Local Friendship Programme offers new experiences both to the student as well as to the family
Belgian student Julia Bos arrived to the Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences of the Ģֱ at the end of August. She had heard about the Friendship Family Programme (nowadays Local Friendship Programme) from her mother and decided to apply.
– As a student, you can easily get stuck in the everyday life routines. At the end of the studies, you might notice that you finally have not seen much, Bos says.
– Through the programme I got a local family, which gives the opportunity to do things together. Without the family, I would feel more lonely, she continues.
“The best thing is to get to know new people that you would not meet otherwise”
The purpose of the progamme is to offer international students the possibility to get to know the culture and way of life in Finland by visiting a local family. To the participating families the programme offers a chance to meet students from all over the world and get to know different cultures.
Bos is the fifth student who has visited the family of Viivi and Jukka Aumanen through the Friendship Programme.
– This is a great opportunity to get to know people from all over the world. Through the programme we can show the students our way of life in Finland, Viivi and Jukka say.
– The best thing is to get to know people that you would not meet otherwise, Viivi Aumanen says.
Viivi and Jukka also see the visits of the international students as excellent opportunities for the children to see that it is possible to communicate even if one is not an expert in foreign languages.
Baking, spending time outdoors or playing board games together
Family Aumanen has for example picked mushrooms and walked in the forest with the students. In addition, they have tried different winter sports together and baked ginger breads.
– Also playing board games has been a really nice activity to do together. Playing games works well also with children who don’t speak that much English yet, Jukka Aumanen adds.
The children of the family enjoy the visits of the student.
– This feels really nice! Through the programme I can for example learn to speak English, says the 11-year-old Vilppu happily, and wishes that he could go for a walk to the forest with Julia.
Some people might hesitate about applying to this kind of programme. Family Aumanen wants to encourage other families to take part in the programme.
– Go on! Don’t be afraid to take part, the students are really nice, Jukka Aumanen says.
Viivi-Maija Aumanen agrees with her husband and reminds that taking part in the programme and doing different activities with the student is completely voluntary.
– You don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to, she explains.