President's Review

Tapio Kujala, PhD, is the President and CEO of Tampere University of Applied Sciences.

We need each other and the higher education community in changes

2022 was a confusing year in many ways. We were able to return to the campus after the shadows of COVID-19. Our students’ need for communality was seen in intensification of studies, doing together and student union parties, naturally.

At the beginning of 2022, our security was shaken again when Russia attacked Ukraine. Foreign parents’ concern for students’ safety in Finland was conveyed all the way to us. International students stayed in our higher education institution. In accordance with TAMK’s values, a harassment-free and safe study environment was guaranteed for all students regardless of their nationality.

Pandemics, slowing world economy and wars demonstrated our students’ and staff’s strength. We concentrated on our work and achieved strategic objectives. In 2022, TAMK received the Finnish Education Evaluation Centre FINEEC’s quality label for the next six years. TAMK has a functioning quality system and related information is used diversely in the organisation to develop operations in a target-oriented manner. TAMK’s organisational culture encourages to experiment and cooperate.

We are a desired working life partner. Agreements with all new wellbeing services counties, which started on 1 January 2023, and Patria are an example of it.

We at Tampere University of Applied Sciences seize incredible and impossible challenges together with students. For example, disposable fashion creates challenges. Our SUSTAFIT project focuses on reuse of clothes as non-woven fabrics. The participants include Fortum and Valmet. We are saving the world for future generations.

Tampere University of Applied Sciences administers the MYRSKY project. Its national objective is to create fast ways for enterprises to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic in cooperation between 22 universities of applied sciences. Our project partners are Suomen Yrittäjät, chambers of commerce and regional employers’ associations.

Let’s challenge each other, demand great things and new practices from ourselves, rejoice together, solve problems but above all support and encourage each other!

 

Text: Tapio Kujala, President
Editing: TAMK Communications
Photo: Saara Lehtonen