Ressun lukio vs The English School - Grades 7-9 and High School
Ressun lukio and The English School - Grades 7-9 and High School are both in Helsinki, about 4 km apart. Both schools offer Finnish programmes. Ressun lukio also offers IB, and The English School - Grades 7-9 and High School also offers Bespoke and Cambridge IGCSE. Published annual fees are €10,600 - 14,000 at Ressun lukio and €673 - 11,314 at The English School - Grades 7-9 and High School, which puts Ressun lukio roughly 105% higher. Ressun lukio takes pupils from 15 to 18, and The English School - Grades 7-9 and High School from 13 to 18. Ressun lukio is the larger school, with around 980 pupils to The English School - Grades 7-9 and High School's 700.
Ressun lukio is located in the very heart of Helsinki at Kalevankatu 8-10, 00100 Helsinki. Two upper secondary school programmes operate in two different buildings. The school is run by the City of Helsinki and has approximately 900 students and 60 teachers. Tuition is free, and meals and health services are provided.
Location
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Stages
Stages
Two upper secondary programmes: the Finnish-language programme following the Finnish national curriculum, and the English-language programme following the IB Diploma Programme.
- No separate application fee is charged by Ressun lukio for admission to its general upper secondary (lukio) or IB Diploma Programme; applications are submitted through the national joint application process used by Helsinki general upper secondary schools.
Tuition fees (by programme and year group)
- For students who are residents of Finland or who are otherwise entitled to free municipal upper secondary education (including EU/EEA/Swiss citizens and those with equivalent residence status), there is no tuition charged for any year group; instruction, required study materials, school meals on required school days and student welfare/health services are provided without tuition charge.
- For students who are required to pay full-cost tuition (students arriving to Finland from countries outside the EU/EEA/Norway/Iceland/Liechtenstein/Switzerland who begin studies on or after 1 August 2026), the City of Helsinki's published standard tuition amounts for general upper secondary education are: - National general upper secondary (lukio): EUR 10,600 per academic year. - IB Diploma Programme (Ressun IB): EUR 14,000 per academic year.
- Per-term breakdown for the full-cost tuition amounts (where the school bills on academic-year basis but parents/operators require a per-term figure): - National general upper secondary: EUR 10,600 per academic year → EUR 5,300 per semester (assuming billing is divided in two equal semesters). - IB Diploma Programme: EUR 14,000 per academic year → EUR 7,000 per semester (assuming billing is divided in two equal semesters).
Billing schedule and payment terms
- The City's published tuition amounts are shown as annual fees. Specific published invoices, installment dates, exact billing cycle or statutory payment deadlines for individual families are not detailed in the public school summary materials. The tuition amounts above are presented as annual sums by the City of Helsinki.
Boarding fees (if applicable)
- Ressun lukio is a day upper secondary school operating in Helsinki city premises and does not operate a school boarding/dormitory programme; there are no boarding fees applicable.
Other costs or fees
- For students entitled to free municipal education, routine study materials, school meals on required school days and student welfare/health services are provided without charge. Extra optional items or activities (for example, voluntary school trips, optional extracurricular activities, personal equipment, or optional course materials beyond the standard curriculum) may incur separate charges to families; such optional costs are not listed as routine tuition.
- IB-related final examination registration/subject fees: for candidates not covered by the municipal entitlements, per-exam fees set by the awarding authorities apply; the national matriculation/examination authority's per-subject fee for autumn 2026 is indicated as €41 per paper (note: fees for IB subject registrations and the IB organization's school/registration fees are administered separately).
Refund information
- Refunds of examination fees (in special or exceptional circumstances) are governed by the Matriculation Examination Board's rules and guidance; requests for refunds of examination fees must follow the Board's procedures and deadlines. For students who fall under the municipality's entitled/free-education category, the school will pay the registration fees for the first examination session.
- No separate municipal public schedule for refunds of annual tuition (for the full-cost tuition category) is published in the summary material; specific refund terms and cancellation conditions for tuition-paying students would be set in the City's billing and contract documentation.
Fee payment options
- The publicly posted school and City summary pages do not list specific permitted payment methods (for example, bank transfer, direct debit, card payment or online payment portal) for tuition invoicing. Payment methods and invoicing details are handled through the City of Helsinki's finance/billing processes and the school's administration at the time of invoicing.
Brief note on available public detail
- The City of Helsinki publishes that regular municipal students attend tuition-free and lists the annual full-cost tuition figures that apply to students required to pay (EUR 10,600 for national lukio; EUR 14,000 for IB). Specific operational details that were not published in the public summary materials reviewed include the school's exact billing schedule (invoice dates and installment breakdowns as issued to families), detailed tuition refund policy language for full-cost-paying students, and the explicit list of accepted payment channels.
Fee details
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Diving deeper
Diving deeper
Boarding arrangements
Boarding arrangements
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Boarding arrangements
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Uniform requirement
Uniform requirement
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Uniform requirement
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Food options
Food options
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Food options
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House system
House system
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House system
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Governance and ownership
Governance and ownership
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Governance and ownership
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Academics
Academics
Curriculum details
Curriculum details
Two upper secondary programmes: Finnish-language programme follows the Finnish national curriculum; English-language programme follows the international IB Diploma Programme.
Curriculum details
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Student teacher ratio
Student teacher ratio
Approximately 15:1 (about 900 students and 60 teachers).
Student teacher ratio
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Exam results
Exam results
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Exam results
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Higher education progression
Higher education progression
Graduates are admitted to top universities in Finland and around the world.
