An increasing number of women studying in higher education do not plan to have children in the future, according to the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare's (THL) Student Health and Wellbeing survey.
The share of such women planning to have children has decreased by seven percentage points between 2021 and 2024, THL said in a statement published on Wednesday.
Among higher education students, 63 percent of men and 59 percent of women hope to have children in the future. Around a quarter of childless students are still unsure whether they will want to have children later.
"The results of the study show that, even among higher education students, the wish to have children is decreasing, even though the birth rate has decreased, especially among those with a low level of education. There is no clear reason for the recent decline," said THL Research Manager Johanna Närvi.
The survey data was collected in spring 2024 through an online questionnaire sent to 12,000 randomly selected undergraduate students aged 18–34 at universities and universities of applied sciences. Respondents from the 2021 survey who were still studying also took part.
Mental health and financial barriers
The study found that students experiencing mental strain were less likely to want children than those without such burdens, and they also report obstacles to having children more often.
For women, concerns about coping as a parent and their own health were also common barriers to having children, while for men, more often it dealt with their relationship status.
The most common barriers to having children among childless students are unfinished studies, financial situation, unwillingness to commit to young children, the challenge of combining studies and family life, as well as young age or lack of maturity.
Both men and women also cited a perceived lack of societal support for having children.
In contrast, climate change and the perception of Finland as a non-child-friendly country were found to be less significant factors.
It was reported recently that Finland's birth rate dropped for the third consecutive year in 2024, reaching the lowest level in the country’s recorded history, according to preliminary data from Statistics Finland.