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What did you study before coming ������?

Before I started my studies at Aalto, I studied chemical engineering at Metropolia. Ever since high school I knew I wanted to study something related to chemistry, thanks to my amazing teachers and specifically chemical engineering seemed to fit me well. I used to live in Porvoo next to the Kilpilahti refineries, and most of my relatives have worked there.

The decision to continue my studies was greatly inspired by my old teacher in Metropolia, who has also taught at Aalto. Since I enjoyed studying chemical engineering before, I decided that I would do my master’s degree in Chemical and Process Engineering as well.

Is there something different about your previous studies compared ������?

I think the biggest difference between the two is that in a university everything is a bit more relaxed and students are freer to study what they like and when they like.  At the university of applied sciences my curriculum was relatively fixed and non-flexible. The other thing that you can notice is different straight away is the lively student culture around the campus.

What is the best thing about your studies?

I really enjoy working in a laboratory and the School of Chemical Engineering has very good spaces to do experiments on interesting courses related to reaction engineering and unit operations like distillation for example. I can encourage everyone to do as much laboratory work as they can! There are also lots of different tools you get to use, like Aspen plus simulator, that I have used to my heart’s desire.

Has it been easy to get to know other students?

Getting to know other students is very easy at Aalto, since everyone is so welcoming and the tutors put a lot of work to make everyone integrated in������ life. The student culture in here is unlike anything I have seen before and the number of guilds, associations, and clubs that do different kind of activities is insane, there is something for everyone here, from sports to space clubs.

When I started studying at Aalto, I instantly joined the Chemistry Guild and later became a guild official, did some tutoring for international students and finally applied for the position of international officer in the board of the Chemistry Guild. I got the position and now I am enjoying my last months in the board. I can easily say, despite the whole pandemic situation, this has been the best year of my life.

For whom would you recommend applying to do master’s at Aalto?

I recommend master’s at Aalto for anyone who is still hungry for knowledge, or if they haven’t quite decided yet if they want to aim in the future for academic or industrial career. However, a master’s degree is no easy task to do. One should have good stress and time management skills, and also as we say in Finland, “Pilkettä silmäkulmassa”.

What are your future career goals?

Right now I have been working for couple of years in a smaller engineering office called Jets Consulting right next to Otaniemi, and I believe I have good career options there, but I still want to do my thesis heavily emphasised on research and experimental work in order to open my mind to other options like research. Catalyst research is something I am very interested in, so that could be something I could switch the design engineering for.