In this article we will present the Youth Committee with five questions. They are answered by the chair of the committee Atte Sinkkonen, B. Sc. (Tech.).
1. What is the purpose of your committee?
The Youth Committee (YC) ensures that the voices of those who are most familiar with current student life and the situations of recent graduates are heard in TEK's decision-making. YC also serves as a channel for sharing information between the various university cities.
2. What does your committee aim to achieve during this council term?
YC aims to work across a wide range of areas such as enhancing the sustainability of student events, promoting equality and well-being among students, and strengthening the position of science and mathematics students within TEK.
Additionally, YC seeks to be involved in education and data policy, particularly regarding AI-related issues. It also aims to raise awareness of the elections held during the term with the goal of encouraging students and young TEK members to participate in societal influence.
To advance these themes, YC has developed an action plan for 2024–2026.
(Image: Mikael Peltoketo)
3. What has your committee achieved in the past?
YC decides on recommendations for student internship and thesis salaries and submits its proposals for starting salary recommendations for recent graduates to the Private Sector Committee.
YC has been involved in developing TEK's Equality Guide, the mielenTEKoja project implemented in collaboration with Nyyti ry, the recruitment processes for HallOpEds, TEK's participation in Pride, and providing comments on TEK's guidelines for equitable sponsorship policies of student events.
4. How does your work improve TEK?
We enhance TEK by incorporating the voices and perspectives of young people into the union's activities and by increasing its transparency and opportunities for influence. As students and young people make up a sizable portion of the member base, it is essential to consider the issues that are important to them. Our actions support the recruitment and retention of young members while ensuring the future of the union.
5. What is the best thing about committee work?
The best part of working on YC is the knowledgeable and enthusiastic fellow members with whom we can discuss and work towards common goals. In addition, having the opportunity to influence broad issues that affect the entire union is fantastic.
What are committees?
TEK's board appoints committees to serve as advisors to the board in their areas of expertise. The committees may, for example, formulate opinions to support decision-making at the request of the board. However, members of the Youth Committee are elected through a different process, read more about student participation here. The term of office of the current committees is 2024-2026.
Read more about the committees and TEK's decision-making here.