, in either the student’s school language (Finnish or Swedish) or, based on the decision of the Head of Programme, in some other language. The time available for writing the Maturity Test is two hours (120 minutes). The Maturity Test can also be written in Exam (Campus House).
A student with dyslexia is entitled to special arrangements, if needed. This requires that the student present an expert statement (a dyslexia statement or recommendation) about their situation. If required based on the statement, the student can be allowed a maximum of two hours’ and 40 minutes extra time for writing, and the test can be completed orally.
The genre of the Maturity Test is an essay answer-type text, written for a reader familiar with the subject area but not familiar with the special case posed at the Maturity Test. The Maturity Test is a test of both the student’s command of the content of the thesis and their language proficiency. The Test includes two questions related to the student’s thesis, and the student answers one of them. The content of the Maturity Test is assessed by an expert in the subject area, and the language by an expert in the language in which the Maturity Test was written. The text is assess on a scale of Pass–Fail. The grade Fail must be explained. The requirements and assessment criteria for a passed Maturity Test are in Appendix 6.