In this article, the LTKY board 2022 presents a little of its own job descriptions.

General description: What is my board position and what does it include?

Senni: Cultural representative. The culture representative of LTKY’s board is responsible for the main pillars of student culture at LUT, and is especially an authority on teekkari culture. Among other things, culture manager issues teekkari cap permits, draws the line in unclear traditional practices and acts as a general information bank of student culture.

Lari: Representative for education politics and municipal politics. It includes, for example, managing the advocacy committee and in general talking about everything study-related at LUT. Municipal politics include collaboration with our two campus-cities and everything election-related (County elections this year and Parliamentary elections next year).

Sutu: Social politics. My responsibility includes issues related to students’ well-being, such as health care, housing and livelihood. In addition, I have taken care of things related to exercise.

Roosa: Chair of the Board. I run the board and make sure that the board programme approved by the Representative council is implemented. I also meet a lot of stakeholders!

Jaska: Vice President, Corporate Relations, Finance and Events. I take care of the chairman’s duties when she is unable to do so. Corporate relationships include corporate cooperation, event sponsorships, product donations, student discounts, etc. I actively monitor LTKY’s finances and lead the financial committee under the representative board. I organize LTKY’s official events, permit issues, manage organizers and event organization in general.

Ari: International affairs! I am also responsible for the Lahti-campus. My board role became a primary one for the first time this year, so I didn’t have many ready-made responsibilities, and could quite freely take the initiative on formulating projects that I felt would be the most beneficial for international affairs.

Suvi: Communications and environmental and responsibility sector! In the communications sector, I support our communications specialist and help with various projects. Canva has become very familiar this year! Environmental and responsibility work includes, for example, organizing sustainability days. In addition, I have been involved in the calculation of LTKY’s carbon footprint, wrote responsibility guidelines and developed LTKY’s internal operations!

What kind of concrete actions does the job description include during the year?

Senni: The culture manager’s biggest annual projects are Wappu and Fuksiviikot. The culture manager communicates schedules to other parties (and prepares them) and oversees the agreement of common practices and rules of event organization.

Lari: Education politics: Managing the advocacy committee, creating and managing the OLS-survey (Quality survey about Teaching), monthly meetings with LUT staff responsible for teaching. Also answering questions about everything related to studies in general.

Lari: Municipal politics: Managing everything election-related. This year with County elections and next year the Parliamentary elections.

Sutu: Organizing well-being weeks twice a year, participating in meetings of stakeholders: e.g. Finnish Student Sports Federation, Student Welfare Working Group (LUT/LAB), Health Working Group (FSHS), Sopo meetings of the National Union of University Students in Finland.

Roosa: A lot of arranging meetings, sending e-mails, reporting to the representative council, supporting the board, finishing some other unfinished business, and always doing some representation at different events.

Jaska: Several committee meetings, contacting companies and organizing events.

Ari: Leading the international committee, cooperating with the guilds and the school to develop the international community and help integrate international students, and help Lahti-campus become a more active community for students.

Suvi: Various communication projects, cooperation with LUT regarding sustainability issues, sustainability days (or week) in the fall.

What has been best during the year?

Senni: Influencing the student culture of LUT students, making reforms, networking.

Lari: Giving back to the community and the tasks I have been able to do this year. Also seeing how much I have improved in these areas. Networking with other Student Union’s and other parties.

Sutu: Influencing both nationally and locally to things that are important to me (in my case, things related to students’ mental health and alcohol culture) and wonderful, wonderful people everywhere <3

Jaska: The success of the events, it’s nice to see when people enjoy the events I organize. Networking was also really rewarding, I got to travel a lot and met new amazing people.

Roosa: The best thing has been meaningful personal development. I have gained many new networks and developed a lot as a political influencer.

Ari: The international community in Lappeenranta, and especially Lahti, is quite fresh because of several new programs, so it has been very rewarding to see the fruit of my efforts in that budding community.

Suvi: Making difference in our community. In addition, it has been great to be able to network with other student union influencers around Finland. And our great work community cannot be emphasized enough <3

What has been the most challenging during the past year?

Senni: There’s a lot of work, so sometimes it’s tiring. Feedback on one’s own work is not always positive, especially from senior students..

Lari: I basically had to learn the jobs/tasks I was assigned from scratch at the start of the year but it has gone great in my opinion. Also sometimes the amount of work piles up so it gets a little rough from time to time.

Sutu: Clarifying the job description and building clear operating models. Social politics has many moving parts and sometimes it has felt like all my time is spent on various meetings. During the year, however, I have learned to use that time usefully and clarified the goals that I have wanted to achieve!

Jaska: Some weeks have been absolutely full. Being under pressure has been tested, but I’ve managed quite well. I also learned a lot about scheduling this past year.

Roosa: Sometimes schedules are really tight and you have to prioritize between important things. In the beginning, it was also challenging to separate work and free time, when there were constant messages to my personal number. However, I learned to separate them by the end of the year.

Ari: My role in the board was brand new, and so coming up with a direction for my work and determining what project/s would be most beneficial for the international community was quite a challenge.

Suvi: Tight schedules and working under pressure have been challenging at times. Things have had to be prioritized and delegated if there have been too many things on the desk at the same time. Scheduling and using the calendar cannot be emphasized enough!

Mikä on ollut yllättävintä hallituskauden aikana?

Jaska: The things we accomplished. This year, we have made a lot of reforms compared to the past.

Senni: How much traveling there is.

Lari: The amount of networking I have been able to do. Also the jobs have teached me a lot more than I anticipated.

Sutu: How much more I’m interested in influencing and student politics compared to last year (yikes!)

Roosa: Maybe it’s how much things can be promoted when you are brave and bring up your own thoughts.

Ari: How bureaucratic student politics, lobbying, and running an association such as the student union can be.

Suvi: Probably the fact that the students’ voice really matters in national influence.