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In Finland, the forest sector currently needs and will continue to need new workers. With demographic development, the age groups are becoming smaller and more urbanized, which means that young people may not have any contact with the forest sector before applying for education. Previous studies have emphasized that students’ perceptions of different educational paths and occupations can be easily influenced by prejudices. For some young people, the forest sector still appears conservative, traditional, and masculine. The forest sector is still highly gendered. Additionally, according to the previous studies, raising awareness of the forest sector is essential for young people to be able to apply for training in the field. Strengthening the attractiveness of the forest sector is important in preventing future labor shortages. Study counselling is a free-of-charge support included in education in Finland that helps students plan their studies, choose their education, get to know the working life, and plan their careers. The purpose of study guidance is to promote justice, equality, and inclusion. The criteria for good guidance state that it is multidisciplinary cooperation that supports the development of career-planning skills.
This study examined guidance counsellors' attitudes and knowledge regarding the forest sector. In addition, the study was conducted to determine how guidance counsellors perceive young people's interest in the forest sector. The data were collected through interviews in the autumn of 2025. In total, 49 guidance counsellors participated in the interviews, 23 of whom worked in general upper secondary schools and 26 in comprehensive schools.
Based on the preliminary results, the interviewees were very familiar with the educational opportunities in the forest sector. However, awareness of working life came to the fore, which should be given attention in the future. In addition to telling students about their studies, sharing concrete career stories, work tasks, and working weeks should also provide young people with information about what it means to work in the forest industry. The guidance counsellors emphasized that communication about the forest sector should be based on encounters between people. Despite this, almost half (47 %) of schools represented in the study had received a visit in the previous 12 months from a forest-sector organization, educational institution, forestry student, or other representatives to provide information about education and working life in the forest sector. Furthermore, 61 % of the general upper secondary guidance counsellors and 65 % of the comprehensive school’s guidance counsellors interviewed perceived the forest sector positively. Only two counsellors (4.1%) expressed a negative attitude towards the forest sector. The guidance counsellors perceived forests as highly or very significant, both at the individual level and for Finnish society.
Keywords: forest labor, forest education, guidance counsellor, working life
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