Over 12 000 students are completing their studies at Xamk, and the varied skills and know-how of these students are offered to companies and organisations.
Our students can be assigned with projects, commissioned to conduct a thesis study or instructed to perform various tasks as part of their mandatory practical training.
You can post job ads free of charge via Xamk Duuni service. View students’ applications and contact them. Xamk Duuni matches jobs and job seekers based on skills, competencies and personal interests.
- Create a company account on Xamk Duuni service. Your profile will be shortly confirmed.
- Post a job ad and find yourself a worker.
- Remove the ad when it is no longer valid.
Guided practical training or internship is mandatory part of all Xamk degree programmes. The amount of required training varies from 5 to 20 months. Depending on the field of specialisation and the needs of employers and trainees, internship can be completed in one uninterrupted period or it can be divided into shorter periods.
By inviting interns, organisations and companies have a way of gaining insight into the most recent developments in the field and benefit from fresh ideas and points of view. Internship also allows employers to train interns in tasks specifically relevant in the field, thus prepare them to better meet the employers’ demands. In addition, this provides the employers with opportunities of self-marketing.
Practical training can be completed in a Finnish or foreign company, public organisation, or any other organisation that can offer relevant tasks to the student such as an association or society. Work as an entrepreneur can also qualify as practical training provided that all required conditions are met.
At the end of their studies, every student must write a thesis. The thesis is typically a research and development assignment with an objective of studying and improving the operation of a company or organisation.
The thesis is a ”demonstration” of expertise from which the employment sector can benefit. The workload of the bachelor’s thesis study is 15 ECTS credits which equals approximately 400 hours of work. The workload of the master’s thesis study is 30 ECTS credits equaling approximately 800 hours of work.
Degree programmes have their own specified criteria for the thesis. The topic, however, can be chosen on the basis of the commissioner’s needs provided that it complies with the university’s objectives and the student’s personal study plan.
The thesis study is always supervised by a teacher from the university of applied sciences. It is recommended that the commissioner appoints a person in their company or organisation to act as a liaison between the student and the university of applied sciences. It is advised that the scope, schedule and reporting method of the study as well as the intended use of the results are agreed upon together.
Bachelor’s and master’s theses are public papers because they are a mandatory part of academic degrees and, therefore, must be openly available for review. However, based on a separate agreement with the commissioner, all identification data and confidential information can be left out of the published version.
Student projects are typically part of a specific course. A company or organisation tasks a group of students to find a solution to a specified problem or need. The student project group is supervised by a teacher from the university and a person appointed by the commissioner. As for the topic, there are very few limitations – it can relate to product development, reorganisation or testing of services, or problem solving.
In projects, learning takes place through brainstorming and experimenting and by means of trial and error. Often, the actual work is done in the university facilities where the commissioner can benefit from having access to the university’s laboratories and equipment.
The commissioner will have the results of the study and development proposals as stated in the agreement between the student/university of applied sciences and the commissioner to be utilised in their operation.
Projects facilitate an exchange of skills and know-how: the university of applied sciences obtains from the employer valuable information about current real-life needs and problems, and the employer is granted a great opportunity to reflect on their operation in the light of most recent research data.
Project assignments are part of the students’ learning process. This means that feedback must be provided to help them improve their skills. It is extremely important that the commissioner is committed to giving feedback in the different phases of the project. Before a project is started, an agreement is made stating the content, schedule, members and supervisors.
Xamk encourages students to entrepreneurial activity and cooperation with the world of work. This can be achieved in multi-disciplinary learning environments e.g. student unions and collectives.
Over 450 international students from various countries study at Xamk every year in different fields of studies.
Field specific knowledge and expertise are not the only value international students offer for companies – they also offer cultural understanding, fresh perspectives, wide networks and diverse language skills.
International students are interested in finding a job in local companies, but also in finding internship, thesis work, project and volunteering opportunities.
International students want to interact with local companies in order to develop themselves professionally, gain work experience, grow their networks, learn about Finnish working culture and understand their field’s market better. Many of them are interested in working in the area after graduation.
Stay open to speaking English or other foreign languages with international students. This gives your work community opportunities for sustaining and developing language skills, since taking international talent as part of the community is a natural way of practicing different languages. International students also appreciate the opportunity to develop their Finnish skills in practice at workplaces.
To reach international students, make sure your company is easily found onlne. Many students seek jobs and information about companies on LinkedIn and companies’ own webpages that should have information also in English. Students are actively looking for new opportunities, so make sure to answer when students contact you.
Thoughts, questions and wishes regarding co-operation between companies and international students can be written on this Padlet: https://xamk.padlet.org/hennahirvonen/companiesinsights
Talent Boost -programme: https://tem.fi/en/talent-boost-en
International recruitment guide: Business Finland – Talent Boost Finland
Workplace Finnish training: Työpaikkasuomi – Suomi.fi
Laura Häkkinen
Alumni- and Business Relations Coordinator
+358 50 468 8082
laura.hakkinen@xamk.fi
Henna Hirvonen
Project Researcher, International Services
+358 50 462 1764
henna.hirvonen@xamk.fi
