comissions. - Photographer Henrietta Soininen

Carolina Kaski lived in foster care for almost four years, since she was taken into care at the age of 14. In the article written by Terhi Hautamäki, Kaski and other experts share their thoughts on the government's plans to lower the age limit for child welfare aftercare for cost-saving reasons.

Published in Suomen Kuvalehti.

Markus Rajala is one of the tens of thousands of people who are partially able to work but have been left out of work-life against their will. Valdi, a rescue dog from Romania, eases the loneliness of Markus Rajala, who has been unemployed for a long time. In the early days, Valdi was so shy that she didn't even let anyone to pet her.

Published in Katulehti Rohee.

Collages created for Improbatur's story on the history of women's bodily autonomy.

Finland has had a problem for a long time. The population is aging and there are not enough new taxpayers. At the same time, there is such a shortage of workers that it is threatening the economic growth. Many foreign students would like to find employment in Finland after completing their studies, but the Finnish bureaucracy makes it really, really difficult. If nothing is holding you back here and you can go elsewhere, why would you stay?

Published in Ylioppilaslehti.

Uğurcan Budak:

”I wonder if Finnish companies could bring out their own internationality. For example, if a company openly stated that five or ten percent of its employees were foreigners, it would immediately sound much more approachable. Then there would be no need to worry about whether or not you're going to be the only foreign worker.”

An international student Silvie Kroker in a portrait for Ylioppilaslehti. Photo by Henrietta Soininen

Silvie Kroeker:

"I naively thought that with a master's degree from a Finnish university and as a native English speaker I would be able to find a job in Finland. When I left for Germany three years ago I got a job righ a way. Because of Covid the distance relationship with my partner became too heavy, so, I had to come back. It's frustrating that degrees are offered in English to international students, but without speaking Finnish finding an employment is so hard. Finnish taxpayers paid for my education and now I would like to work and pay taxes, but so far I haven't even got a chance to do so."

Ronal Bejarano:

”Of the nine students who started degree studies with me only one got a job in a Finnish company. Five of us ended up working as researchers. Others have already left. Many worked for a long time for a food delivery service or as a cleaner while trying to get a job in the business world.”

Valéria Pinto:

"I have a law degree, and I have worked in 6 different countries. I speak 4 languages: Spanish, Portuguese, French and English and I'm qualified to teach the latter. I also have B1 level in Finnish. I have applied for over 270 positions in my 3 years in Finland, but I haven't gotten a position - not even as a taxi driver. I decided to educate myself better to improve my employability here, because I would like to stay here. In case I don't find a job before my program ends, I most probably won't be able to do so."

Margarita Roi:

“In my opinion, there are too few entry-level jobs available in Finland, and international experts and women are the ones to suffer the most. I myself belong to a minority within a minority, as I'm a foreign woman working in the male dominated IT field."

Kayleigh Karinen:

“I had decided to learn to speak Finnish. It was difficult at first because everyone wanted to switch to English right away, but I demanded people to speak Finnish to me. There is a lot of good in Finland. Yet, I don’t understand why the permit system has been made so restrictive that it forces us the immigrants into the position of losers. I love Finland, but this is really tough. I have studied the language and done everything that has been required of me. Still, I have to watch my fellow students progress in their lives while my hands are kept tied. ”

HENRIETTA SOININEN