Begin your stay in Helsinki with a visit to the Welcome Fair!

WF_KUVA

In no time at all it will be January and we are looking forward to greet all our new exchange and visiting students here at the University of Helsinki.

Your exchange experience will begin with a visit to the Welcome Fair on January 8th, 2015, as well as your Faculty orientation. So you need to take part in both! Remember to bring your official ID (passport, ID card) with you – otherwise you won’t be able to get all of the official matters out of the way.

Continue reading “Begin your stay in Helsinki with a visit to the Welcome Fair!”

Meet HYY at the Welcome fair and the Opening carnival

Dear new student,

the Student Union of the University of Helsinki will also be present at the Welcome fair during Wednesday and Thursday. You will have the possibility to pay the membership fee in cash and get to know the student union benefits better. It is also possible to join the Student Union at the office at Mannerheimintie 5 A, between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. The deadline for the membership fee payment is on September 1st. Continue reading “Meet HYY at the Welcome fair and the Opening carnival”

Why to join the Student Union of the University of Helsinki?

The concept of student union was not new to me as it exists in almost every country. Still, when I came to Finland, I was astonished by the functioning and influence of student unions in Finland.

When I got accepted in the University of Helsinki, for the confirmation of my admission I was supposed to pay around 100 euro for Helsingin yliopiston ylioppilaskunta (HYY) [The student union of the University of Helsinki]. I admit this didn’t make me very happy. At that time, I assumed HYY is just some other student union which probably won’t do anything. Again to my surprise, I was totally wrong.

Before I go any further, I would like to make a little introduction about HYY. It came into being in 1868 making it the oldest students union in Finland. Due to its rich history, culture and well-structured organization it has always made a big influence on the National politics of Finland. Apart from its extensive history HYY is the largest in Finland with approximately 32,000 members and making it one of the richest student unions.

Viikki kesa¦êkuu 2014-30
Mian and Li at the Ladonlukko Unicafe restaurant.

Where does all this money and influence go? Continue reading “Why to join the Student Union of the University of Helsinki?”

The Orientation Handbook is now available online!

The Orientation Handbook for the academic year 2014-15 is now available online. The handbook contains a lot of practical information that will help you get started with your student life and to navigate through daily life. It includes for example general information about living in Finland and studying in the University of Helsinki.

A printed copy will be given to all new international students at the Welcome Fair in August 2014.

It’s the ultimate survival guide for new students, so have a look at it!

To the Orientation Handbook on our New students website >>

Applying to University of Helsinki as an exchange student

Has your home university selected you for exchange at the University of Helsinki? Thinking about what to do next? Congratulations! You are making a good choice.vaihtari

Every spring about 600 students from UH’s partner universities apply to UH as exchange students, planning to come here for one semester or a year. In total, University of Helsinki welcomes about 1000 exchange students each year, for one term or for the full academic year.

If you have already been nominated by your own university, you have taken the first steps towards becoming an exchange student. The next steps are outlined below. Continue reading “Applying to University of Helsinki as an exchange student”

Begin your stay in Helsinki with a visit to the Welcome Fair!

WF_orientation_January_2014In no time at all it will be January and we are looking forward to greet all our new exchange and visiting students here at the University of Helsinki.

Your exchange experience will begin with a visit to the Welcome Fair on January 8th or 9th, 2014, as well as your Faculty orientation. So you need to take part in both! Remember to bring your official ID (passport, ID card) with you – otherwise you won’t be able to get all of the official matters out of the way. Continue reading “Begin your stay in Helsinki with a visit to the Welcome Fair!”

Experiencing Finland – event for newly arrived university staff, Phd students and family members

Are you a new international staff member or a PhD student at the University? Come and learn more about the Finnish culture and traditions, and meet colleagues from Aalto University and University of Helsinki!

The Experiencing Finland event touches topics like Experiencing Autumn and Winter in Finland, How to Effectively Communicate and Socialize with Finns, Finland with Children and Working with Finns.

Family members are most welcome and coffee, tea and a cinnamon buns (korvapuusti in Finnish) will be served upon arrival!

You can read more about the event and register for it in Flamma (loggin with your university user account).

Moi, are you interested in learning Finnish?

The time to register for the Autumn Semester’s Finnish courses is starting soon! You can study Finnish in The University of Helsinki on all our four campuses: City centre, Viikki, Meilahti and Kumpula campus, and in several different levels of study too.

Why study Finnish you might ask? Because, learning Finnish will help you to settle in, to stay informed of what is happening in the university and in Helsinki and ultimately – if you’re planning on staying in Finland for a longer time – help you in finding a job! It is also part of the degree requirements in some faculties that international students will study at least some Finnish or Swedish. Continue reading “Moi, are you interested in learning Finnish?”

Printed version of the Orientation Handbook for International Students now available!

You might have already gotten to know the online version of the Orientation Handbook 2013-2014. Now the book is also available in printed form and if you are already in Helsinki you can come and get your own copy from the Student Services at the university main building (Fabianinkatu 33, ground floor). For those who will be arriving in Helsinki at the beginning of the academic year, the handbook will be handed out at the Welcome Fair 28/8-29/8. Until then we advise you to use the online one.

The handbook contains a lot of practical information that will help you get started with your student life and to navigate through daily life. It includes for example general information about living in Finland and studying in the University of Helsinki. It’s the ultimate survival guide for new students so browse through and also let your friends know!