Studying in a research team enriched the exchange experience

Turku University of Applied Sciences has cooperated with Zuyd Hogeschool in the Netherlands, and has enabled student exchanges to Finland. The students’ experience of Finland and Turku has been positive.

Text and photo: Siiri Welling

“The most surprising thing about Finns and Finnishness was how well everyone could speak English. So it is quite easy to get along with people.”

So says Faye Vossen, a Dutch exchange student at the Turku University of Applied Sciences, who is studying health technology in her home country and has a focus on biometrics. Vossen, a third-year student at Zuyd Hogeschool in the Netherlands, arrived in Finland on an Erasmus student exchange in August 2023 with fellow student Ellen de Dreu.

“Faye actually first heard about this exchange opportunity from her teachers. So the teacher asked me if I would also like to go on an exchange with Faye to Finland and Turku University of Applied Sciences”, says de Dreu.

Neither Vossen nor de Dreu had much idea of what Turku University of Applied Sciences, Turku or Finland in general were like. There were therefore some surprises along the way: there are no state-subsidised student lunches at universities in the Netherlands, so a cheap and hearty lunch on the campus of Turku University of Applied Sciences was a pleasant surprise for both of them. In addition, the good infrastructure in Turku and Finland was a welcome bonus. Because of the short distances, many journeys are made on foot or by bike.

“What surprised me, though, was that Finns always take their shoes off when they enter a house or building. This is common even in workplaces”, says Vossen.

Studies in a research team

At Turku University of Applied Sciences, exchange students learned more in the Health Technology Research Group. After a short initial adjustment period, Vossen and de Dreu got involved in the MyE.Way project. In late 2023 and early 2024, they conducted a preliminary study on the applicability of treadmill step analysis for screening and assessing the risk of lower limb injuries. Participants in the study were 16-18 year old girls’ football players from south-west Finland. The subjects came for measurements to the Sports and Functional Fitness Laboratory of the Turku University of Applied Sciences , and Vossen and de Dreu collected data for the pre-study.

“This data could be used to help shape the training programme of these young athletes, in cooperation with their coaches of course. That in turn could improve their performance”, Vossen reflects.

Participating in the study taught me a lot, even though there were familiar elements. Both consider MyE.Way to be an interesting and very valuable project from the athletes’ point of view. In addition, the project was useful for both studies. They would recommend studying at Turku University of Applied Sciences and in Turku, and consider participating in the research group’s projects as an interesting learning opportunity.

“We have learnt a lot about patience, but also about working independently. Many people here trusted us to do our part in the research”, say Vossen and de Dreu.

Mikko Pohjola, Senior Lecturer at Turku University of Applied Sciences, praises the attitude and success of the students in the MyE.Way project.

“The exchange students have been really energetic, proactive and productive. It has been a pleasure to do this research with them and I believe that this pilot study has been a good learning experience for them as well. In addition, the cooperation with their educational institution Zuyd Hogeschool has been effective and will continue this year”, says Pohjola.

The article was published on 19.1.2024 on the previous turkuamk.fi website.