Finland’s autumn season of university matriculation examinations began on Monday.
The first tests were in language listening comprehension. The number of people signing up for testing in Russian and Finnish has risen this year, while fewer are taking Swedish and German exams.
There are also declines in interest in philosophy and history, but more demand for testing in biology, ethics and health education.
Nearly 37,000 high school graduates have signed up for this fall's battery of exams, slightly fewer than last year.
Written examinations begin on Friday and go on for nearly three weeks. The final exam, for native speakers of the indigenous Sámi language, is scheduled for 1 October.
Finland's Ministry of Education oversees 14 universities, two of which are primarily Swedish-language institutions.