What is Confirmation School?

Confirmation school, or rippikoulu, is an important part of the Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Church and is organized by local parishes. It is a special time for 15-year-olds across Finland to explore faith, life, and their personal values in a welcoming and supportive community. At the end of Confirmation school, the youth is celebrated in a confirmation service with friends and family.

Approximately 80% of Finnish teenagers participate in confirmation classes, making it a shared cultural and spiritual experience. The most popular format is the confirmation camp, where participants spend a week in a camp environment, engaging in lessons, discussions, activities, and worship. Other options include day confirmation classes or private sessions for those unable to attend a camp. Participation is open to everyone, even those who are not members of the church, allowing all young people the opportunity to explore Christian faith in a welcoming environment. Also those who have not been baptized can be baptized during confirmation school.

While most confirmation schools are in Finnish, the Church in Vantaa offers an English-language confirmation camp at Vantaankoski Parish. While everyone is welcome to the International Confirmation Camp, the camp is popular with those who prefer to speak English or have an international background.

The goal of confirmation school is to enhance participants’ knowledge of the Christian faith, build a sense of community, and inspire thoughtful reflection on life’s important questions. Confirmation school (Ripari) concludes with the confirmation ceremony. It is a celebration shared by the young person and their loved ones. After the confirmation, the young person can independently participate in Holy Communion. They also gain the right to serve as a godparent and get married in the church.

Registration in the Service Portal

The guardian registers the youth for confirmation school through the Vantaa parishes’ service portal. When using the service for the first time, you must log in with strong authentication via online banking credentials or a mobile certificate. At the same time, the guardian will create a username and password for the registration platform. The username and password created during registration will be needed later to pay for the confirmation camp fee. Please save the username and password for later use!

Important Notes for Registration

• If you want to attend a Finnish-speaking Confimation School, please do so by contacting your local parish. You can check your local parish through this linkLinkki avautuu uudessa välilehdessä.
• Registration for the International Confirmation School through this link.
• If the youth opts for a Finnish confirmation school, read the following instructions carefully:

Discuss suitable confirmation school options at home. Try to choose camps at different times of the year (winter break, Easter, early summer, mid-summer, late summer). When registering, choose at least five camps that have suitable schedules. You may select more than five camps, but at least five must be chosen to proceed with the registration. We cannot guarantee that the youth will be placed in the first choice, but everyone will get a spot from one of their choices.

Requests for a Specific Group

If there are special reasons for choosing a particular confirmation group (e.g., international-level competitive sports), please provide the information in the additional information section or contact the parish confirmation school workers.

NOTE: We can only consider very strong reasons and justifications, as there are over a thousand participants attending confirmation camps annually in Church in Vantaa.

If there are any challenges in the young person’s life (e.g., illness, learning challenges, bullying, etc.), the confirmation leaders should be aware of these. The camp aims to ensure the well-being of the youth. Answer ”yes” to the relevant question on the registration form, and we will contact the guardian before finalizing the group members. This way, the young person’s situation can be taken into account when assigning them to a group. All confirmation camps aim to consider the needs of the young person whenever possible. Support for attending confirmation camp is available. In the city camp or Vantaa parishes’ special support camp, the young person’s needs can be considered more individually.

Using the Friend Code

• Many of the youth wish to attend confirmation camp with a friend. In this case, the friend code is used during registration. Here are the instructions for using the friend code:
• The friend code can be used by a maximum of three people. Agree with the group of friends and guardians on five confirmation camp options that suit everyone’s schedules.
• Choose who among the friends (maximum three people) will register first. Their guardian will complete the registration normally.
• After the registration, the guardian will receive a confirmation email containing the friend code. This code is passed to one or two other friends.
• The remaining friends in the group will register for the camp using the friend code. The guardian selects the ”register with friend code” option during the registration. A field will appear where the friend code is entered.
• Once the friend code is entered, the registration system will automatically select the same camp options as the first registrant. Do not change the selections!
• The system will automatically place the friend-coded individuals into the same camp group when assigning groups.

NOTE: If the young person and their friend live in different Vantaa parishes (e.g., Vantaankoski, Hämeenkylä, Tikkurila, Korso, Rekola, Hakunila, Vanda Svenska), they need to register in both parishes separately. The registration must be done for each parish, and each will have its own friend code. The young person and their friend will receive a confirmation camp spot from one of the parishes.

When and How to Know Your Confirmation Group?

The confirmation groups will be assigned after the registration period ends. Therefore, the order or speed of registration does not matter.
Confirmation group information will be announced at the end of November. The information about the assigned group will be sent to the guardian’s email. We will also email the guardians about other confirmation-related matters. Please ensure that the guardian’s email is correct during the registration.

How much does confirmation camp cost?

The majority of the confirmation school’s cost is covered by the general church tax, but a deductible is to be paid by the participant. 

Example prices (check more from your local parish):

• The fee for City Camps is 40 €.
• The fee for Combination Camps / Easter Camp is 120 €.
• The fee for Week-long Confirmation Camps is 160 €.

Billing

Billing is done electronically through the same system as the registration. The guardian will receive an email with the confirmation camp fee information, so it is especially important during registration that the guardian provides an up-to-date email address and phone number.

Financial assistance for the camp fee is available!

Financial difficulties should not prevent participation in the camp. The parish’s diaconal work supports families in difficult situations.

Forms can be obtained from the parish office, confirmation workers, or deacons, along with instructions on how to provide information of the family’s financial situation.

International Confirmation Camp

The international confirmation camp is for young people who are interested in multiculturalism and the English language, new friendships and unforgettable memories!

Each year, youth from Vantaa, Helsinki metropolitan area, and all around the world take part in the International Confirmation Camp. Many of the participants are Finnish and speak Finnish as their first language. Some live abroad but have Finnish roots. Others live in Finland and come from multicultural families. The international confirmation camp is open to everyone!

At the camp, we speak both English and Finnish — it’s a great opportunity to strengthen your skills in both languages!

The International Confirmation Camp is organised by Vantaankoski ParishLinkki avautuu uudessa välilehdessä and will be held in twice:

• The first from 16.-17.7 in Vantaa Myyrmäki.
• The second from 20.7-26.7 in Särsjärvi Camp Center.
• The Confirmation Mass will be held in Myyrmäen kirkkoLinkki avautuu uudessa välilehdessä on August the 1st.

The guardian does the registration to Confirmation Camp.
Registration 1.-10.2025
REGISTERATE HERELinkki avautuu uudessa välilehdessä

For enquiries you can contact Vantaankoski youthworker Suvi Vanhakylä on +358 44 422 0386 / suvi.vanhakyla@evl.fi.