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Senior Specialist, public administration

Professions Published

In public administration, a senior specialist acts as a public official in their area of responsibility. The profession involves specialist, development and administrative duties. Public officials are required to have good knowledge of their area of responsibility, master civic service ethics, and have communication and interaction skills as well as language skills. Their jobs are in different units of public administration, such as municipalities, regional administration or ministries.

Public administration, such as municipalities, regional and local administration, ministries and Parliament.

Browse job postings: Senior Specialist, public administration

The profession of a senior specialist emphasises good knowledge of one’s area of responsibility and understanding the relevant legislation, the decision-making system of public administration, and administration. The profession requires continuous monitoring of societal changes and familiarisation with research and development in one’s own specialised field. A public official’s duties may focus on, for example, the implementation, development and supervision of policy programmes or legislation, communications or administrative work.

The professional must be familiar with the provisions of civil service law that define the rights and obligations of public officials insofar as they concern their duties. The ability to reflect on one’s actions from the perspective of ethics is also necessary. As they exercise public power, the authorities and officials have the responsibility to ensure that their actions meet the requirements of impartiality, independence and fairness. The public official has a particular relation with the citizen, and a public service employment relationship comes with values and principles associated with this fact.

The profession requires visual the ability to perceive the whole and good written and oral presentation skills, as the duties often involves performing and carrying out various analyses. The public official is required to have excellent cooperation, interaction and communication skills as well as use information technology well. Networking is also a useful skill. In positions focusing on international tasks, proficiency in the other required languages is often necessary in addition to Finnish and Swedish skills.

Appropriate education and training depend on the position, but common educational backgrounds in the profession include master of laws, social sciences, administrative science and economics.

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It is determined based on the position. Usually, a master’s degree is required. Central government officials are required to be proficient in Swedish

Median salary

4300 €/mo

Private sector

4219 €/mo

Public sector

4325 €/mo

The data is based on the median income, meaning the amount of salary which is the middle of the salary amounts arranged in order of magnitude.

Source: Statistics Finland's structural statistics on wages and salaries

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