The mentoring programme equipped Romy with practical knowledge and insights into the field-specific working life in Finland.
Experience of participating in the 2023 programme's English language track
In the picture Romy Valo (mentee) and Kimmo Kumpulainen (mentor) from the 2023 mentoring programme.
As an international student pursuing a career in Finland, I was seeking ways to enter the Finnish working life after completing my Master's degree early on. However, I soon realised that connecting with professionals and building a professional network was crucial, yet not an easy task for an international student during and in the aftermath of a pandemic. Luckily, the University of Turku offers a mentoring programme that matches students with experienced professionals from the Finnish working life, and I was excited to participate.
After hearing about the mentoring programme through various university channels and personal recommendations, I applied in the autumn of 2022.
The application process allowed me to reflect on my reasons and goals for participating in the programme and to specify what I was looking for in a mentor.
My goals included gaining insight into employment opportunities in my field of education in Finland, building confidence for my post-graduate career entry, and exploring my potential as an international professional.
In mid-December, I received an email informing me that a suitable mentor from my field of education had been found. My mentor has a lot of experience from various positions, including international work, in my field of education and is, therefore, a person from whom I could learn a lot in the scope of the mentoring programme.
The mentoring programme itself was well structured and made me feel comfortable despite my initial nervousness.
The first meeting with my mentor took place online during an official welcome event where the framework of the programme was presented. In the official programme, I learned about helpful tools such as the mentoring guide and received valuable tips for the mentoring process.
The welcome event and the following official programme sessions were held bilingually in Finnish and English. This form of arrangement not only made me feel welcome as an international student but also emphasised the shared experience of transitioning from student to professional life, fostering a sense of commonality between domestic and international students.
Throughout the programme, I met my mentor mostly in person, as I felt that face-to-face meetings were the most effective way to connect. We arranged our first in-person meeting at the largest Finnish fair in our field, which offered me valuable insights into possible career paths and the opportunity to connect with other professionals. From then on, we met approximately once a month for two hours, discussing mostly topics we had agreed upon before the meeting. My mentor gave me advice on how to structure the application process, reviewed my application documents, and even prepared me for interviews. We also addressed strategies for a successful job interview and explored the importance and practical aspects of networking.
Personally, participating in this mentoring programme proved highly beneficial.
The mentoring programme equipped me with practical knowledge and insights into the field-specific working life in Finland and also prepared me for the immediate post-graduate application phase and future career aspirations.
Most importantly, it boosted my confidence in finding my place as an international professional in Finland. Based on my experience, I can highly recommend this mentoring programme to all students at the University of Turku who are looking for advice and support on their transition from student to working life.
The author is Romy Valo. She studied in the Master's Degree Programme in Education and Learning.