Uniting Companies, Employers and International University Talents (2025-2027)

The target groups of work package 1 are international and domestic basic degree university students at the University of Turku and the Turku University of Applied Sciences as well as companies in South-West Finland. The activities in this work package are focused on facilitating the employment of international basic degree students into existing companies and organisations.

In this work package, we develop new services and operating models targeted to international basic degree students and pilot them together with all the target groups. Our aims is to integrate the new services as part of the universities' regular career services.

Key activities include:

• Student Forum: Giving the International Students a Voice. The Student Forum offers a platform for international students to share their needs and expectations regarding services that support employment and work-life connections during and after their studies. The Student Forum aims to foster dialogue between students and university services and is a part of the service design process in the UNICOM+ project together with in-depth interviews.
• Thesis Fair: Connecting Master’s Degree Students with Employers. The Thesis Fair provides an excellent platform for employers to connect with master’s degree students who are seeking thesis or final project placements. This yearly event allows businesses to present their operations, showcase available thesis opportunities, and engage with students eager to apply their academic knowledge to real-world projects.
• Networking Days: Connecting Employers with Higher Education Talents. The Networking Days are designed to connect local employers with university students and graduates. They will include one-day visits to companies in order to provide an opportunity for businesses to engage with highly-educated university candidates already residing in Finland, offering a personal and interactive setting.
• Cultural Working Life Skills Training: Increasing Knowledge, Experience and Networks. This long-term (4-5 months) group-based coaching model is designed to support the integration of international students into the local society and working life, as well as supporting their networking with Finnish and Swedish speaking university students.

For more information, please contact:

• Lotta Metsärinne, lotta.metsarinne@utu.fi, University of Turku
• Lucia Vuillermin, lucia.vuillermin@turkuamk.fi, Turku University of Applied Sciences

The target groups of work package 2 are international and domestic basic degree university students, early career researchers and work-life experts at the University of Turku, Åbo Akademi University and Turku University of Applied Sciences in Turku as well as companies in the South-West Finland. Activities in this work package are focused on accelerating entrepreneurship and business creation among international basic degree students and early career researchers.

In this work package, new services and operating models are developed and piloted together with all the target groups. Finally, the new services are integrated as part of the universities' regular entrepreneurship service provision.

Key activities include:

• Entrepreneurship Workshops: Specialised Topics to Deepen the Knowledge-base. Entrepreneurship workshops together with other support measures form a structured pathway to establishing a company. Six thematic workshops (Ideation, Customer Validation, IPR, Commercialization Strategy, Business Planning, Pitching) are run twice per year.
• Entrepreneurial Stories Events: Meet Inspiring Entrepreneurs. In the Entrepreneurial Stories Events, entrepreneurs in the South-West Finland area share their journeys and insights. Two events per year are organised in the Konttori Entrepreneurial Hub.
• Mentoring for International Talents: Accessing the Untapped Potential of Work-life Experts. Universities have work-life experts (such as Professors of Practice) as well as contacts to work-life experts (such as international alumni), who can act as mentors to international students and early career researchers interested in an entrepreneurial career.

For more information, please contact:

• Antti Nuutinen, antti.nuutinen@utu.fi, University of Turku
• Maria Ljung, Maria.Ljung@abo.fi, Åbo Akademi University
• Johnny Långstedt, johnny.langstedt@turkuamk.fi, Turku University of Applied Sciences

The target groups of work package 3 are early career researchers (international and domestic) and dissertation supervisors at the University of Turku and Åbo Akademi University as well as companies and other organisations in South-West Finland. Activities in this work package are focused on accelerating the employment of international early career researchers into existing companies and organisations in order to speed up innovation and development activities in Finland.

In this work package, new services and operating models are developed and piloted together with all the target groups. Finally, the new services are integrated as part of the universities' regular doctoral education and guidance service provision.

Key activities include:

• Networking Events: Connecting Researchers With Potential Employers. Two annual events are organised during spring-time (2026, 2027) in cooperation with Culture Campus Turku, Health Campus Turku and Technology Campus Turku in order to accelerate the networking of early career researchers with companies and other organisations.
• Work-life Placements: Gaining Work Experience Outside Academia. These non-academic working life placements are designed specifically for early career researchers in the so-called generalist research fields. Two tracks are available starting from 2026: full-time (1-4 month) job placement for doctoral researchers and post-doc researchers, and a part-time (max 20%, up to 6 months) job placement for post-doc researchers.
• Business Essentials for Scientists Training: Understanding the Utilisation Potential of Academic Research. This annually run (autumn 2025-2027) workshop-based training includes basic information any early career researcher should know about how to turn research into business.

For more information, please contact:

• Jenni Kankaanpää, jenkoi@utu.fi, The University of Turku
• Maria Ljung, Maria.Ljung@abo.fi, Åbo Akademi University

The target groups of the package 4 are project partners, international talents, potential employers, financier, other organizations and Finnish higher education institutions and their Talent Hub operators, the general public and the media. Activities in this work package are focused on ensuring that the measures of the UNICOM+ project reach the intended target groups and that the results of the project and the outputs created in it reach a wide target audience and thus promote their spread outside the project.

For more information, please contact:

• Kirsi Peura, kirsi.peura@utu.fi, University of Turku