Orientation and Tutoring

Tutoring is a support arrangement for the new students at the University of Helsinki. It introduces you to the Finnish university life and makes it easier for you to settle into the new environment. You will be assigned a tutor (or a peer counsellor) and a tutoring group. Students are divided into groups on the basis of the faculty or the degree programme in which they begin their studies at the University of Helsinki. The groups are led by student tutors of the same faculty.

The student tutors assist you with the most important things you need to do during the first couple of days. Your tutor can point out where to register as a resident, where to get your travel card, where your faculty is, and who to contact there and where the most important services on the campuses and around the city are. Tutoring is successful when the members of the tutoring group cooperate. When the group and the tutor work together, each student will get the most out of the tutoring sessions.

You can already get to know some of our tutors for autumn 2020 on Instructions for students!

Watch the Welcome to the University video on Unitube.

Each autumn and spring, before the classes begin, there is an orientation week which is a week full of activities for all new international students. It is a not-to-be-missed opportunity to get to know the campuses and the university and to get all the official matters out of the way.

Please note that if you miss the orientation week, the start of your studies will be more time-consuming and challenging as you have to take care of everything independently.

Degree students might receive some credits for the orientation. Please ask more information from your degree programme.

Important dates

Autumn 2020

• Welcome Fair: 25 August & 26 August 2020
• Orientation Week: 25 August – 28 August 2020

Spring 2021

• Welcome Fair: 12 January 2021
• Orientation Week: 12 January – 15 January 2021

Wel­come Fair

The Welcome Fair (25–26 August) will be arranged in the autumn of 2020 on a smaller scale, divided to all four campuses in order to minimize the contacts and unnecessary travel. Only the necessary services for getting your studies started will be present. At the Welcome Fair, you can get your student certificate, activate your university user account and get your travel discount certificate for the travel card. All the other services offered to students will be presented in separate newsletters instead.

Locations of the Welcome Fair in the autumn of 2020:

If you wish to join the Student Union, please pay the Student Union fee before your arrival. For payment information please see the instructions for annual registration. Remember to bring the receipt with you!

Remember to bring your official ID with you to the Welcome Fair (passport or ID card; it is recommended that EU citizens also bring their passports for their stay in Finland). Otherwise you will not be able to get all of the official matters out of the way. 

For EU/EEA citizens: Bring also your European Health Insurance Card with you. We will check the card at the Welcome Fair as it is required by the Finnish health care system. 

We recommend that you visit the Welcome Fair together with your tutor. The faculty will give you more information on when your tutor group is visiting the Welcome Fair.

Please also see the instructions for registering with the Finnish authorities.

Get to Know Your Campus

The University of Helsinki comprises four campuses. Get to know yours in advance!

• City Centre Campus (Faculties of Arts, Educational Sciences, Law, Theology and Social Sciences, Swedish School of Social Science)
• Kumpula Campus (Faculty of Science)
• Viikki Campus (Faculties of Biological And Environmental Sciences, Agriculture and Forestry, Pharmacy and Veterinary Medicine)
• Meilahti Campus (Faculty of Medicine)

Hungry?

All Bachelor’s or Master’s students who have registered as attending are entitled to an affordable student-priced lunch at the UniCafe cafeterias on all campuses. For lunch prices and the contact details of the cafeterias, please visit the UniCafe website. Exchange Students will get a certificate of student status from Welcome Fair event, before that they can get a staff member discount from UniCafe.

The video greeting from the rector to the new students and the University’s register are on display on the 2nd floor corridor of the University main building (Fabianinkatu 33). You can watch the video and sign your name to the University’s register during the orientation week 24.8.-28.8., Monday-Thursday 10-16 and Friday 10-15.30. The video will also be published on this page on Monday 24.8., so you can also watch it remotely.

In the main building, you can watch the video either standing up or sitting down, observing safe distances. You will get a University tote bag, watch the video, sign your name to the University’s register and exit the 2nd floor. The 2nd floor hall will also have student calendars provided by HYY and a University photo wall for selfies. 

Going up to the 2nd floor happens using the right-hand side stairs (when viewing from the entrance floor) and going down will happen from the left-side stairs. You can visit the main building according to your own schedule, but it is essential to avoid overcrowding the space and safe distances must be observed. 

The main building’s The Power of Thought exhibition, located on the third floor of the building, is open during the orientation week from Monday to Thursday 12-17. By visiting the exhibition, you will get the museum’s overall patch. 

If you watch the video remotely, you can also get the University's tote bag and the HYY calendar from one the other campuses, namely Meilahti, Viikki or Kumpula. 

The bags and calendars are available in the following locations:

• Kumpula: the lobby of Physicum
• Viikki: the lobby of Biocentre 1
• Meilahti: : Biomedicum 1, 3rd floor (outside the student service point)

There is a limited amount of the tote bags available.

Safe working and learning environment is our common goal also during the fall. By following these shared practises, we will ensure that everyone can work and study safely in our campuses. 

• The main building’s entrance level floor has hand sanitizer 
• Do not come to the campus if you are sick or have coronavirus symptoms 
• Make sure to keep a safe distance of 1-2 metres whenever possible (or use a face mask) 
• Use your own pen for signing your name to the University’s register 

The services offered at Kaisa House Student Information include registration for the academic year, year tags, changes in name or address information, official transcripts of records, and other general advice regarding enrolment and student benefits. Guidance Corner provides low threshold advice and guidance services on, for example, wellbeing, digital skills and job seeking. Read more on Student services' page and Guidance Corner's page.

Please note that due to the coronavirus epidemic, majority of the Guidance Corner events of fall term 2020 are organised online.

Watch the Get to know Kaisa-house Student information and Guidance Corner video on Unitube.

Studies as part of your career

Congratulations! Gaining a place to study is a wonderful achievement. It is also of vital importance for your career prospects.

You are about to embark on a new and exciting phase of your life that may, at first, also appear quite hectic. Now is a good time to stop and reflect on your path: where you have come from, where you are now and where you hope to go.

Consider and write down the following for yourself:

• What made you choose this degree programme? What are you interested in within the field?
• What factors played a role in your decision to apply? What do they say about your way of making decisions?
• How would you describe your field to your grandmother?
• Please return to these questions after the first teaching period, term or academic year. Have your answers changed?
• Challenge your perceptions: Search for concrete information on what graduates from your field do after graduation. You can start by exploring the töissä.fi website, the alumni search feature on the University of Helsinki’s LinkedIn page, and the career tracking data on the Instructions for Students website.
• The next time you find yourself pondering the question “What will I do when I grow up?”, try changing the question to “What next?”. Does it change anything?

Your career is a journey through education, employment and life, and you cannot plan your professional life separately from the other areas of your life. Our thoughts, hopes and plans are also continuously changing and evolving, as is the world around us, including the world of work.

The University’s Career Services is here for you throughout your studies and up to one year after your graduation. When considering your future, your skills or your expertise, or searching for support or advice for a traineeship or job-seeking, please explore the sections Work and career and Traineeships on the Instructions for Students website.

Watch the Studies, career and expertise video on Unitube.

If you don’t want to watch the video, you can read the narration as text (pdf).

Welcome and warm congratulations on your acceptance to the University of Helsinki, new student! On this video, the study psychologists share a few words with you about studying at university and study skills. The study psychologists offer guidance and counselling to bachelor's and master's degree students regarding issues such as academic skills, motivation, time management, well-being and thesis writing. You can check out the tips compiled by study psychologists on the Support for studies -website. More information about the services can be found on the Study psychologists services for students –website.

Watch the Orientation video by the study psychologists on Unitube.

International Exchange Services help with questions concerning exchange studies, international traineeships and flexible study rights (JOO-studies). Read more on the instructions page of the International Exchange Services.

Watch the International Exchange Services video on Unitube.

The purpose of the FSHS is to provide student health services, as stipulated in the Health Care Act, for those studying for a Bachelor’s or Master’s degree at a university or other institution of higher education.Student healthcare services include checks on health and safety aspects of the study environment, mental health and substance abuse services, oral health care, among other services. Get to know all the health services on FSHS's page.

Watch a video about FSHS on Unitube.

Read the video's commentary as text (pdf).

As a student of the University of Helsinki you will be actively using our digital learning environments. You will become familiar with services such as the Studies service, Sisu, Moodle and WebOodi. With Sisu you can plan and schedule your studies and compose a study plan, Moodle is used as a course platform, in WebOodi you can register for courses and in Studies you can find both the latest bulletins and Unicafe's menus, among other things. Watch the accompanying video to learn more about the University's digital learning environments.

UniHow is a digital reflection tool and feedback system used in University of Helsinki. The University uses the HowULearn questionnaire on learning and teaching to support students with information and feedback. The questionnaire also collects student responses to help plan and develop the University’s teaching.

Watch the HowULearn supports students video on Unitube.

Welcome to UniSport! Make sure life isn't all about studies and remember to exercise as well. At UniSport you can exercise in nice environment with very student friendly prices and at six locations near campus areas: Kluuvi, Porthania, Kumpula, Meilahti, Otaniemi, Töölö and Viikki. With Training Card you will have access to 5 well-equipped gyms, over 200 weekly group training classes as well weekly ball sport groups. First visit is always free!

Read more on Unisport's web page.

Watch a video about Unisport on Unitube.

Do you need a break in the bustle of everyday life? Do you want to have a chat or share your sighs with someone? The university chaplains are at your service!

The university chaplains are available to everyone from the university community and are ready to listen to whatever you need to talk about; studies and work, relationships and loneliness, stress, anxiety or spiritual matters. The university chaplains offer a safe space for everyone, regardless of your religious conviction, gender or sexual orientation. They also have professional confidentiality. Additionally, the university chaplains can assist you with religious ceremonies such as baptisms, weddings, funerals and home blessings.

Read more from the University chaplains' page.

Watch a video about the University chaplains on YouTube.

Nyyti is a support centre for students. It promotes and supports students’ mental health, life management and study skills. Its activities and services are available to all university students.

Read more about Nyyti's services and activities on Nyyti ry's website.

Watch the What is Nyyti? video on YouTube.