Apply to become a student representative in the university’s administrative bodies in the supplementary call for applications 2025

This is your chance to influence matters! The Student Union of the University of Helsinki is looking for student representatives for diverse duties. Check out all the open positions in the University’s administrative bodies below!

Degree programme steering groups

Each degree programme at the University of Helsinki has a steering group that supports the director of the degree programme and processes the central issues related to the degree programme’s operation. The steering group of a degree programme prepares the degree programme’s curriculum. The curriculum is made for three years at a time and determines the following issues:

• What courses are included in the degrees
• What kind of methods to complete courses are offered
• What kind of attendance requirements courses have
• What kind of learning objectives courses have

The steering group of a degree programme decides on the annual teaching schedule of the degree programme. The teaching schedule is a kind of implementation plan for the curriculum. It determines the following issues related to courses:

• Timing
• Schedule
• Teaching locations

In other words, the teaching schedule includes all the extremely important details students need to know about courses for the entire academic year. As a member of a steering group, you will thus get to influence all the things that are realised in the teaching provided in your degree programme. This is a real chance to influence matters on a practical level! By attending the meetings, you also may receive a meeting fee of 35e per meeting. Serving as a student representative will also provide you with valuable experience that is relevant in working life as well as help you form important networks.

All steering groups of degree programmes have two actual and two vice student members. The steering groups also have a maximum of six teachers from the degree programme, with no vice members. Steering groups are chaired by the director of the degree programme. We are now looking for student representatives for the term 1 January 2025–31 December 2026. Depending on the language of the degree programme, the working language of the steering groups of degree programmes is either Finnish, English or Swedish. However, it is also possible to agree on the language used in the meetings separately.

Board of the Helsinki University library

The board’s duties include especially processing the library’s implementation plan and the personnel plan and budget included in it as well as resolving any matters that the director has referred to it due to their importance or breadth. The board also acts as an expert body on the fields of library and information services at the University of Helsinki.

The board has 13 members along with their vice members, and it is appointed by the Rector. The board has representatives of the University’s highest management, different disciplines, the personnel of the library and the interest groups and cooperation partners of the University. The board also has two student members along with their vice members. The Student Union is now looking for a vice student representatives for the board of the library. The term of the student representatives is 1 April 2025–31 March 2026. The board’s working language is Finnish.

Samarbetsgruppen för den tvåspråkiga verksamheten på centrumcampus

The cooperation group for bilingual affairs on the City Centre campus, or Samarbetsgruppen för den tvåspråkiga verksamheten på centrumcampus, develops and coordinates Swedish-language and bilingual activities and teaching on the campus. The group may deal with matters including students’ opportunities of taking exams bilingually and receiving cross-disciplinary teaching in Swedish. You can apply for the administrative body if you study in the Faculty of Arts, Faculty of Law, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Social Science or Swedish School of Social Science. We are looking for one vice member for the term 1 april 2024–31 march 2026. The working group’s working language is Swedish.

Tvex-samarbetsgruppen

The cooperation group for bilingual degrees, or Tvex-samarbetsgruppen, has representation from parties involved with bilingual degrees on the Viikki, Kumpula and City Centre campuses. The group’s duties include supporting cooperation over faculty boundaries and sharing good practices. You can apply for the position if you study or have studied for a bilingual degree on the Kumpula campus. We are now looking for one actual member from Viikki campus for the term 1 January 2025–31 December 2026. The cooperation group’s working language is Swedish.

Language centre’s teaching development group

The Language Centre at the University of Helsinki organises the language and communication studies for all degree programmes. Every year, 14 000 domestic and international students from all campuses and degree programmes study at the Language Centre.

The teaching development group of the Language Centre features both staff and student members. The group promotes and supports the planning, implementation and evaluation of teaching at the Language Centre. It plans and organises the Language Centre’s pedagogical training events and seminars. Discussion topics in the group include current issues related to teaching and particularly language studies at the Language Centre and the University of Helsinki. The development group’s working language is Finnish. We are looking for a vice member for the term 1 Aprill 2024- 31 March 2026

Campus library advisory boards of the University of Helsinki

Apply to the advisory board of your campus library to influence the services of your own library! All four of the University’s campus libraries have their own advisory board. The boards are tasked with acting as a cooperation forum for the library’s users and participating in issues such as the strategic development of library services and the planning of collection acquisitions. We are looking for 1 actual member from Meilahti campus and 1 actual members from Viikki campus for the period 1.4.2024-31.3.2026

Faculty councils

Faculty councils are multi-member administrative bodies of the faculties. They are chaired by deans. The duties of faculty councils include developing teaching and research at the faculty, controlling quality management, deciding on issues such as degree requirements, curricula and student selection criteria and processing any far-reaching plans and other important matters of principle at the faculty.

As a member of a faculty council, you will get to influence the future direction of your faculty and discipline, make students’ voice heard and create useful networks at the same time. Vice members may usually also attend the meetings and speak in them. The faculty councils of the following faculties currently have open positions:

• Faculty of Biological and Environmental Sciences: 2 vice members
• Faculty of Pharmacy: 1 actual member, 3 vice members
• Faculty of arts: 3 Vice member
• Faculty of educational sciences: 2 vice members
• Faculty of Agriculture and forestry: 3 vice members
• Faculty of science 1 Vice member
• Faculty of Theology: 1 vice member
• Faculty of Social sciences: 1 vice member

What is expected of student representatives?

You must be registered for attendance at the University of Helsinki. No special skills are required – having the desire to learn and the motivation to serve as a student representative is of primary importance. Thoroughly reading the meeting material before the meeting, asking for the opinions of – depending on the situation – either your fellow students or subject organisation on the issues on the meeting agenda and speaking up at the meeting itself are quite enough to be successful in the position. Check out the possible special criteria for each administrative body from its application form in the Halloped application system.

How do I apply to become a student representative?

Applications should be submitted in the Halloped application system (beta.halloped.fi/en) by 11.59 pm on 9 June 2025. In your application, please indicate the following:

• Your current degree programme and study orientation
• Check out whether the position you are applying for has any special criteria or qualities that may be considered useful and should be included in the application from the Halloped application system.

The Student Union also considers the following as advantages, and we recommend including any related information in your application:

• Motivation towards serving in the position and readiness to commit to the duties
• Connections to the students of the degree programme
• Previous experience of acting as a student representative, as a person in charge of academic affairs or in some other position related to student advocacy work

The Student Union hopes to see applications from representatives of different genders and people in different stages of their studies from diverse backgrounds. We assume that you are available for the positions of both actual member and vice member. The Student Union strives to consider different disciplines’ representation when making the selections.

Further information on acting in the steering groups of degree programmes and on the call for applications, please contact:

Specialist in educational policy

Riku-Petteri Kyllönen

riku-petteri.kyllonen@hyy.fi

050 325 5202