Call for companies: Offer Job Placements for International Early Career Researchers
The UNICOM+ project facilitates access for international early career researchers to the open labour market in Southwest Finland by supporting their employment in existing companies and organisations. UNICOM+ invites companies and other organisations to offer short-term job placements specifically to international doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from the University of Turku and the Åbo Akademi University, from January 2026 to summer 2027.
Which companies and organisations can take part?
UNICOM+ is looking for companies and other organisations that are experiencing a shortage of highly educated specialists and wish to gain experience in employing international researchers (doctoral and postdoctoral).
Job placements are available in all fields of research, with special emphasis on the so-called generalist fields (e.g. humanities, social sciences, educational sciences).
Potential employers include micro-companies and SMEs, as well as large companies operating in Southwest Finland. We also welcome other organisations such as third sector organisations and public actors to offer job placements.
What are the benefits of offering job placements for international early career researchers?
Early career researchers are highly trained specialists who bring in-depth knowledge of their fields, as well as expertise in, for example, current and new research methods and technologies. They also possess valuable transferable skills, including project planning, analytical thinking, independent working, and problem solving.
Their international background can offer new perspectives, cultural insights, and language skills, contributing to the growth and development of companies and organisations.
By offering a job placement, your company or organisation:
- Meets motivated and innovative experts: doctoral and postdoctoral researchers from the University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University represent a wide range of academic and practical competencies.
- Gains access to up-to-date research knowledge in the expert fields relevant to your operations.
- Builds experience in working with international talent, enhancing your team's diversity and global competence.
- Increases visibility through the opportunity to co-create a short testimonial video with the international researcher. The video will be published on YouTube and linked to UNICOM+ website and shared in various social media channels.
- Receives a full service from marketing and curating the best candidates among our international researchers and direct connections to potential future employees.
In addition, companies can now benefit from synergies with the KOHTI project, which develops a new, learner-centred model for learning Finnish in workplace contexts. This offers a valuable opportunity for companies to support the language development of international employees in a way that is integrated into daily work life.
What kind of placement options are possible and when?
The job placements may involve a range of activities depending on the company's needs and the researcher's background. These can include research work, developing new processes and products, reporting, or international marketing.
There are two options for offering a job placement:
In principle, the job placements take place in spring 2026 and spring 2027. The first application round for early career researchers will take place in autumn 2025 and the second round in autumn 2026.
If the company or organisation offering the job placement wishes to offer the placement already before spring, arrangements can be made to accelerate the recruitment process.
What is expected from the company or organisation?
- The company proposes a project or entity in which a doctoral or postdoctoral researcher could work. For doctoral researchers, the project should not be part of their thesis work. The postdoctoral researcher may also contact companies independently to propose a placement.
- A contact person is appointed, who will introduce the researcher to the company, its working culture, and assigned tasks.
- The company signs a written contract with the international researcher, agreeing on the job duties.
- The company is responsible for the salary costs – which should be negotiated with the researcher – as well as other employer duties. In universities, the average monthly salary for a doctoral researcher is about 2500–3200 euros (depending on thesis stage) and for a postdoctoral researcher about 3600–4000 euros.
- The company representatives are very welcome to join the feedback and evaluation sessions organised by the universites in autumn 2026 and 2027.
The part-time (20% working time) job placements for postdoctoral researchers should last 6 months. Companies and organisations can offer a job placement at any time of the year but at the latest, in October 2026.
What is expected from the company or organisation?
- The company proposes a project or entity for the postdoctoral researcher. Alternatively, a postdoctoral researcher may initiate contact themselves.
- A contact person is appointed, who will introduce the postdoctoral researcher to the company, its working culture, and the assigned tasks.
- The company signs a written contract with the postdoctoral researcher, agreeing on the job duties.
- The company is responsible for the salary costs – which should be negotiated with the researcher – as well as other employer duties. In universities, the average monthly salary for a postdoctoral researcher is about 3600–4000 euros.
- The company representatives are very welcome to join the feedback and evaluation sessions organised by the universities in autumn 2026 and 2027.
Interested in offering a job placement?
Get in touch!
Please contact:
Jenni Gray, University of Turku
Maria Ljung, Åbo Akademi University
Job placements are organised within the UNICOM+ project. Uniting Companies, Employers and International University Talents (UNICOM+) project is funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) from 1 January 2025 to 31 December 2027. The project is coordinated by the University of Turku and implemented jointly with the Åbo Akademi University and the Turku University of Applied Sciences. Read more about the project.