Jussi Pajunen has a B.Sc and M.Sc from the Helsinki School of Economics and MBA from INSEAD in France.

In 2011, he was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Aalto University School of Economics.

[1] He was granted the honorary title of ylipormestari (Swedish: överborgmästare) by the Finnish president in 2006.

However Pajunen did not disqualify himself when the Master Plan 2002 was approved in the City Board on 26 November 2005.

The Supreme Administrative Court of Finland judicially disqualified Pajunen and the part of the Master Plan that would have had significant effect in the Malmi area was reverted.