The five district associations of the building industry donate a total of 13 euros to 211 universities of applied sciences in our country. With donations, we want to be involved in ensuring that enough skilled construction masters and engineers are trained and employed to meet the needs of working life.
The donations are part of the universities of applied sciences' collection of matching funds, which ends at the end of the year. In fundraising, an individual university of applied sciences has been able to receive funding from the state depending on how well it has managed to raise capital from the private sector.
Fundraising is one part of the important cooperation package between educational institutions and companies, the importance of which will only increase in the future.
"Even though the collection of matching funds is now over, the cooperation will continue. This was a good start, which further strengthened the dialogue between companies and universities of applied sciences. Fundraising is an important part of joint work, but at least as important is all the other joint activities that have arisen between companies and educational institutions", Rector of Metropolia University of Applied Sciences Riitta Konkola highlight. Metropolia is one of the universities of applied sciences that received a donation, it came from Uusimaa district.
Also CEO of the Building Construction Industry Kim Kaskiaro is convinced of the importance of dialogue in training in the construction industry.
"Cooperation between companies and educational institutions must be lively and practical. For example, the work of construction industry professionals working in companies in teaching positions in schools is very welcome. Teaching stays up to date and students' motivation is high when teaching has a direct connection to real working life", Kaskiaro believes.
The new chairman of the Ostrobothnia district, which made a donation to Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, is on the same lines Mikael Snellman.
"Practical training and cooperation with companies create good skills for future experts. The most immediate need is for foremen, but the industry will be a widely important employer in the future as well," states Snellman.
Universities of applied sciences do a lot of research, development and innovation activities with companies. Companies can think about how they can best benefit from cooperation, and where the money they donate goes.
The interaction with companies has mainly been that the students are working as interns in companies or doing theses. A person from the company can come to teach a certain subject. The donation money is allocated, for example, to increasing teaching expertise or resources or equipment investments.
One of the recipients of the donations was Oulu University of Applied Sciences Oamk.
"Construction information modeling education at Oamki is top class on a Finnish scale, and we hope that with our donation it will become the clear number one", says the chairman of Talonrakennusteollisuus Pohjois Finland, which made the donation Marko Palonen.
Since 2008, it has been possible to make donations to higher education institutions in such a way that the donor receives a tax benefit. Many donor agencies have cooperated for many years and even decades. Cooperation between schools and companies is constantly needed so that education in the construction industry develops more and more to meet the needs of working life.
The educational institutions that received a donation from Talonrakennusteollisuus ry's district associations are:
- Uusimaa: Metropolia AMK, €40
- Lahti-Kymi: Xamk (Southeast Finland amk), €10, Saimia/LUT group, €000
- Satakunta: Satakunta AMK, €11
- Southwest Finland: Turku University of Applied Sciences, €20
- Eastern Finland: Savonia AMK and Karelia AMK, a total of €10
- Inner Finland: Tampere University of Applied Sciences TAMK, €30, Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences JAMK, €000, Häme University of Applied Sciences HAMK, €10
- Ostrobothnia: Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences SeAMK, €10, Novia, €000
- Northern Finland: Oulu University of Applied Sciences OAMK, €20
- Lapland: Lapland AMK, €20