National higher education conferences tend to offer international participants a rare dive into the thinking, key vocabulary, most pressing topics and innovative approaches in the internationalisation of higher education. The 2026 edition of the Spring Forum, taking place in Kotka 18-20 May is the annual coming together of the international higher education community in Finland. The Forum was organised by ACA’s member the Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI) and hosted this year by Xamk, the South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences, also member of the INGENIUM European Universities alliance. Under the theme Finland of Promises – Making Internationality a Reality, the diverse programme facilitated reflections and provided practical examples around the broader question of how can Finland ensure that international cooperation in mobility, research, networks and responsibility continues to move beyond ambitious aspirations and further becomes a lived reality in higher education institutions. 

Opening the forum, Xamk rector Heikki Saastamoinen highlighted the university's role in the Kymenlaakso and South Savo regions, emphasising how the institution contributes to regional vitality by attracting international students and expertise, supporting local companies through collaboration and applied research, and helping bring skilled talent to the area. The opening session also featured keynote speeches from Irina Ferencz, Director of the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA), and Juan Rayón González, Director of the European university alliance INGENIUM. The first keynote provided a translation of EU’s current policy objectives around skills and competitiveness, as well as talent attraction and retention, showcasing how they shape the upcoming Erasmus+ programme, with an overview of where developments stand on the next programme. The second keynote called for deeper cooperation between European universities, proposing a shared vision of moving from strategic collaboration towards genuine integration, following the EU integration model. 

The INGENIUM alliance was prominently featured throughout the forum. By way of example, Xamk colleagues Eeva Kuoppala, Tiina Parkkonen and Anniina Hämäläinen, shared practical experiences of dismantling institutional barriers, reconciling learning opportunities across systems, and supporting smoother study and career paths for students and staff in a dedicated workshop. 

More broadly, the forum explored the many forms internationalisation takes in day-to-day university life, from research collaboration and joint course offerings to challenge-based learning, where companies provide real-life cases for international student teams to solve. One prominent strand of sessions related to the work with recruitment agents to improve the outcomes and completion rates of international students, with many interesting practices shared by different types of institutions, while another strand tackled the growing support that higher education professionals are expected to provide for the labour market integration of international graduates from Finnish universities. The event also tackled the question on how to tackle rapid change and uncertainty in international education, zooming into the necessary skills, channels and support networks.  

The forum closed with remarks from Kaisu Piiroinen of the Ministry of Education and Culture, who outlined policy developments currently under preparation, including Finland's Vision for Higher Education 2040, updates to the Team Finland Knowledge network, and several projects related to the entry and residence of international students. Maija Airas, Head of Unit at EDUFI, closed the event by reflecting on the value of peer exchange – both in formal sessions and over informal discussions – as the defining feature of the Spring Forum.