Questions continue to surround the Finnish Institute for International Affairs' (FIIA) decision to grant an internship to President Alexander Stubb's son.

Before getting the internship, 21-year-old Oliver Stubb was among 59 applicants for the post, and one of five selected for an interview.

But an Yle investigation — and a request for documents related to the internship programme process — revealed that Oliver Stubb had less experience and educational achievement than his fellow applicants.

The requested information showed that Oliver Stubb was one of only two people at the institute who had been offered the internship post as an undergraduate. The other undergrad intern had comparatively more course credits than Stubb, who was a first-year student at the University of Exeter in the UK when he applied.

The other applicants all had more work experience than the president's son, who had listed his conscription service and student organisation volunteer work on his list of accomplishments on the application.

The FIIA has defended Oliver Stubb's selection, characterising him as an applicant with high motivation and expertise.

However, according to the documents seen by Yle, other applicants had employment experience, including in the service or logistics sector, while others had worked at an embassy or as language interpreters.

The internship is related to a research project focused on Finnish foreign policy, security in Northern Europe and Nato.

Different financing offers

The FIIA requires intern applicants to arrange funding for the paid internships. They can seek support from Finnish universities or scholarships from the EU-funded Erasmus+ programme.

Previously, due to that arrangement, the institute had not accepted applicants who study in the UK or the US. In the past, this policy would have ruled out Oliver Stubb's application.

However, according to emails seen by Yle, it appears that the president's son had contacted the institute two days before the policy changed.

An email thread also suggests that the FIIA's HR chief, Marie-Louise Hindsberg, encouraged Oliver Stubb to apply, despite questions about the internship's funding.

The institute's initial internship opening announcement called for applicants to say how it would be funded.

Another email thread showed the HR chief replying to a fellow applicant, stating that their application would not be accepted if a financing plan was not included.

The FIIA's basic funding comes from the Finnish Parliament, on top of support from other government agencies and a foundation, according to the institute's website.

Email messages also showed that when Oliver Stubb's funding plan was revealed, he received slightly less support than financing offered by Finnish universities.

This revelation suggested that his internship will be slightly more expensive for the Finnish state than it would have been for other applicants.

Earlier this month, FIIA director, Hiski Haukkala, informed the institute's board about the selection process, in an explanation it characterised as "detailed".

However, when Yle requested to see the contents of the report Haukkala gave the board, the institute said it had been delivered verbally and therefore could not be released.

After Haukkala's update to the board, it stated that it is important for internship application procedures to be clear and consistent.

A number of complaints regarding the institute's selection of Oliver Stubb have been filed with legislative authorities — with 11 filed at the Parliamentary Ombudsman, and two with the Chancellor of Justice.

Among other things, the complainants asked the authorities to determine whether Oliver Stubb was favoured over other applicants and whether there were potential violations in their administrative practices.