Get to know Espoo Career Club

The application period is now closed. 

Our next round will happen between 13.1 - 31.3.2023.

• be highly educated (3 years in the higher education system).  
• live in Espoo.    
• have a sufficient level of English to take part in our discussions and read our material.     

• our basic requirements;   
• their order of application;  
• the content of their application form (goals, motivation and understanding of what is the Career club).  

Nationality, unemployment status, gender, age or area of expertise are not criteria to get in. All highly educated people living in Espoo are welcome to apply. 

Our groups have limited seats. Our application is competitive! For our round 4 (September - October 2022), 50% of the applicants got a spot. Make sure to fill your application form properly, and to share with us what you want to get out of the programme! 

• Application period. 
• Short phone interview.
• Decisions sent around 4 weeks before the round starts.

The Career Club is free of charge and our activities are in English.

“I want to spend 2 months focusing on myself and my career development. I want to set career related goals and be supported in reaching them. I want assignments and concrete results. I am ready to commit to an intensive and rewarding process!” 

In the sessions you will get overviews of broader topics such as Finnish working life for example, and at the same time you'll get to practice in depth career development skills. You will also get in-depth tools, skills and knowledge, adapted from life design methods. At the same time you'll get to practice in depth career development skills and build your networks through guided assignments. 

You’ll build connection with the group members as well as our guests and alumni, and will, each week, benefit more and more from this very unique network! 

The groups will be in person . We will keep you posted on where our meetings are before each session.

• Friday 13.1.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30 : session 1, "Opening session and introduction to reflective skills". 

  • Meet your new group and start working on our first fundamental career development skill : self-reflection. Why does self-awareness and self-reflection are important? How to develop it and use it to develop your career? That's what we will cover in this session. 

• Wednesday 18.1.2023, from 9.30-12.30: session 2, "Environment mapping".  

  • In session 2, we work on the second fundamental career development skill that is being able to scan and map your environment. We will focus on how to figure out your professional environment in Finland and will practice this skill together. We'll talk about different kinds of networks you could build, sure, but we will also look at how to pinpoint  your opportunities and define your potential ideal employers. 

• Wednesday 25.1.2023, from 9.30-12.30: session 3, "Setting goals". 

  • In session 3, we will cover the third fundamental career development skill which is, in our opinion, goal setting. What does it mean to set goals for your own career development? How to actually do it and put things in motion? How to prioritize and assess your goals? Our goal is that you are able to set smart (and S.M.A.R.T) goals for yourselves after this session. 

• Wednesday 1.2.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30: session 4, "Finnish work culture".

  • In this session, our participants will talk about Finnish work culture. We will mix concrete knowledge and information, tips and tools with group discussions. 

• Wednesday 8.2.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30: session 5 "Q&A with experts".

  • On session 5, we will meet professionals from the City of Espoo and ask them questions that are relevant for us as a group. In our previous rounds, we have for example discussed hobbies, employment services, entrepreneurship support, integration, language, culture... In this session, our colleagues from City of Espoo also ask our participants questions.

• Wednesday 15.2.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30: session 6 "Ideate".

  • Now that you have taken time to define your core skills and environment, as well as set long-term goals for yourself, you're going to work, with your team mates, on generating new ideas and finding inspiration for your career development. In this session, we will also give you your 4-weeks assignments, focused on network buildings and goal-reaching. 

• Wednesday 1.3.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30: session 7 "Company visit".

  • We will go visit a workplace and have a discussion with the workers, based on what you would like to know or talk about. No matter what is the industry, you'll see that visiting a company's offices is always a great opportunity to learn and build networks.  Depending on the group size, we might have an additional session/visit in the afternoon. Participants will be informed well in advance. 

• Wednesday 8.3.2023, from 9 to 16: session 8 "Task focused job applications".

  • We will focus our day around a task focused approach and technique, that has received 100% satisfaction rate from our previous participants (cover letter workshop 1 and 2 in 2021 and 2022).  We will work together around cover letter, CV and/or interview preparation methods in the morning. In the afternoon, we will practice video and in person interviews (mock-up interviews) with employment and industry specific experts. One of the participants' favorite sessions in our past rounds!

• Wednesday 15.3.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30: session 9 "Factors influencing career development".

  • Family relations, children, wellbeing, money... All these factors seem far from the topic of career development. But they actually heavily influence your decisions and career planning. We will discuss and get tips from experts, in a relaxed environment. 

• Wednesday 22.3.2023, from 9.30 to 12.30: session 10 "Test and prototype".

  • Through fun (and serious) group exercises, we will debrief your 4-weeks assignments. Time to test and build prototypes for your future career developments!

Participating in bigger events plays an important role in building networks, understanding the job-market and feeling more confident. We will learn important information, practice skills, meet other professionals (and have fun). 

• Friday 31.3.2023, from 17 to 19: closing party.

  • You'll see,  2 months go really fast! On the closing session, we'll celebrate your achievements, reflect on the past months and well, of course, have a party. 

In addition:  

• Optional individual support.
• Assignments designed to help you get closer to the job-market. 
•  Priority to register to our events.  
• Connection with our Career Club alumni networks.

We have welcomed guests, from public, private and third sectors. 

They have shared their knowledge, but have also interacted with our participants and enjoyed connecting with highly educated, focused and goal-oriented Talents. 

We are currently developing our cooperation strategy with employers around 3 main action points:

- Inform companies about the different services available in Espoo to support international talents (spouses, students and others) in their career development. Feel free to contact us (contact at the bottom of the page) if you wish to receive tailored information.

- Connect through spontaneous and two-ways networking opportunities for all professionals, guests and participants. Feel free to contact us (contact at the bottom of the page) if you wish to know more about being a guest at the Career club!

- Build together open, fair and skill-based recruitment and working environments. Would you like us to help you find your next employee? Do you want to join us in building useful trainings for both job-seekers and employers? Get in touch with us (contact at the bottom of the page)!

"I knew my inputs would be useful for the Career Club session but I did not realize how big of an impact the session had on me personally. I gained insight and tools for my own career from the session and discussions. I feel like my own career is on a clearer path now and I have much more motivation to further my other personal goals as well. You'd think that I got this covered as I work as a career advisor and work with personal goals daily but Career Club's approach is just so much more holistic and innovative than what I ever came up with. Everyone needs a little bit of Career Club in their life <3"

"Great conversations and questions"

"Thank you for organizing this programme and creating such a top notch content."

• "Career Club was not just for improving my employment prospects, but also my self-awareness and empowerment. I feel more prepared for the Finnish job market, and I have an understanding of my own unique offerings as a candidate. I met amazing, talented people from all different areas and start my career journey with a new sense of confidence!"
• "Personally, it is the one place where i felt like i could establish networks and have a close experience for integration. I felt included and acknowledged. I would highly recommend"
• "Training and sessions are well prepared, trainers have good living and working experience in Finland. Participants are super cool people!"
• "They provide fundamental discussions about the Finnish work culture and how to develop one's own awareness and abilities to be in the labour market."
• "Every minute is interesting and enjoyable at the same time !! Bravo"
• "Through the Career Club, I got the opportunity to meet with some amazing international talents who, like me, are looking for a position in Finland. The club provided great opportunities to learn more about the Finnish job market and culture and discuss important professional and personal skills, like networking and self-awareness."
• "The career club helped me to find another way to see my professional path and how to approach my career in the Finnish labour market."
• "Career club clarified my values, motivations and reinforced my goals"

All our participants would recommend the Career club to a friend! And here are other important results: 

100% of our participants are more aware of the opportunities available to them in Espoo regarding employment. 

90-100% improved their knowledge about job-hunting, Finnish work culture, interview preparation, balance between family and work life.

90% of our participants feel like Career club has helped them move forward with their career development.

50% met more than 10 new people during the Career club group and 80% of our participants gained useful networks to develop their career. 

100% of our participants feel that they have reached or are on the way to reaching their goals

1/3 of our participants got employed while participating  ... And we keep receiving good news from our Career club people!