Does Information Sharing Encourage Participation in Education? Final Report on the Letter Mail Experiment and the Outreach Pilot

Karhunen HannuKauhanen AnttiKuhakoski JaniRiukula KristaSuhonen TuomoVanhala PekkaVirtanen Hanna

Abstract

This study evaluated the effectiveness of two different measures in increasing participation in adult education among adults with low educational attainment, using a randomised field experiment. In the first part, an information letter was sent to 50,000 individuals with only basic education, outlining educational options, the benefits of studying, and available financial support. The results indicated that providing general information alone had no effect on starting studies. In the second experiment, service providers visited SMEs and offered tailored educational guidance, organising 1,322 information sessions attended by 2,726 employees. Of these, 1,718 belonged to the target group, with their highest level of education being comprehensive school or upper secondary school. This more personalised and intensive measure increased participation in upper secondary education within the target group by 0.75 percentage points (approximately 8 percent), but also caused a slight decrease in monthly earnings, suggesting a shift in time allocation between studying and working. The study demonstrates that simply disseminating information is insufficient; effectiveness requires more individualised and costlier actions, the benefits and costs of which must be weighed carefully.

Publication info

Results of research
Evaluation of Continuous Learning Participation
Research group
Labour market and education
Series
ETLA Raportit - Reports 174
Date
16.03.2026
Keywords
Adult education, Low-educated, Information intervention, Field experiment, Lifelong learning
ISSN
2323-2447, 2323-2455 (Pdf)
JEL
I21, J24, O15
Pages
40
Language
Finnish