Dean Juha Kontio appointed Vice Rector of Turku University of Applied Sciences

Juha Kontio, Dean in Technology and Business at Turku UAS, has been appointed to the new position of Vice Rector of Turku UAS. In the future, Turku UAS will have two vice-rectors.

Turku UAS Dean, Doctor of Science Juha Kontio will start as the new Vice Rector of Turku UAS as of 1 January 2025. As Vice Rector, he is primarily responsible for steering and developing educational activities.

Kontio was elected to the new position of Vice Rector by unanimous decision of the Board of Turku UAS. At the same time, the number of Vice Rectors of Turku UAS will double as Juhani Soini will continue as another Vice Rector, focusing especially on steering and developing RDI activities.

The top management of Turku University of Applied Sciences has consisted of the rector-CEO and vice rector since 2014. As the number of students and RDI activities have grown significantly, the workload of the management of the University of Applied Sciences has increased.

− For an organisation of this size, management has been scarce. The number of students at TUAS has increased by almost 50 percent since 2014 and external RDI funding has increased significantly. To meet this need, we have wanted to form a second position of Vice Rector alongside the old one, says Niko Aaltonen, Chairman of the Board of Turku UAS.

Strong experience and great networks

The selection of Kontio was based on, among other things, strong experience in the strategic management of TUAS and good cooperation networks. Aaltonen describes that Kontio has done an excellent job in different roles at TUAS. In addition, Kontio has strong knowledge of the region and various partners.

Juha Kontio holds a doctorate in information systems sciences. He has worked at Turku UAS for 24 years, serving longest as Dean and has held many different teaching positions as head of education, principal lecturer and lecturer. In addition to his work, he is the Co-director of CDIO, a global engineering education development network, together with his Singaporean colleague. Previously, he served as Regional Leader in CDIO’s European region.

− It is with gratitude and humility that I accept the duties of Vice Rector for Education and, naturally, I am pleased to be able to continue developing UAS education at the next level of the organisation, Juha Kontio says.

− The education at UAS has many functional elements, such as competence-based approach, closeness to working life, pedagogical competence, competent personnel and learning environments. What we can strengthen is the coordination of the development of education at university level. We can also clarify the pedagogical line. Perhaps the brightest goal is to further raise the appreciation and quality of our education, Kontio describes.

Kontio also hopes that the international networks of the University of Applied Sciences will be further strengthened in the future.

Students’ well-being at the forefront

The Board of Turku UAS was very pleased to be able to appoint an experienced person who has achieved great results for a long time to the position of Vice Rector. Vesa Taatila, Rector and CEO of Turku UAS, also says that he is very satisfied with the result.

− I believe that with Juha Kontio’s expertise, we will be able to develop our training activities in an even more effective direction than before, he says.

Santeri Levo, who represents students on the UAS Board, expects the election of Kontio to take significant steps forward in developing education and improving quality. He praises Kontio’s work for the well-being of students.

− As a student representative, I am more than satisfied with the choice and feel that Kontio is a perfect addition to our already nationally proud rectorate. Kontio’s approach to improving students’ well-being and the quality of education is ironclad, and his actions exude a genuine desire to listen to and react to problems raised by students, Levo says.