Interview with a Univerisity of Turku employee.
Who are you?
"My name is Milica Todorovic and I'm an assistant professor of computational materials engineering and head of the Materials Informatics Laboratory group."
How did you end up working at the University of Turku?
"After my studies in the UK, I had worked in Japan and Spain before arriving to Finland in 2015. My move to the north of Europe was completely accidental: I had applied for a joint project with a colleague in Germany, and when he moved to Aalto University, I moved with him. Neither of us knew much about Finland, but as our group grew, we had the pleasure to discover Finnish lifestyle with our colleagues and learn to enjoy many Nordic customs.
I moved to Turku and University of Turku in 2021 to join the growing department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, the latest addition to the Faculty of Technology. Here, I established the Materials Informatics group, where we apply AI tools to optimise materials and accelerate the development of technologies. When I accepted my current job, I was excited at the opportunity to help develop a new department. This is a unique challenge and we have now welcomed new BSc and MSc students and initiated several new study programmes. As our research activities expanded, our teams have grown into a vibrant and creative community."
What is your typical work day like?
"My typical workday is very dynamic and connects me to many university members: after chatting with my team members, I usually teach, participate in collaborative meetings, give seminars, plan with our support staff, or tutor our undergraduate students."
What inspires you in your work at the University?
"The aspect of my job that I like the most is the freedom to start new initiatives and collaborations, from school outreach schemes to the University of Turku profiling initiatives. I find my colleagues proactive and open-minded, providing a fertile environment for new ideas to grow and create new opportunities for everyone."
What is your favourite place on the campus?
"My favourite place is the Galilei café, it’s so sunny and bright! I often have meetings here, from lunches with colleagues to coffee and cake with BSc tutorial students."
Why is the University of Turku a great work place?
"The community makes the university a great place to work. My colleagues are really passionate about education and making a difference in the world. The admin teams are doing a great job at dealing with so many new challenges that pop up for us, everyone has a positive “can do” attitude."
What is your favourite thing about living in Finland?
"The strong connection to nature is a very special aspect of Finnish life. I have never experienced this before. Forest walks became a big part of my life, it is a very soothing activity."
What do you do on your free time?
"I enjoy cycling, hiking and picking mushrooms in the summer, and sauna and ice swimming in the winter. I also love travelling all over the world, so I’m frequently on the move."
Published: 4.7.2023
