Taitaja is the annual competition for young VET students and apprentices. In the finals over 350 participants compete for the Finnish championships in about 40 skill categories over three days of competition.

The competitions are designed to capture the essence of skills at work and for work. They test the essential skills and competencies of occupations to the standards set by national qualification requirements. Together with the competition there are a lot of non-competition actions and events, like skills shows, try a trade opportunities, an educational fair and various conferences.

Taitaja is the largest single annual vocational training event organised in Finland and it gathers spectators in the tens of thousands. The objective of the event is to improve the quality and attractiveness of vocational education and training. The competition encourages young people to improve, utilise and highlight their excellence in skills and is an excellent platform for finding young talent for the international competitions.

Taitaja2011 took place in Kuopio 3.–5.5.2011. The event attracted more visitors than ever: almost 67.000 people visited the competition during three days. Taitaja2012 will be held in Jyväskylä 24–26 April 2012.