Deutsche Schule Helsinki

Deutsche Schule Helsinki (DSH; Finnish: Helsingin Saksalainen koulu, German for "German school Helsinki") is a partly bilingual, German and Finnish-speaking school located in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. DSH is a member of the German Schools Abroad Network DAS.

Deutsche Schule Helsinki (DSH)
Location
Kamppi, Helsinki Finland
Information
Type	Private
Established	1881
Principal	Thomas Dietrich [1]
Grades	1–12
Enrollment	600 [2]
Website	www.dsh.fi

The school was founded in 1881 through funding from the German consul Freiherr von Lanazan, wealthy German families and the Protestant Church of Germany.[3] The school was originally held in various private apartments but now has its own facilities in Kamppi.

The school is open for everyone with an interest in the German language. In the past most of the students have been children of German families living in Finland. Meanwhile, a shift has taken place resulting in an 80% share of students with citizenship of Finland.[4]

The language studies include compulsory German and English, and voluntary Swedish, French, Latin and Russian. Students may choose in the 7th grade, if they want to take Swedish or French. Latin is available from the 8th grade.

DSH offers two paths of education from 1st till 9th grade using either Finnish or German as language of instruction. Additionally, senior high school education (10th-12th grade Oberstufe) is offered with German as language of instruction culminating with the Reifeprüfung. The "Reifeprüfung der Deutschen Schule Helsinki" entitles a student to enroll at a university both in Finland and Germany.[5][6]