evidoria

← Back to browse

Good practice Imported

Digital Path to Work

Finland · Helsinki · National · See the Finland profile

Sivis Study Centre and Sedu joined forces to create a project that helps migrants acquire digital skills to support them in entering vocational education and training, finding employment, and integrating into Finnish society through volunteering. Sivis Study Centre has a network

13 groups
Peer learning groups organised (2014-2026)
170 participants
Total participants (2014-2026)

Details

Maturity
Pilot
Promoter
Sivis — website
Type
Service
Status
Ongoing
Target groups
Migrants
Period
2014-01-01
Keywords
immigrants, digital skills, digital inclusion, digital vocabulary, peer learning

Context

Digital Path to Work is a Finnish project run jointly by Sivis Study Centre and Sedu, helping migrants acquire digital skills to support entry into vocational education, employment and integration into Finnish society.

Objectives

To define the basic digital skills migrants need and develop a peer-learning method for teaching them in Finnish, without relying on professional teachers, so participants build Finnish digital vocabulary alongside technical skills.

Activities

The project developed a transferable Peer Learning Model, including a 'basic digital skills for work' framework created together with employers, and trained peer tutors — working in pairs or threes — to lead peer learning groups for migrants. Tutor training took place in Oulu, Helsinki and Seinäjoki, with tutors then facilitating groups near where they lived (also in Lapua, Kauhajoki and Ähtäri). Partner NGOs included the Finnish Red Cross, the Mannerheim League for Child Welfare and Erilaisten Oppijoiden liitto.

Results

The project organised 13 peer learning groups for migrants, with 170 total participants (6 to 13 participants per group). Participants received a diploma after completing 20 hours of study (5-10 peer group meetings).

Conclusions

No substantive evaluation of the project exists; reach was modest (170 participants nationally) relative to Finland's migrant population, though the project built a reusable peer-tutor training model and cross-organisational networks with migrant associations.

Implementation
Indicative cost
Low (< €50k) — No budget or cost figures published in cited sources; the model relies on volunteer peer tutors rather than paid instructors, suggesting a low-cost delivery model.
Time to results
Short (< 1 year) — Peer tutor training and 13 peer learning groups (5-10 meetings each, minimum 20 hours) delivered from 2014; described as a bounded project rather than a continuously scaling service.
Staffing & skills
Sivis Study Centre and Sedu (vocational training body) jointly ran the project; trained volunteer 'peer tutors' (working in pairs/threes) delivered peer learning groups rather than professional teachers, NGO partners: Finnish Red Cross, Mannerheim League for Child Welfare, Erilaisten Oppijoiden liitto

Conditions for success

  • Peer Learning Model with a 'basic digital skills for work' framework co-created with employers
  • Small group sizes (6-13 participants) taught in Finnish to build digital vocabulary alongside skills
  • Trained peer tutors placed close to where they live, enabling local delivery across multiple towns (Oulu, Helsinki, Seinäjoki, Lapua, Kauhajoki, Ähtäri)
  • Built on Sivis' and Sedu's existing track record and networks in migrant education and digital-skills provision

Common failure modes

  • No substantive evaluation exists (source states 'Evaluation: No')
  • Small overall reach (170 participants across the whole country) relative to national migrant population

Where it fits

Governance type
NGO/vocational-training partnership
Scale
sub-national, multi-town pilot
Income level
high income

Commonly funded by

ESF+ — European Social Fund Plus AMIF — Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund

Indicative funding routes for practices of this type — always check each programme's current calls and eligibility rules.

Do you run this practice? Claim it — verified implementers get a public contact pathway and can propose corrections.

Data sources

Where this practice's information was retrieved from, and when.

Similar practices you may find useful

★ 52

Click & Connect

United Kingdom

The Click and Connect centres aim to increase digital access throughout Scottish communities and open up a range of opportunities …

★ 32

The Vodafone Mobile Devices Project

United Kingdom

The Mobile Devices project was a six-month study into the benefits of mobile data and devices for digitally excluded people. …