Happy Tuesday!

Pyhäinpäivä, a.k.a All Saints’ Day, which is a “Finnish Halloween”, lands on Saturday 1 November this year. Traditionally, All Saints’ Day is celebrated by remembering people who have passed away by visiting their graves. All Saints’ Day evening is a good time for taking a stroll along the graveyard paths and marvelling the sea of lighted candles. Although it is a Christian holiday, All Saints’ Day is most commonly celebrated by remembering our loved ones who have been deceased, whether you consider yourself religious or not.

If you want to remember someone who has passed away and is buried elsewhere, you can bring a candle to a specific spot at the cemetery. There’s a designated place for this at every cemetery and it’s easy to find after dark because of all the candles. You can find graveyard candles (hautakynttilä) at every supermarket (they are in white plastic tubs with a gold lid).

Please note that All Saints' Day may affect bus timetables (usually Sunday's schedule is in use) and shops' opening hours.

Have a spooky Halloween!

Kind regards,
Elina
Coordinator of International Affairs and Administration

Advance voting is on! Who will get your vote?

The ISYY Representative Council elections advance voting began yesterday! You have until this Friday 31 October till 2 pm to vote in advance. ISYY members who have registered as attending at UEF by Monday 20 October 2025 have the right to vote in the elections.

Voting is done online in ISYY's electronic election system and you sign in with your UEF credentials. You can vote anywhere with your computer, smartphone or your tablet when it suits you.

After you have voted, you can pick up an overall patch from ISYY office during our opening hours.

How to vote?

All ISYY members, who have registered as a present student in UEF and paid the ISYY membership fee by 20.10.2025 are entitled to vote in these elections! Advance voting will end on 31 October at 2 pm. The voting on the Actual Election Day 6 November will begin at 8 am and will end at 4 pm.

Shortly, the voting in electrical voting system works like this:

1. Go to the electronic system at https://isyy-vaalit.uef.fi.
2. Click the logo of the University of Eastern Finland and sign in to the voting using your university user account and password (the same account you use to login to University's intranet or Elearn environment).
3. After a successful sign in, you may be asked for your approval of your personal information transfer. After pushing the ‘Confirm’ button you will be directed automatically to the voting page, and your student id is used to check if you are eligible to vote in this election.
4. Choose your candidate and write their number to the text fiel on the page and follow instructions and lastly confirm your vote by clicking the "Confirm vote" button.

Who to vote for?

Now it is the perfect time to get to know the Candidate Lists and Candidates.

• Combination of the Candidate Lists is published on ISYY website.

• In ISYY Election System you can find the Candidate Gallery and get to know the Candidates a little bit better. Click the link or write address https://isyy-vaalit.uef.fi/ehdokkaat/ to your browser.
• You can watch recordings of Election Panels' via ISYY's YouTube channel.
• The Voting Aid organised by SYL - answer questions and find the perfect candidate for you!
• Campaigning Days for the Candidates on campuses.

The Election Night celebrations take place this year in the ISYY offices in both Joensuu and Kuopio!

Join us on the Election Day 6 November to wait for the results starting at 4 pm! Who will get the most votes? Will the power balances shift between the lists and which new lists will rise to the Council? Which list will have the most votes? Join and you'll be first to hear.

ISYY's Election Night will be held on 6 November starting at 4 pm in ISYY offices. The addresses are:

• Joensuu, Suvantokatu 6
• Kuopio, Yliopistonranta 15 (Lukema)

All ISYY members are warmly welcome to join the occasion!

ISYY Council Meeting today 28 October at 5 pm

ISYY Representative Council will hold a meeting today starting at 5 pm. You are welcome to follow the meeting in classrooms or via the livestream on ISYY's YouTube channel.

In the meeting, the Representative Council will, among other things, decide the amount of ISYY’s membership fee for the 2026–2027 academic year and elect student representatives to administrative bodies, e.g. UEF Board.

The meeting is held in rooms N100 (Natura, Joensuu) and SN200 (Snellmania, Kuopio). The meeting notice can be found on the ISYY website.

Apply to ISYY Board 2026!

Are you excited about organisation activities, or passionate about improving student advocacy? Would you like to gain valuable experience for working life and be part of everyday life of The Student Union? Are you interested in significant personal growth as you take the role of an employer for one year? What about promoting students’ welfare on a national level?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above, apply for the Student Union’s Executive Board for the year 2026! Application period is 3.11.-17.11.2025.

What does the Board do?

The Board is responsible for the daily activities of the Student Union together with the employees. In addition to the activities of the sectors, the duties of the Executive Board members are e.g., student advocacy and interest advocacy, representing the Student Union, and being responsible for implementing the action plan.

The Representative Council elects the Board’s Chairperson, Vice Chair and 4-8 members annually. The Representative Council will elect the new Board in their meeting on 27.11.2025.

ISYY's breakfast 18.11.

ISYY’s breakfasts are relaxed and communal events open to all UEF students. Enjoy a nutritious start to your day and meet fellow students! The next breakfast will be held in campus restaurant Snellmania on 18.11.

Registration for the breakfast starts on 4 November at 10.00 am in Kide.app.

Present your ISYY Freshman Bingo by 30 October and join the raffle!

ISYY's Freshman Bingo was organised to kick-start the academic year for our new students. By completing at least one bingo row, first ones got limited edition of ISYY FUKSI overall patches. There's still few patches left in Kuopio!

All those who present the bingo sheet at the ISYY office can leave their contact info to the raffle, where you can win gift cards to a café. We will raffle 10 gift cards (worth of 20,00€) to Kahvila Kaneli.

You can save the bingo sheet to yourself electronically from ISYY website or you can collect a printed bingo sheet from ISYY office. The Freshman Bingo must be completed by 30.11.2025 at 3 pm!

Clothes Swap-event in Kuopio

Do you have clothes you don’t wear anymore? This is your chance to give your wardrobe a fresh update!

The Clothes Swap-event will be organised on both campuses in November. Bring a maximum of five (5) clothes you don’t use and exchange them for other pieces of clothing. The clothes must be in good condition. We will not accept broken or dirty clothes. This is a great way to promote sustainability and at the same time meet like-minded people!

At Kuopio campus, the event will be organised over three days:

• Tuesday 11 November at Snellmania main lobby at 11 am - 2.30 pm
• Wednesday 12 November at Lukema (ISYY office) at 11 am - 2.30 pm
• Thurdday 13 November at Snellmania main lobby at 11 am - 2.30 pm

Save the date and spread the word!

ISYY club meetings

ISYY clubs' meetings at Lukema (ISYY office in Studentia, C door):

• Tue 28.10. at 5 pm Kärmes (board game club)
• Sun 2.11. at 1 pm UEF Student Bible Club
• Fri 7.11. at 5 pm Kärmes (board game club)

ISYY clubs' meetings at Studentia chapel (B door, 2nd floor)

• Wed 29.10. at 3 pm Itä-Suomen akateeminen shakki (chess club)
• Wed 12.11. at 3 pm Itä-Suomen akateeminen shakki (chess club)

SYKETTÄ Sports Services

SYKETTÄ – Kuopio University Sports offers a comprehensive range of sports services for students and staff of Savonia University of Applied Sciences and the University of Eastern Finland’s Kuopio campus. Please read the SYKETTÄ Kuopio information. Read more on the SYKETTÄ Kuopio website and follow SYKETTÄ on social media:

• SYKETTÄ Kuopio webpage
• Facebook: sykettakuopio
• Instagram: @syketta_kpo
• TikTok: syketta_kuopio

Changes and additions to the Sports calendar

Basketball shift, schedule change from Friday to Thursday

Basketball shift at Studentia will be on Thursdays from 4 PM to 4.55 PM, field 3.
 

New group class. Welcome to the kriya yoga class!

Kriya yoga is a yoga that promotes health and well-being in everyday life and outside of school. In addition, you will practice pranayama, i.e. breathing exercises, and guided meditation. We will go through the basic teachings and exercises of kriya yoga that can be used in everyday life.

The class is held Thursdays 30.11, 6.11., 20.11, and 4.12. from 5 PM to 5.55 PM at Studentia. Class will be instructed only in Finnish!

Students' volleyball tournament for SYKETTÄ members from UEF, Savonia and Uniarts

The tournament will be played in November 2025 on Wednesdays from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM at Studentia in two fields. Team size minimum is 6 and max 12. At least 2 female players must be on the court at all times. The maximum is 3 sets i.e. two won sets. The participation fee for the team is 20 €.

All participants must have a SYKETTÄ membership. The first 8 teams to register can participate.

Enroll on 28 October at the latest.

Fencing course for beginners

Join us for some fencing - A beginner's course on a discount with a SYKETTÄ membership.

• WHERE? At Kuopion Miekkailijat Fencing Club (Kemilänrinne 1)
• DURATION? 10 h
• WHEN? On Friday Nov 14 at 18:00-20:00, on Saturday Nov 15 at 9:30-14:30, on Monday Nov 17.11. at 19:00-20:30 and on Wednesday Nov 19 at 19:00-20:30.
• ENROLLING? Via SYKETTÄ reservation calendar. The enrollment will be open until Nov 10 at 12:00 (noon).
• PRICE? 65 €

Student and Learning Services' customer service closed Tue 28 October and Wed 29 October 2025

Student and Learning Services’ customer service on both campuses (Joensuu at Aurora and Kuopio at Canthia) is closed Tue 28 October and Wed 29 October 2025.

You can reach us again on Thu 30 October. You can find our open hours and instructions on how make an appointment on our page in Kamu.

Bachelor’s and Master’s students: If your study right is ending on 31.12.2025 and you need an extension to finish your degree, you need to apply for it now

Check the end date of your study right in Peppi. If your study right ends on 31.12.2025 and you need to apply for extension, you need to fill out the application during October. Separate reminders on this will not be send. Check the end date of your study right in Peppi on the Study datas-tab.

Degree student: remember to pay Kela fee 

The fee must be paid by all students who are completing a degree at a Finnish institution of higher education and have registered as attending for the term in question.

• Use the OmaKela e-service to pay the healthcare fee. Kela will send a letter with instructions for payment about 3 weeks before the due date to students who have not yet paid the fee.
• The healthcare fee is EUR 35.60 per term.
• The due date for the autumn term is 15 November, if you register as attending by 30 September.
• If you cannot use OmaKela for instance because you do not have Finnish banking credentials, please pay the fee to Kela as a bank transfer.

Coffee & Friends

This autumn’s Coffee & Friends starts today on both campuses! The café meets on Tuesdays at 3-5pm at Lukema in Kuopio.

Coffee & Friends event offers low-threshold hanging out after lectures and the opportunity to meet other students over coffee and a snack. All students of the University of Eastern Finland are welcome to Coffee & Friends. You can come to the café alone or with a friend. In addition, Coffee & Friends has a changing chill programme. Participation in the programme is voluntary and you can come for a while or for the whole time. Participation is free of charge and does not require pre-registration.

Upcoming themes in Coffee & Friends:

• 28.10. Halloween colouring
• 4.11. Crafts
• 11.11. Relaxation (led by UEF Study Psychologists)

KISC's Football Championship

We’re excited to share that the Kuopio International Student Council (KISC), in collaboration with the City of Kuopio, is hosting the Kuopio International Football Championship as part of Kuopio’s 250th anniversary celebrations!

The event will take place on 10th November 2025 from 16:30 onwards at Kuopiohalli — an evening full of energy, teamwork, and fun!

Team registrations are now open until 31st October 2025. Don’t miss the chance to be part of this exciting international tournament!

Let’s come together to play, connect, and celebrate Kuopio’s 250 years in true international spirit!

Warm regards,
Kuopio International Student Council (KISC)

#KPOWEEKINENGLISH

5th International Conference for Sustainable Resource Society – ICS25, 30.10.-31.10. at Snellmania, Yliopistonranta 8
Multi-disciplinary conference focused on challenges of sustainability transitions in society, environmental change, and sustainable use of natural resources. Free admission.

Kekri - Ancient Finnish Mysticism and Echoes of Horror, Fri 31.10. at 16.30-20 at Kuopio Museum
Halloween program for youth – stories, characters, and an atmosphere that will send delightful chills down your spine.

Halloween in Kuopio, Fri 31.10 - Sat 1.11:

• Konttila Halloween and lantern walk on 31.10 at 17-21
• A gentle Halloween in Konttila for the whole family on Sat 1.11 at 10-14.: Halloween checkpoints, games, quizzes and a friendly witch painting children's faces.
• Puijo Halloween on 1.11 at 17-21: characters come to life on the Halloween trail and in the tower stairwell, free bus service between the Finnish baseball stadium and Puijo, prizes for adventurers dressed in theme costumes.

Unique music from 1775, Sat 1.11. at 13-13.50 at Kuopio Museum
A selection of music from around 1775 when Kuopio was founded. Free admission.

AG CS2 Masters 2025 is here!

Gather a team of friends and get ready to compete against the best teams in the Finnish student
Counter Strike scene for your share of the 800€ prize pool!

TEAM SIGN-UP HERE

Rules and more info on our website. All skill levels are welcome, but note that 3 out of 5 players are required to be university (or AMK) students!

• Qualifiers - Saturday 22.11
• Finals - Saturday 29.11
• Aalto Gamers Discord
• Streamed on twitch.tv/aaltogamers

Psst, You can look for teammates on our Discord!

Weekly Feed is the English language newsletter of the Student Union of the University of Eastern Finland (ISYY). You are receiving this letter in your email because you are a member of ISYY and are studying at Kuopio campus or because you have joined the mailing list yourself.

Weekly Feed provides you with current information on matters related to the Student Union, UEF or other organisations close to students, such as FSHS. In addition, the newsletter provides you with information on events taking place at campus or the campus city.

Weekly Feed is published on Tuesdays during the academic year, with the exception of holidays and a few other days. If you do not want to receive the newsletter anymore, you can unsubscribe the letter via the unsubscription link located on the top of the letter.

You will find more information on ISYY's newsletters and data protection on ISYY's website.