The situation is especially tense in the capital. "There really aren't many free places in Tallinn," said Krista Keedus, head of education management at the Tallinn Education Department. "Estonian‑language high schools have completed their admissions and all places are filled," she added.

Tallinn's municipal high schools currently do not have the capacity to add more places, due to both space limitations and a shortage of teachers, Keedus said.

"There is no immediate plan to create additional places," she noted, pointing to the need to wait for the final data on needs and available places on 10 September.

The filling of school places is also strongly affected by the influx of residents from neighboring municipalities, as nearly 27 percent of students admitted to Tallinn's 10th grades for the new school year are not residents of the capital.

Although high school places in Tallinn are full, there are still available study places at Tallinn Applied College and the technology college Tehno Tallinn. Keedus encouraged students without a place to consider vocational education: "Our vocational education is not only vocational training — it is also vocational secondary education." "They could at least try continuing their studies there first, and if it truly doesn't suit them, then look again for a gymnasium place," she said.

Places in preparatory studies — intended for students with weaker final results — were also filled already in the summer. Discussions are currently underway with the Ministry of Education about creating additional places based on need.

The final deadline for local governments to offer solutions to students in need is 1 November, but officials are already trying to contact young people now to understand why they have ended up without a school place.

"It is of course sad if young people haven't managed to secure a school place by 1 September and cannot start their school year," Keedus said. "But that doesn't mean starting later — a few days or even weeks — would be impossible. Their learning opportunities are certainly not locked," she added.

Keedus also pointed out that in previous years, the number of young people who ended their education after basic school was similar or slightly smaller, although monitoring was incomplete before the study obligation was introduced.

"The ministry has monitored each year how many young people do not reach the next level of education, and that number has usually been around 400–500," Keedus said.

"Previously, this was not a legal problem. It was, however, a problem for the young people and for Estonia as a whole, because those who continue their education have better chances of coping in life — which is why the study obligation was established. Until now, this issue wasn't directly on the table, because young people had the freedom to go to work, for example, and therefore we did not conduct this kind of ongoing monitoring at the start of the school year," Keedus explained.

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