Did you know that more than 3,000 people work at the University of Eastern Finland, employed under 225 different professional titles? This story sheds light on who they are, where they come from, and what they do.
- Text by Nina Venhe and Risto Löf | Graphics by Bettiina Lievonen | Photos by Raija Törrönen and Varpu Heiskanen
Professors, research assistants, pharmacists, information specialists, HR secretaries, laboratory assistants, doctoral researchers, instrument technicians, study psychologists, communications coordinators, executive assistants, IT systems architects, facilities management officers...
The diversity of the University of Eastern Finland as a work community is something one rarely thinks about. However, there are more than three thousand of us, working under 225 different professional titles. The expertise available at the university spans far and wide. We are also a genuinely international community: our employees hail from 77 different countries.
When also counting our students –16,000 of them pursuing a degree and 25,000 completing studies in the Open University – we get to a number that is equivalent to a small city inside our campus cities, Joensuu and Kuopio.
Through selected key figures, this story paints a picture of the University of Eastern Finland as a work community: where people working at the university come from, and what they do. To learn more about the careers of our staff, please visit: www.uef.fi/en/career-stories.
Finland’s first university was founded in Turku almost 400 years ago. Compared to that, the University of Eastern Finland a young university, but with roots in ancient wisdom. It came into existence in 2010 as a result of a merger of what used to be known as the University of Joensuu and the University of Kuopio.
Over the past ten years or so, the University of Eastern Finland has evolved into a major, attractive and diverse university that currently employs 3,168 people. Roughly 1,700 of them work in Kuopio, and 1,500 in Joensuu. The number of staff has steadily increased and continues to grow, which in itself is a sign of a successful organisation.
The university’s attractive education, development of teaching and high standard of research, as well as various successful proposals to secure external funding, for example, have created a positive cycle that feeds itself and contributes to the university’s growth.
The University of Eastern Finland has its roots in two regions of Finland, and people living in both these regions, North Savo and North Karelia, are happy to call the university their own. Nowadays, however, research and education cross regional and national borders, and strongly rely on international collaboration. Indeed, our community is genuinely international,
with our staff members hailing from 77 different countries. This is a huge number of countries and speaks volumes about the university’s diversity, although people’s country of origin is, or course, just one indicator used in statistics.
Our goal is to increase the share of our international staff to 22% by 2024. We’ve nearly reached this goal, although the pandemic has, for its part, also curbed mobility. We are constantly working for staff attraction and retention, and services in this field will also be further developed.
Professors work at the university, this is something everyone knows. But we also employ a range of other specialists who work in teaching, research and supporting roles. This network of specialists and supporting services is essential to the university’s core mission: to conduct a high standard of research and to deliver a high standard of education.
Over the years, the share of teaching and research staff has increased at the University of Eastern Finland. The share of other staff, including university administration and supporting roles, has been influenced by consolidation of the predecessor universities’ services, persistent structural reforms, and digitalisation.
Professional titles held by teaching and research staff are familiar to many, but when it comes to specialist and supporting roles, the range of titles is broad. This shows that the university is home to plenty of skills and specialised expertise.
I see myself primarily as a member of an international network. Scientists are mobile people, and we find ourselves where it’s beneficial at each time.
Alina Solomon
Associate Professor in neuroepidemiology
In recent years, the University of Eastern Finland has basked in the limelight, thanks to its many new initiatives. While the #minätutkin hashtag, partly originating from the university, was trending on Twitter and UEF’s very own woollen socks got everyone knitting last Christmas, the university’s well-thought-out staff benefits have also been noticed.
The status of grant-funded researchers at the University of Eastern Finland was improved in summer 2021, allowing them to conclude a part-time, 10%, contract of employment with the university and guaranteeing them access to the benefits normally associated with an employment relationship. This also fosters their integration into the academic community. In 2021, part-time contracts of employment were concluded with 73 grant-funded researchers right away.
Another employment-related initiative was the establishment of a shared doctoral researcher system, in which selected doctoral researchers are completing their doctoral research at the university while also simultaneously working for an external employer. The aim of the system is to increase and strengthen university-business collaboration. The first doctoral researchers under this system were selected in 2021, and next selections are currently under way.
The will to achieve a truly inclusive university starts from the individual, from each of us taking responsibility for promoting it.
Susanna Kohonen
University Lecturer
The University of Eastern Finland also wants to advance the careers of accomplished researchers through the UEF Research Fellow programme. UEF Research Fellows are selected from among researchers who received a good score in the Academy of Finland's call for Academy Research Fellow positions, but whose project nevertheless was not selected for funding. The first seven UEF Research Fellows started in autumn 2022, and the model will also be continued: for the autumn 2022 call, selections will be made in summer 2023.
Work to develop UEF’s career models is also under way, meaning that new openings will be made, for example, with regard to the career models for researchers and teachers, in addition to what has been mentioned above. The University of Eastern Finland has, since 2012, complied with the principles of the European Commission in the development of research careers, and long-term development will continue.
The very variety of different professions at the university makes each day here an interesting one.
Kjell Grinden
Facility Secretary
Introduced in spring 2022, the employer-provided bicycle benefit attracted a lot of good publicity, and got a lot of people cycling.
The benefit offered by the University of Eastern Finland is a fringe benefit, which is exempt from tax up to 1,200 euros per year. It is available to all monthly salaried employees of the University of Eastern Finland.
The benefit constitutes part of the university's work to promote sustainable development and responsibility, and it encourages not only commuting by bike, but also staying in good shape.
At the university, you can grow and develop in different roles, and thus get more responsibility. You don’t have to worry about getting stuck in basic work and repeat mode.
Tomi Kontio
IT Solutions Architect
Of course, the university does not live in its own bubble, but the impact of the academic community is felt in many ways by the campus cities of Joensuu and Kuopio, and also beyond. The university is the third largest public-sector employer in the campus cities. Academic experts and employees in different fields bring vitality to the cities, and students liven up the cityscape.
Joensuu hosts Finland’s largest student population in relation to the overall population: more than 20,000 of the city’s inhabitants are students. In Kuopio, too, students are the largest age group in the city. Bustling with students, the campus cities offer a range of services, events and leisure opportunities. Students are also keen users of the services provided, they need housing and attract investments into the cities. Employers, on the other hand, benefit from students wishing to take on summer jobs and work during peak seasons.
The impact of teacher education and speech therapist education offered on the Joensuu Campus is felt throughout eastern Finland, and in Joensuu, the share of qualified teachers in schools is more than 99%. Similarly, the health research and education cluster in the Savilahti campus area in Kuopio is important for health sector organisations and businesses throughout eastern Finland.
The launch of education in technology at the University of Eastern Finland in autumn 2023 will also further boost the regions’ vitality, employment rates and business activities.
To learn more about people’s careers at UEF, please visit: uef.fi/en/career-stories.
For this story, we interviewed Director of Human Resources and Staff Well-being Ulla Hurskainen at the University of Eastern Finland, Development Director Jani Kaasinen at the City of Joensuu, and Strategy Director Sirpa Lätti-Hyvönen at the City of Kuopio. The figures shown in this story reflect the situation of September 2022 at the University of Eastern Finland.
