Finland
Question 2: Approximately how many school/educational psychologists work in your country? Number of educational Psychologists
N.B. Numbers below are mostly estimates.
Answer:
120
(N.B. title educational psychologist is not used, one speaks about school psychologists)
Question 3: What is the ratio of school/educational Psychologists in your country?
N.B. Numbers below are estimates
Answer:
no response
Question 4: Who are the main employers of school/educational Psychologists?
Answer:
communities, especially educational subsystems
Question 5: Are school/educational psychologists represented by any general or specific association or union in your country?
Answer:
Union of Finnish Psychologists (for all psychologists)
Question 6: How do school/educational psychologists become trained?
Include details of length of the training period, the additional qualifications and professional experience which are required (e.g. teaching), whether and how your training courses link with other courses of training in professional psychology.
Answer:
no special requirements for school psychologists, but there is a special university programme ‘education and learning’
Question 7: How many universities provide this training for school/educational psychologists?
Answer:
6 (for general psychology)
Question 8: What are the employment prospect for newly trained school/educational psychologists?
Answer:
few opportunities for employment
Question 9: How many school/educational psychologists are currently unemployed in your country?
Answer:
about 6% (this is an estimate) of all psychologists are without employment
Question 10: What are the key tasks that are undertaken by school/educational psychologists?
(e.g. assessment, recommending special provision for children, consultation, counselling…)
Answer:
all tasks referred to plus Brief-Therapy
Question 11: Are school /educational psychologists licensed? Is this a legal rquirement?
Answer:
title of psychologist is protected by law
Question 12: What are the current issues facing school / educational psychologists at the present?
Answer:
- coping with current economic problems in Finland (especially unemployment)
- need for better assessment methods.