Finland - Jyvaskyla Region - Final Self-Evaluation Report.pdf

developing wellness and environmental technology. With the Regional Council of Central Finland the schoolhas co-operation concerning regional development strategies. Other important partners in the region are VTT(paper technology), and the large corporations Metso and Valtra.In co-operation the primary task of the school is to adapt expertise into the enterprises’ needs and toanticipate and recognize needs of the operational environment. Graduation thesis and R&D projects functionas instruments of the activities. The enterprises’ readiness to utilize the expertise of the school is rather good,especially in the educational field.The co-operation with the University of Jyväskylä has reached a point in which both parties are unanimousabout the roles and strengths of their own. The role of the university is to conduct basic research, and the roleof the polytechnic is to create applications for the use enterprises. The co-operation has included, e.g.,sharing laboratories and equipment and joint projects (for example innoroad and WDL). The aim is to furtherdevelop the co-operation, and bioenergy is seen as a promising field.Areas of strength and prioritising of activitiesThe regionally and nationally important paper field and logistics are the school’s fields of excellence.Bioenergy and wellness technology are considered promising fields of the future, and many regional actorsare tightly connected to their development. Construction and laboratory field are also important and theirexistence has to be secured. All fields invest in R&D, service activities and internationalization. TheInnoroad, a cluster of expertise in road traffic, is an important project from the regional point of view.University of JyväskyläFaculty of HumanitiesRoleThe Faculty of Humanities is the largest faculty at the University of Jyväskylä with over 4 000 students. Thefaculty includes departments that conduct education and research in languages and communication, culture,arts and music, and history. Activities of the faculty are mostly nationally oriented.Starting points and channels of regional effectivenessThe tradition of independency typical to universities has caused the faculty to have little interaction with theregion. The structures and attitudes have changed, however, and regional and societal effectiveness is todayseen as an integral part of faculty’s education and research. Changing of the regional and nationalcompetitiveness base from technological to contentual and thus also to a more humanistic direction isconsidered an opportunity in the faculty.Regional co-operation and the division of tasksThe co-operation between the faculty and regional intermediary organizations has included activitiesconnected to expertise (working groups) and regional funding. Co-operation with firms is mainly based onpersonal contacts of the staff and it has included educational and expert services provided to enterprises. Theproblem from the point of view of the faculty is the unfavourable business structure and the small size of theregion, which prevents the enterprises from efficiently utilising the know-how of the large faculty. However,the regional co-operation could be strengthened by increasing interaction and by creating closer networkswith regional actors.A few fields within the faculty have educational co-operation with the Jyväskylä Polytechnic and othereducational institutions in the region. There is a spearhead project dealing with cultural communication andtechnology that connects the faculty and the polytechnic.According to the faculty's view, tightening the co-operation between the university and polytechnic couldresult in a uniform and efficient regional cluster of education. Developing co-operation in applying newtechnology is potential field as well. In such co-operation the polytechnic would provide technologicalsolutions and the university would produce the content. Generally, it is considered important that bothinstitutions recognize their own areas of expertise and strength, and combine these functions in an efficientway.128