UNIVERSITY OF HELSINKI INNOVATION IN INTERNATIONALISATION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF HELSINKI
The EAIE Institutional Award for Innovation in Internationalisation The university of helsinki 2013 E mbedding C o-operation C ommunication E xcellence Embedding, Co-operation, Communication and Excellence are the defining characteristics of the internationalisation efforts at the University of Helsinki. This handout aims at describing the UH approach, which led to 2013 EAIE Innovation in Internationalisation Award. Cover photo: AriAalto university of helsinki 1
How many people do you have in your international office? We don t have such office. What is your international strategy like? We don t have such strategy. It is not easy to explain how internationalisation is organised when following the embedded approach. Yet, internationalisation is thriving at UH. It is no longer in the hands of the few but rather institutionalised everywhere from university leadership to faculty and staff in academic units. Today, internationalisation can no longer be marginalised. It is the cornerstone in the University s strategy and everyday life, not only in word but also in action. 2 university of helsinki
Facts academic year 2011-2012 Enrolled students 36500 Total number of international degree 2100 students Number of staff 9000 Number of international staff 900 (21%) Number of incoming exchange students 1000 Number of outgoing exchange students 1000 Mission The University of Helsinki is the most versatile institution for science, education, and intellectual renewal in Finland, a pioneering builder of the future. Vision until 2020 - To the Top and Out to Society The University of Helsinki will consolidate its position among the best multidisciplinary research universities in the world. It will operate actively for the well-being of humanity and a just society. Photo: Linda Tammisto university of helsinki 3
E mbedding C o-operation C ommunication E xcellence EMBEDDING The University of Helsinki is a pioneer in implementing Embedded Internationalisation, sometimes also called mainstreamed, comprehensive or deep internationalisation. Embedding means that internationalisation is a key component in all University core activities. Internationalisation is a feature rather than a sector of activities in its own right. Examples of embedding include: The University does not have an internationalisation strategy. - internationalisation is part of all strategic planning. In the present strategy (2013-2016) internationalisation permeates the entire document. In the leadership in internationalisation UH has set up an external International Advisory Board consisting of 12 renowned university experts from around the globe. Prior to this, the former internal Internationalisation Committee was abolished and the responsibility for different aspects of internationalisation was assigned to other university-level committees. 4 university of helsinki
Photo: Tero Silvast There is no central internationalisation office at UH. People with an international job description are placed in different units within the central administration and faculties. A small unit called International Affairs has the responsibility to co-ordinate internationalisation efforts. The University s Student Services unit supports all students regardless of nationality or mother tongue. The unit s web pages inform students of various services in all three working languages of the University: Finnish, Swedish and English. Student Services staff has received additional language and intercultural training in order to be also prepared to serve international students. university of helsinki 5
6 university of helsinki Photo:Veikko Somerpuro
Embedded internationalisation is not without challenges, it is clear that the benefits far outweigh the obstacles. Today the University of Helsinki is much more international than it was before starting to embed internationalisation: exchange student numbers are up (and balanced), the University has more international degree seeking students than ever before as a result of the establishment of English-taught Master s and Doctoral programmes, participation in European Union funded programs for research and education is at an all-time high and continues to grow. notes: university of helsinki 7
E mbedding C o-operation C ommunication E xcellence Co-operation In the absence of a single international office, many activities require seamless co-operation between various actors, both internally and externally. As the scope of internationalisation broadens and new areas of activities present themselves, it is very important to promote collaborative relations among the University s units as well as with external stakeholders. Some examples of co-operation are: UH prioritises staff not normally involved in international work in Erasmus outbound and inbound staff mobility. Why? People working with international admissions and exchanges have other opportunities for international contacts while people in various other offices and with other functions do not normally have these possibilities. Despite this prioritisation, the University s International Staff Exchange Week (ISEW) draws dozens of applications every year. The co-ordinating team of ISEW consists of staff from various offices around the University and incoming visitors have been placed in many different units. The International Staff Services of the University were started in in 2007. It was one of the first units of its kind in Europe and has proven to be a valuable asset in helping non-finns to arrive and settle in Helsinki. A major part of the Services are the two block of flats in the heart of the city for entrytype housing for incoming international staff. In addition, all staff accommodation owned and operated by the University shall be gradually dedicated for the use of incoming international academics. This will make it easier for non-finnish scholars to settle in the city as accommodation is often one of the most crucial aspects in arriving in a new country. Most of the student accommodation in Helsinki is operated by external providers and the University is actively engaging with key providers to ensure sufficient supply for international students. The University also assists the external providers in their future planning for future accommodation developments. 8 university of helsinki
The University Admissions Finland was originally established as an expert service for improving the assessment of authenticity and validity of applications to international programmes. After initial success within UH, the service has now expanded to most Finnish universities. Being part of a larger consortium has not only meant savings in operational systems and staff resources. It has also resulted in resulted in significant improvements in the recruitment and admission of international students. In order to facilitate the early phase of the international students studies, special orientation programs are run at the start of both academic terms. These sessions, today known as the Welcome Fair, include information on various internal services (health care, computing, libraries, etc.) and lectures on the system and culture of studying at the University. As part of the orientation, each new student is assigned a tutor, who is a fellow student, and has had formal training for the task. Töölö Towers, housing for visitors and incoming international staff. The Student Union of the University of Helsinki organises numerous activities for international students thus contributing significantly to their integration into the University and the city. It is not only the Student Union operating in this area - the various cultural, sports and other student clubs incorporate international students in their activities as well. Co-operation is not limited only to the University s internal stakeholders. UH has also been actively involved in projects with other stakeholders in the region to increase interaction between domestic and international students. An example of a project in this area are the Helsinki Region Welcome Weeks, which include events such as the Hidden City Race, particularly aimed at bringing together domestic and international students and to provide further opportunities for integration. The idea is also to collaborate regionally to increase the image of Helsinki as a vibrant city for students. university of helsinki 9 Photo:Ewa Rikandi
E mbedding C o-operation C ommunication E xcellence Communication In order to be effective, embedded internationalisation requires proper caretaking. Given that work does not take place within an office structure, it is vital that internal as well as external communication structures must be in place. Examples of communication feature: Internal - and informal - network of all University staff, who identify themselves as having an international job description. The network currently involves over 60 people. Members of the network have a common intranet site and an e-mail list and every other month they gather in joint meetings. Every new member has an opportunity to participate in an induction meeting where the Head of International Affairs describes the embedded approach and introduces the different areas of internationalisation. Other internal networks connecting staff and faculty members throughout the university include, e.g. the ones for international mobility, international master s programmes and international staff services. They all have their own meetings and e-mail lists and often operate in close co-operation with one another. A major part of communication in any university today is electronic. For the University of Helsinki a section of the intranet lists the various resources available for the advancement of internationalisation. The site is available in Finnish and in English. The University s external website includes a section intended for partners, international students and other stakeholders so that they are able to find the necessary services and contact persons easily. The embedded approach must take into consideration that many stakeholders are accustomed to finding the relevant information from an International Office website. An international mobility database is used for managing all student mobility and much of the teacher and researcher mobility. This tool makes it easy to track mobility and to create internal reports, which are easily communicable to internal and external constituents. Another aspect increasing the university-wide communication with this tool are the training sessions organised for end-users. These sessions not only train staff for the use of the system, but also create excellent networking opportunities. 10 university of helsinki
E mbedding C o-operation C ommunication E xcellence Excellence Internationalisation is a set of quality-enhancing processes: learning from best practices, increasing diversity of thought and exporting knowledge and know-how. Excellence is not only quantitative, such as numbers of international students and exchange participants or the number of agreements and partnerships. In order to be truly quality-enhancing, internationalisation and international collaboration need to be more purposeful and quality-oriented than before. Examples of excellence: In 2002 the University of Helsinki became a founding member of the League of European Research Universities (LERU). This network of 21 leading European research universities aims to advocate the views of the research-intensive universities towards the European Union and national decision-makers. LERU also engages in various collaborative efforts ranging from E-learning to the advancement of research-based teaching. Teachers Academy, established in 2012, is a network of teachers of The Teachers Academy aims to create and promote good teaching practices across the University. the University of Helsinki who excel in pedagogy. Membership of the Academy is competitive and the members together with their departments are rewarded financially. The Academy provides a platform for innovation in teaching and learning for its members and through its members for the rest of the university community The activities of the Academy are organised through working groups. The first working group was formed around international teaching. Another aspect of quality enhancement of teaching are the research carried out and courses offered in university pedagogy by the Centre for Research and Development of Higher Education of the University of Helsinki. The courses are organised in the three major working languages of the University: Finnish, Swedish and English. university of helsinki 11
OUTCOMES AND CASE EXAMPLES Embedding, co-operation, communication and excellence are all part of the UH approach to internationalisation. Some examples of concrete advances in internationalisation listed here will add to what has already been featured above. 1 International Programmes: English-taught Master s programmes have been rapidly increased since 2007 when university started offering seed funding for the establishment of such programmes. At its peak this funding was over 1 million euro per year. Currently the number English-taught programmes exceeds 30. One of the UH cornerstones for the establishment of such programs has been inclusiveness in the sense that most programmes enrol both domestic and international students. 2 Research Funding Services: UH set up a service for assisting the University s academic staff to apply for EU and other international funding already in 1995. The idea behind the service was simply to let the researchers focus on the scientific or academic content of their applications leaving the various technical details to the new Service. The results have been outstanding and UH enjoys currently a high application to funding ratio, including being rated among the top recipients of ERC grants. 3 Language Support: The University of Helsinki offers extensive possibilities for its staff to upgrade their foreign language proficiency. The Language Centre caters for the needs of students, faculty and staff on campus by offering for-credit courses in 17 different languages, including Finnish and Swedish for international staff (Finnish for international students is organised byt the Department of Finnish). The Language Centre of the University of Helsinki has also supported teachers providing education in English through a special programme. 12 university of helsinki Photo: Veikko Somerpuro
4 Bilingual Degrees: The University of Helsinki has also started piloting bilingual degree programmes, initially in Finnish and Swedish. Further pilots are being prepared added to also include English-taught components. 5 University funding for mobility: In order to offer the widest possible opportunities for outgoing student and teaching staff mobility, the University tops up funding from Erasmus and other externally funded programmes by offering travel grants to its students. The total amount exceeds 200,000EUR every year. For more than twenty years the international degree-seeking students have been supported financially by the UH self-funded International Student Grants totalling 80,000EUR every year. These grants are awarded to students in Master s programmes in addition to there being no tuition fees. KAISA HOUSE, the new University Library. university of helsinki 13
Conclusion: Benefits and success factors Embedded internationalisation is not a model one should adopt without giving serious thought to many of the consequences and inherent risks. However, under right circumstances the approach can yield very positive results for a university and its capacity to internationalise. Through a ten-year experience the following lessons have been learned: 14 university of helsinki
Benefits of embedded internationalisation 1. Contamination Factor ; by placing international actors in formerly domestically oriented units, internationalisation spreads throughout the University. 2. By involving people not previously engaged internationally, it is possible to add resources towards internationalisation while not increasing staff numbers. 3. Not having an international office means that there is no place to dump all things international. 4. Expertise from other specialists, e.g. marketing and service development is more readily available for internationalisation and does not have to be re-generated (re-invented?) in an office. 5. Internationalisation receives broader recognition and a sense of ownership at the University. 6. New developments in internationalisation, such as HR issues, rankings, transnational education, MOOCs, etc. are easier to embrace. Success factors for embedded internationalisation 1. Create joint activities/projects 2. Establish open lines of communication: e-mail, intranet, meetings 3. Do not make the approach the main point externally, or even internally Make sure that things work and people/services are easy to locatable 4. Have an open mind, do not rely on formal organisation only, be ready to change things over time. 5. Involve non-international middle managers early on and arrange support for them. 6. Remember that embedding internationalisation is a long process. university of helsinki 15
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