You may remember Matti, a Finnish-American from last week’s episode, and his tales of service in the Finnish Defense Forces. This week, we continue our conversation with a preview of Matti’s forthcoming book, 347 Mornings. At Mastering Finland, we are big believers in the power of stories to help people overcome difficulties and face tough challenges - we are often inspired by our guests’ stories and by the stories our listeners share. That is why we are so excited about Matti’s book, in which h...
Feb 01, 2021•19 min•Season 1Ep. 37
Joining Petra in this episode is a Finnish-American named Matthew (or in Finnish Matti) who moved from New Jersey to Finland in 2019. Matti received Finnish citizenship through his grandmother’s descent when he was a child, and moved to Finland in 2019 to complete a year of military service. During this time, Matti learned more about his own leadership abilities and his family’s culture. His unconventional time in the military was transformed when the COVID-19 pandemic began, complicating the no...
Jan 25, 2021•33 min•Season 1Ep. 36
In this week’s short and sweet episode, Petra has a chat with Mehri, who is a contributing writer at Foreigners in Finland magazine. Founded by Mae Lehto, Foreigners in Finland is a local online magazine aimed at foreigners living in Finland. The magazine caters to an international audience and covers topics like lifestyle, food and drink, business, work, study, and traveling. Mehri’s areas of expertise are home and lifestyle, and you can read her work at the link below! Finally, in this episode...
Jan 18, 2021•17 min•Season 1Ep. 35
Welcome to our first episode of the New Year 2021! 2020 brought many challenges and we are looking forward to a chance to turn things around in 2021. However, with the Brexit transition period expiring at the end of the year, UK citizens may have a tough time doing just that. To offer some guidance on navigating the transition, we sat down for a chat with Mark, a UK citizen living in Finland. A desire to travel to the Nordic countries for some time off and a bit of snowy weather landed Mark in F...
Jan 11, 2021•32 min•Season 1Ep. 34
Petra talks to Dani, who had been struggling with her mental health during a process of job-seeking in Finland. In Dani’s words: ’I am a recently graduated expat who's looking for a job and living in Finland on borrowed time. The pressure and countless rejections resulted in a loss of motivation, imposter syndrome, and even depression. Come to think of it, I literally went through all 5 stages of grief.’ Tune in to hear how she managed to overcome the struggles, who helped her, and what kind of ...
Nov 30, 2020•23 min•Season 1Ep. 33
In this episode, we look through scientific lens on the impact of migration, and discrimination on mental health, and the representation of these topics in media. To learn more about these issues we spoke with Shadia Rask, research manager at the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL). During more than a decade of work in the field, Shadia has contributed to important research impacting the lives of vulnerable individuals. She continues to work towards improving mental health services fo...
Nov 23, 2020•30 min•Season 1Ep. 32
In this episode, we continue our mental health series with a foreigner’s perspective on mental health care in Finland. We reconnected with Davide from Episode 13 to hear about his experience overcoming anxiety and isolation through professional mental health support. Leaving behind the comfort of university life to start a career is challenging enough; for Davide, this transition was made more difficult by the loneliness of trying to find support and community in a new city. Finding the courage ...
Nov 16, 2020•23 min•Season 1Ep. 31
During these unusually stressful times, we could all use a little help improving our mental well-being. Whether you’re suffering from workplace overload or r elationship woes , Mervi Lamminen’s easy access to mental well-being service is here to help! Auntie Solutions offers one-on-one video meetings with mental health professionals to help you keep your mental health in tip-top shape. To learn more about her company's mission, Petra sat down to talk with Mervi this week. Press play to hear abou...
Nov 09, 2020•22 min•Season 1Ep. 30
Petra talks to an occupational health psychologist , Sinnu about mental health and the services available in Finland. Sinnu sheds light on the specific types of help one can receive, through what channel and the general costs. She also gives practical advice for mental health prevention and care, addressing issues that may arise specifically in the time of Covid and heightened social media usage. LINKS MENTIONED: Psykologiaa ja Kaikenlaista podcast Sinnu's website...
Nov 02, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 29
Katerina talks about her wedding woes in Finland and the last minute obstacle which unfortunately forced her to cancel her wedding! Find out what document she was required to present from her home country in order to marry her Finnish-Greek husband and how they were surprised to experience a not-so-smooth side of Finnish bureaucracy as foreigners.
Oct 26, 2020•35 min•Season 1Ep. 28
Petra & Jean finally spill the beans on their dating experiences in Finland and using Tinder, as well as share anecdotes of their most memorable dates. Additionally, Raul opens up about dating in Finland as a member of the LGBTQ community. What is the Finnish dating culture like, you ask? Tune in to find out!
Oct 19, 2020•47 min•Season 1Ep. 27
Dallin relocated to Finland specifically to serve in the Finnish military and afterwards stayed to study. He gives us an inside look at the Finnish military culture and life and shares some of his unforgettable experiences from that time. He also talks about how Canadians and Finns are similar and different and gives valuable insight into understanding the value of friendship in Finland. USEFUL LINKS MENTIONED: ⭐Finnish Language Learning Tool https://www.worddive.com/en/
Oct 12, 2020•26 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Petra and Jean react to Facebook posts of foreigners living in Finland, which leads to a discussion of the Finnish social culture and mentality and some of the common struggles foreigners face in this area.
Oct 05, 2020•37 min•Season 1Ep. 25
Eline is a Dutch-Finn who grew up in Papua New Guinea for the majority of her childhood. She talks about growing up as a *"Third Culture Kid" and how that had shaped her worldview and identity and affected her life when she moved back to the Netherlands and Finland as an adult. She also shares how she manages to juggle student and single mom life and gives tips to foreigners for living in Finland. Tune in to hear her story and her overall unique perspective on life! *Third Culture Kid- a child w...
Sep 28, 2020•26 min•Season 1Ep. 24
Paola, originally from Italy, shares her family's remarkable journey of adopting internationally in Finland. She talks about her multicultural family, identity and details the process of adopting her son from India. Find out how her efforts to improve the adoption services for foreigners helped international families and how it also ended up impacting adoption services in Finland as a whole! Links: ⭐Interpedia https://interpedia.fi/en/ ⭐Save the Children https://www.pelastakaalapset.fi/en/our-wo...
Sep 21, 2020•40 min•Season 1Ep. 23
Jean chats with Lorena who relocated to Finland for her job at Nokia. Lorena gives an inside look at working in a Finnish company, the work culture, and the relationship dynamics with colleagues and the manager. She also shares many resources for organizations she had taken the initiative to join to build her social network/community. Find out how she built her life in Finland and her advice for those interested in moving here! LINKS: ⭐ Luckan https://luckan.fi/english/ ⭐ Women's Cafe in English...
Sep 14, 2020•33 min•Season 1Ep. 22
Petra chats with diversity and inclusion public speaker/coach and CEO/co-founder of Businesswiz, Priyanka Banerjee. Priyanka's work helps Finnish companies transition to a more internationally-minded environment through hands-on cooperation and trainings. She believes that the successful inclusion of foreigners in the workforce is essential as Finland inevitably moves towards a more diverse society and faces an increase in workforce demands. Don't miss this insightful and refreshing perspective ...
Sep 07, 2020•30 min•Season 1Ep. 21
Petra interviews Raysa and Katarina, students at the University of Tampere and creators of "Diversity for Future." Their mission is to address the topic of diversity in the Finnish workplace through discussions and personal stories and to highlight the value of international cooperation! LINKS: https://esnfint.org/diversity-for-future https://esnfint.org/international-student-employability-team https://erasmusintern.org/ https://medium.com/@diversityforfuture https://www.linkedin.com/in/raysa-fr...
Aug 31, 2020•30 min•Season 1Ep. 20
Petra and Jean talk about some of the most popular Finnish inventions and brands (you'll be surprised to see what's on the list!). Get to know a little bit more of the 'Finnish way' through the ingenuity and uniqueness of their creations and ideas!
Aug 24, 2020•55 min•Season 1Ep. 19
What better way to prepare for the new academic year than to speak to Raul- a former tutor, student and teacher (triple threat!) at the University of Jyväskylä. Raul gives insight into the realities of life outside of the university bubble based on his own experiences. Raul touches on: ✔️the role of a 'tutor' and the kind of assistance international students can expect as they settle into (university) life in Finland. ✔️CLIL (Content & Language Integrated Learning) ✔️bold tips on how to get ...
Aug 17, 2020•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 18
Alvaro looks back on the good times as an Erasmus exchange student (EU program) in Finland! He talks about his studies in Education, 'friendship family program' (see link below), student life, traveling and dating. He also gives valuable tips for new students! SOURCES MENTIONED: ⭐Erasmus Student Exchange Program- https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/node_en ⭐Friendship Family Program at the University of Jyväskylä- https://www.jyu.fi/en/study/day-to-day-life-housing-and-free-time/friends...
Aug 10, 2020•25 min•Season 1Ep. 17
Community is key to surviving and thriving! Petra and Jean share their experience of making friends and building a community as international students in Finland. SOURCES MENTIONED: ⭐Friendship Family Program (University of Jyväskylä) https://www.jyu.fi/en/study/day-to-day-life-housing-and-free-time/friendship-family-programme
Aug 03, 2020•28 min•Season 1Ep. 15
Petra and Jean continue to share their travel experiences in Finland. In this episode, they give an overview of: ✔️Lahti ✔️Oulu ✔️Kemi ✔️Kuusamo ✔️Ranua ✔️Rovaniemi ✔️Inari (Saariselkä village) ✔️Tallinn ✔️Alands/Ahvenmaa ✔️Stockholm (*Listen with a pinch of salt! We're sure there were many things/experiences missed possibly because of the poor winter weather ☹️) ✔️St. Petersburg🧳Happy and safe travels! . ⚠️Please exercise caution in your travels now and stay healthy! SOURCES MENTIONED: ➡️HUSK...
Jul 27, 2020•39 min•Season 1Ep. 39
Wondering how you can travel safely around Finland now? From popular tourist attractions to hidden gems, join Petra and Jean in this two-part series audio tour as they hit up 22 different cities in and around Finland! In this episode they give an overview of their travel experiences in: ✔️Helsinki ✔️Sipoo ✔️Porvoo ✔️Turku ✔️Naantali ✔️Rauma ✔️Pori ✔️Tampere ✔️Jyväskylä ✔️Petäjävesi ✔️Kuopio . ⚠️Please exercise caution in your travels now and stay healthy! USEFUL SOURCES: Yango taxi app (affordab...
Jul 20, 2020•46 min•Season 1Ep. 18
Davide moved to Finland from Italy with the intention and mindset to settle long-term. He shares practical tips for writing effective job applications and navigating one's social life in Helsinki as a foreigner. His perseverance, introspection and can-do attitude help him get through the highs and lows, which eventually lead him to his current success in Finland. This episode is an uplifting and thought-provoking story that is not to be missed! SOURCE MENTIONED: https://integration.luckan.fi/
Jul 13, 2020•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 13
Petra and Jean share their experience of transitioning from student to job-seeker status, particularly in regards to: ➡️ new residence permit ➡️ documents required for employment ➡️ online banking ID (This episode was recorded in May 2020. Always do your own research for up to date information) ***NOTE ERROR IN EPISODE: Online banking ID is only for EU citizens who registered for the right of residence and non-EU permanent residents! SOURCES MENTIONED: Extended Permit to Look for Work: https://m...
Jul 06, 2020•37 min•Season 1Ep. 12
A panel of international student ambassadors answer your questions regarding studies in Finland! This is packed with information and lots of great insights. Don't miss you! A big thank you to our student ambassadors from: ➡️University of Helsinki ➡️University of Turku ➡️University of Jyväskylä (Other universities were invited to participate but unfortunately did not respond). Please see timestamps of the different topics discussed: ⭐Application process 03:35 ⭐Financial Support During Studies 21:...
Jul 02, 2020•1 hr 33 min
Petra and Jean look back on their student years in Finland and chat about university life, education and culture and not to mention all the student perks! Tune in to find out how independent learning is cultivated and how students are cared for and seen as equals to professors. ***UPDATED INFO: as of August 1, 2020 student lunch prices have increased from 2.60€ up to 3.06€ (depending on location). Links: https://www.frank.fi/en/ https://www.yths.fi/en/frontpage/ https://www.studyinfinland.fi/lif...
Apr 13, 2020•31 min•Season 1Ep. 11
Petra sits down with Henna Pursiainen - CEO of the initiative, "Dare To Learn." The initiative organizes an annual event, which attracts visitors from all over the world from various professional backgrounds, with the goal of contributing to learning at any stage of life. Henna shares a glimpse of future projects that we can expect centered around continuous learning and how you can get involved! http:// www.daretolearn.fi/
Apr 06, 2020•37 min•Season 1Ep. 10
Tune in to find out how some listeners are coping and how their daily lives have changed because of COVID-19 in Finland. We hope that through this episode you feel a sense of oneness, regardless of where you may be, as we all try to adjust to our new reality. ***Many thanks to those who submitted an audio/text message and allowed us to share it in this episode! (Stay up to date with https://www.who.int/ for accurate information on COVID-19)
Mar 30, 2020•43 min•Season 1Ep. 9
