The Finnish student health and wellbeing survey (KOTT) produces versatile data on the health, wellbeing, lifestyles, study abilities, and health services of students and any changes that have occurred in them.
The KOTT survey is carried out once every four years. The survey was conducted by the Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS) in 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016. The Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) has conducted the survey in 2021 and 2024. The next KOTT survey will be conducted in 2028.
In KOTT 2024 survey, individuals belonging to the sample cohort of the KOTT 2021 survey who still studied at a university, or a university of applied sciences were invited to participate in the survey. This follow-up study will produce information about the factors that influence how students cope in crisis situations.
Goals
- Produce reliable and up-to-date information on the health, wellbeing, lifestyles, study abilities, and health services of students, as well as changes that have occurred in them and the factors influencing them.
- Produce information on the well-being and health disparities observed among students and the reasons behind them. Individual-level follow‑up makes it possible to identify factors that either support or hinder study progress and graduation.
- Study the factors that impact the health (including mental health), lifestyle habits, and study abilities.
Implementation
- 18–34-year-old undergraduate students at universities of applied sciences and universities across Finland are invited to participate in the survey.
- The data collection is carried out with an online questionnaire. The survey is sent out to 12,000 randomly selected students based on data of the VIRTA student database.
- The questionnaire is available in Finnish, Swedish and English.
- The data collected in the questionnaires will be supplemented with data from national registers. The register follow-up stage of the study will last 10 years from the implementation of the survey. More detailed information on the registers used is provided in the survey’s privacy notice.
- A consortium specialized in the health and well-being of higher education students participates in the planning and implementation of the data collection (see list of collaborating partners).
- The Finnish Student Health and Wellbeing Survey (KOTT) has been reviewed by the THL working group on research ethics in 2020 and 2023.
Funding
THL
Partners
- Finnish Research Foundation for Studies and Education Otus
- Finnish Student Health Service (FSHS)
- Ministry of Education and Culture, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health
- National Union of University Students in Finland SYL
- Social Insurance Institution of Finland (Kela)
- Statistics Finland The Rectors' Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Arene
- University of Applied Sciences Students in Finland SAMOK
- Universities Finland Unifi
Contact details
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