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Research in Finland
In 2005 research and development expenditure represented 3.5% of the gross domestic product, which puts Finland among the OECD top. The Finnish R&D expenditure was about 5.5 million euros.
The private sector investments constitute 66%, national public input 28% and foreign funding the remaining 6% of the total Finnish R&D expenditure. About half of the business sector investments come from the electrotechnical industry.
Over the past decade, the number of R&D personnel has grown from 40,000 to nearly 80,000. This makes over 2% of the overall labour force, which is the highest figure among all the OECD countries. The number of doctoral degrees has similarly doubled in the past ten years.
Science policy is designed to raise the level, coverage, impact on society and international visibility of Finnish research.
Graduate schools lower the age of doctoral candidates
The Finnish universities have had a system of graduate schools since 1995. They were put in place in order to shorten the time it takes doctoral students to write their thesis and to increase international cooperation. In the graduate schools, doctoral students are paid and work on their theses full-time. There are 119 graduate schools, which have altogether 1,500 postgraduate places. One in three doctoral students in the graduate schools are under 30 when they defend their thesis.
Science policy at the Ministry of Education
At the Ministry of Education science policy is the responsibility of the Department for Education and Science Policy and its Science Policy Division.Current priorities are to develop public research funding, raise the profile of Finnish science, to intensify the utilisation of research findings and to improve the knowledge base for science policy. More about the work of the Division for Higher Education and Science in the Ministry section.
Research.fi
The science and technology service research.fi contains statistics and other data, publications and documents describing R&D in Finland. |
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Science policy in Finland
The government outlines the principles underpinning science, technology and innovation policy and drafts relevant legislation. The ministries are responsible for planning and implementing science and technology policy. The Ministry of Education handles matters relating to education and science policy and the Ministry of Trade and Industry matters relating to industrial and technology policy.
The Science and Technology Policy Council plays a pivotal role in promoting science and technology and relevant education. The Academy of Finland is an important source of research funding in the Ministry of Education sector.
The aim of science policy is to promote science and scholarship, to assure the quality, impact and positive international development of research and researcher training and to promote the development of an efficient and blanked research system in cross-sectoral cooperation.
The development of scientific research is based on the Development Plan for Education and Research, the Government Programme and policy outlined by the Science and Technology Policy Council.
The Government Programme stresses the role of research as the foundation of knowledge and know-how. Sustainable economic growth and immaterial and material welfare are based on knowledge, which is safeguarded by research and development funds. Measures are being taken to increase research funding, notably the appropriations for the Academy of Finland and the core funding of universities, as provided in the Government Programme and a plan devised by the Science and Technology Policy Council.
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Finance and administration
The government outlines the principles underpinning and drafts legislation governing science, technology and innovation policy. The ministries are responsible for planning and implementing science and technology policy.
The government is assisted by the Science and Technology Policy Council which is chaired by the Prime Minister. The Council outlines and harmonises science and technology policy and prepares plans and proposals concerning policy, scientific research and education to the government.
The Ministry of Education handles matters relating to education, science policy, universities and polytechnics, and the Academy of Finland. The Academy is the foremost financing organisation in research.
Publicly funded research is mainly conducted in universities and research institutes.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry takes care of matters relating to industrial and technology policy, the Technology Development Centre Tekes, and the Technical Research Centre of Finland VTT.
The Ministry of Education promotes scientific research by co-financing support services, such as equipment, information networks, scientific computing and research libraries.
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International scientific cooperation
International interaction is a precondition for high-standard research. Finland cooperates within the European Union, with other countries based on agreements and informally. In addition, organisations and individuals have their own arrangements.
Science policy cooperation in the EU
The EU is in the process of establishing a European Research Area to promote joint research and step up the use of research findings with a view to improving employment and competitiveness in Europe.
The EU finances R&D in the member countries by means of framework programmes. The EU R&D Framework Programme is an important part of Finland's international R&D cooperation. About five per cent of university research funding comes from the EU.
In Finland, the Ministry of Trade and Industry prepares and coordinates matters relating to EU research policy. The Ministry of Education sector is responsible for matters pertaining to bio and medical sciences, environmental sciences, social sciences, basic research, researcher training and mobility, research infrastructures, research-society relations and cooperation with non-EU countries.
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International research organisations and networks
International research organisations build large research equipment which no one country could afford alone, and put them at the disposal of researchers. Apart from high-standard research, these organisations carry out significant technology development.
Finland participates in the work of many international research organisations, notably
- European Organization for Nuclear Research CERN
- European Molecular Biology Laboratory EMBL
- European Space Agency ESA
- European Southern Observatory ESO
- European Synchrotron Radiation Facility ESRF
Organisations promoting cooperation between national research systems include
- European Science Foundation ESF
- European cooperation in the field of scientific and technological research COST, and
- European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures ESFRI.
Global science forums include organisations subordinate to UNESCO and OECD committees and working groups.
Research cooperation with areas adjacent to Finland include Nordic cooperation, which is expanding to the Baltic states, arctic research and cooperation with Russia. There is a specific organisation called Nordforsk to promote cooperation among the Nordic countries.
Finland has bilateral agreements on scientific cooperation with 40 countries.
Agencies and organisations in research
Research-related tasks in the Ministry of Education sector are handled by agencies and institutes subordinate to the Ministry, expert bodies appointed by the government or the Ministry, and partner organisations, notably the Academy of Finland, the National Archives Service, the Research Institute for the Languages of Finland, and the Repository Library.
The Academy of Finland is an important source of research funding. The Academy finances a wide range of basic research, which underpins innovative applied research and the utilisation of research findings. Most of the Academy funding is channelled to university research. The Academy, jointly with Tekes, administers EU research programmes and international research organisations in Finland.
The National Archives Service is an expert and service organisation which ensures that archival material of great importance for the individual and society is preserved in a compact form and is easily available for use. The National Archives Service is responsible for securing the preservation of and access to documents of prime relevance to our national heritage.
The Research Institute for the Languages of Finland studies the Finnish, Swedish, Saami, Romany and Sign languages. It advises and guides in language problems and keeps various linguistic research archives, materials and an extensive linguistics library for the use of researchers.
The Repository Library receives and preserves materials transferred from research and public libraries and makes them available to users.
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Expert bodies in research
The Science and Technology Policy Council of Finland is appointed to discuss major matters relating to the overall promotion of research, technology and academic education. The Council is chaired by the Prime Minister.
The National Advisory Board on Research Ethics is an expert body appointed by the Ministry of Education to make proposals and issue opinions on legislative and other matters concerning research ethics.
The Committee for Public Information follows achievements in science and scholarship, arts and technology in Finland and abroad and developments in national and international knowledge.
Partner organisations in research
The Delegation of the Finnish Academies of Science and Letters is a joint organ of the Finnish Society of Science and Letters, the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters, the Finnish Academy of Technology and the Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences in Finland, which promotes cooperation between its member academies and represents them internationally.
In 1994 the Finnish Academy of Technology and the Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences in Finland, together with the Finnish Foundation of Technology, established the Finnish Academies of Technology (FACTE), which also has companies as members.
The Federation of Finnish Learned Societies is an umbrella organisation for learned societies, which promotes the interests of its member organisations by publication, initiatives promoting research and statements. The Federation contributes to the development of research cooperation and the flow of scientific information. It has member societies representing all the disciplines.
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Support services and information management in research
The Ministry of Education promotes scientific research and develops supportive services by financing the acquisition of equipment and the development and maintenance of information networks, scientific computing and research libraries.
Scientific computing and web services
The Center for Scientific Computing (CSC) is a national expert organisation owned by the government and administered by the Ministry of Education, which specialises in scientific computing and net services.
Research libraries
Research libraries include university, polytechnic and specialised libraries which serve education and research. There are over 200 research libraries in Finland.
The nucleus of research libraries is the academic library network composed of university libraries, the Helsinki University Library, which is the National Library, and the Repository Library.
THE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY COUNCIL OF FINLAND
The Science and Technology Policy Council of Finland, chaired by the Prime Minister, advises the Council of State and its Ministries in important matters concerning research, technology and their utilisation and evaluation. The Council is responsible for the strategic development and coordination of Finnish science and technology policy as well as of the national innovation system as a whole.
The Science and Technology Policy Council of Finland was established in March 1987. New Decree on the Science and Technology Policy Council of Finland came into force 1 st of January 2006.
Tasks
The remit of the Council shall be to assist the Government and its ministries by:
- following international developments in research and technology and the development needs they cause in Finnish research and technology
- addressing major matters relating to science and technology policy and preparing plans and proposals concerning them for the Government;
- addressing the overall development of scientific research and researcher training;
- addressing the development and utilisation of technology and technology impact analysis;
- addressing important matters relating to international science and technology cooperation;
- addressing the development and allocation of public research and innovation funding;
- addressing important legislative questions concerning research, technology and scientific education; and
- taking initiatives and putting forward proposals in matters within its remit to the Government and its ministries.
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