At the Faculty of Law of the University of Helsinki, many career courses are helmed by the Faculty's alumni. For students, it means the opportunity to take a diverse look at professional practices.
During their studies, students of the Faculty of Law gain extensive theoretical knowledge of law. After graduation, this knowledge is best applied swiftly to practice.
In this, the Faculty's career-oriented courses offer a boost. Dozens of the courses offered by the Faculty are taught by its own graduates.
"Studying law is heavy on theory. Our job is to teach law, and in many courses the emphasis is on scholarship, just like in other academic studies. Courses given by alumni are a counterweight to this. In these courses, students draw up agreements or practise drafting documents initiating proceedings," says Susanna Lindroos-Hovinheimo, Director of the Master's Programme in Law at the Faculty.
Partners can be individual alumni or, for example, law firms. To ensure that the content is suitable for university courses, the Faculty is involved in the planning.
A window to a range of jobs
For students, the courses offer a peek into diverse professional life, as the lawyers involved in the courses serve in a spectrum of jobs, including in law firms, as judges or as government ministry officials. According to strict Faculty policy, no money changes hands.
"I believe that giving a course can be a valuable recruitment opportunity for our partners. For some, spending their time on this can be a moral obligation," Lindroos-Hovinheimo says.
It also provides a counterbalance to one's work.
"Students who take career courses are already fairly advanced in their studies and ask smart questions. It's probably nice to work with clever young people."
One of the alumni dedicating their time to this is Pekka Aalto, LLD. For a few years, Aalto, who works for the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg, has been conducting a course in EU law for master's level students. The course has been implemented collaboratively with Juha Raitio, one of the vice-deans of the Faculty.
"Juha has overseen the theoretical side, while my contribution has been practical expertise, such as presenting the processes of the European Court of Justice or analysing how Finnish courts apply its decisions," Aalto says.
He has found the collaboration meaningful. Preparing for teaching and encountering students face-to-face differ from Aalto's duties as an administrative official.
