Happy Tuesday!

Today we celebrate Shrove Tuesday, which in a Finnish context marks the farewell to winter and a welcome to spring. You can also find delicious Shrove buns (or semla) across cafés and stores.

Don’t forget that today is Sports Afternoon! Grab a classmate and go try out a new activity. There is no teaching scheduled after 12 PM, so make the most of the afternoon by exercising. Check out the Sykettä column below in this newsletter for more details.

Kind regards,
Timi
Membership Service Specialist

P.S. Next week's newsletter covers weeks 9 and 10. The Weekly Feed isn't published on week 11 because of winter holiday week.

Upcoming exceptions in ISYY office opening hours

There will be some exceptions in ISYY office opening hours.

• Tue 17 February, offices will be closed at 12 (Sports Afternoon)
• Mon–Sun 2.–8. March offices will be closed (Winter Holiday)

If the office is closed, the return date for sports equipment and board games will automatically move to the next office opening day. Also note that if you want to borrow sports equipment for the Sports Afternoon from the ISYY office, please pick them up on Tuesday, February 17 at 10–12 at the latest.

Have you heard about ISYY’s Hobby Buddy service?

The service is intended for all students of the University of Eastern Finland who want to make new friends through common hobbies and interests.

The process works as follows:

A student looking for a Hobby Buddy fills out a form available on ISYY's website, and we will get in touch when a matching buddy is found. You can search for a Hobby Buddy for one or multiple hobbies.

If you are looking for a friend to exercise with, please check out the Sports Buddy Service of SYKETTÄ.

Welcome to the 16th Annual Celebration of the Student Union on Sat 21 March in Joensuu

ISYY's Annual Celebration will be held on Saturday 21 March 2026 at 6 pm in Joensuu, Original Sokos Hotel Kimmel’s event space Sirkkala. For those who are coming to our Celebration from Kuopio, we are offering a bus transport to Joensuu on Saturday 21 March and back to Kuopio on Sunday 22 March after the Sillis. This transport is included in the price of the dinner card.

The Annual Celebration details are now published on ISYY's website and registration for the event is now open in kide.app. We warmly welcome all ISYY members and friends of ISYY to celebrate our Student Union with us!

ISYY club meetings

Check the list of ISYY clubs in Kuopio on our website.

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

• Thu 19.2. at 5 pm Kärmes (Board Game Club)
• Sun 22.2. at 1 pm UBC (University Student Bible Club)
• Thu 27.2. at 5 pm Kärmes (Board Game 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

You must have a valid SYKETTÄ membership when using sports services!

• Buy the membership from the SYKETTÄ website's store or from ISYY office.
• You will also have access to nutrition and physical activity counselling.
• Find out more about our diverse services on the Member sevices webpage.

Have you tried the new class, Bare Yoga Method Online?

Welcome to practice yoga anytime, anywhere with BYM Online!

Instructions to use the service are here:

SYKETTÄ Kuopio appro and free sports week 23.2. - 1.3.

Are you still thinking about purchasing a SYKETTÄ membership? 

Now you can try our services for free

Register as a user and enroll for events via the reservation calendar.

Registration for swimming and skiing courses is ongoing.

Reserve your place via the SYKETTÄ reservation calendar!

• Skiing technique lesson: Skating 24.2. at 17.30-19.00 (15 € / person).
• Swimming technique course 2, 10.3.-7.4. (55 € / person)

What is Zoola and why is it used? 

Zoola is a learning analytics tool connected to eLearn Moodle that helps teachers monitor students' progress in a course. It compiles existing data from Moodle into clear summaries. Zoola does not generate or collect new data. The purpose of the tool is to help teachers identify where and when students need support. For students, Zoola appears as a timeout: if nothing is done on the eLearn page for about 20 minutes, a pop-up window appears

UEF info session online on 19 February 2026

The first UEF info session in 2026 will be organised online on Thursday 19 February at 13:00–14:00. The topics of the event are:

• The university’s budget for 2026 and economic outlook
• The current situation and progress of campus development

The languages of the info session are Finnish and English; the presentation material is in English. You can ask questions and provide comments in advance or during the event in the UEF info session community in Viva Engage.

Students’ Mental Health Week will be celebrated in week 11 (March 9–15) in 2026

From now on, week 11 will be a fixed date for Student Mental Health Week.

The theme of the campaign this year is faith in the future. The idea of the theme is to support students’ faith in the future and to address issues that weaken it.

We live in a time where uncertainty and worry about the future overshadow students’ everyday lives. That is why we want to highlight the power of hope, meaning and community – factors that strengthen belief in a better tomorrow.

The campaign is shared by all of us and we hope that as many people as possible will join in implementing activities and/or communications during the campaign week.

Welcome to the campaign!

International House Kuopio presents

Info session on hobbies and leisure activities

Come explore a variety of leisure activities, meet new people, and discover ways to get involved in your community. The event is free and open to everyone looking for enjoyable ways to spend their free time.

• February 18, 2026 ; 14:00
• Place: TyöNavigaattori, Asemakatu 7, 70110 Kuopio
• Language: English

3 days. Real challenges. Multidisciplinary teams. Mentors who push you further.

This is where design, business, and technology collide. This is the Sprint 2026, Finland’s largest design sprint.

You’ll be placed in a small, multidisciplinary team, stay at a hotel, and work on a real-world challenge set by one of our amazing challenge partners. The themes span culture, health, technology, finance, and AI, so whether your background is in design, business, engineering, research, medicine, or something else entirely, there’s a challenge for you.

And yes: the winning team from each challenge will take home a 1 000 € prize. 

• The Sprint 2026
•  Valo Hotel, Helsinki 
•  March 27th–29th, 2026

Stricter criteria for social assistance as of February – what does it mean for customers?

Degree students:

All students applying for social assistance are required to apply for a student loan – Kela can no longer use discretion. More information and answers to common questions can be found from Kela's website.

Kuopio City Theatre subtitles performances in English and clear Finnish

Kuopio City Theatre has started subtitling its own performances in English and easy Finnish. We will also be adding Finnish-language captioning. We want to improve our accessibility even further.

Subtitles and captioning can be followed on your own smart device, for example your phone, via the captioning application. Instructions for using the application can be found here.

This spring, subtitles will be available for all performances of the Perfect Recipe musical and Idän pikajuna. You can also listen to captioning in these performances via the application. Captioning is also available for Valkoinen valas performances. In autumn 2026, Metsolat will be subtitled and captioned.

Today at Coffee & Friends: Speed friending

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.

Coffee & Friends meets on Tuesdays from 27 January forward at 3-5pm at Lukema. 

Coffee & Friends programme:

• 17.2. Relaxing and Colouring
• 24.2. Bingo 

• 3.3. Winter Holiday, no Coffee & Friends this week

• 10.3. Students’ Mental Health Week

Approventure – Wonderland

The biggest student event of the early spring semester, Approventure, invites you and your friends to an otherworldly adventure through Wonderland on March 12th, 2026.

Approventure is an extraordinarily huge interdisciplinary bar crawl where participants tour the streets of downtown Kuopio, hunting for stamps from various bars and restaurants. Based on your achievements, you will receive wonderful overall badges to mark your progress as you climb the ranks of the "approventurers." The evening culminates in an epic after-party at Apteekkari featuring the world-famous artist Tungevaag!

Event Details:

• What: Approventure – An adventure-filled bar crawl
• Where: Kuopio (bars, restaurants, and shops)
• When: Thursday, March 12th (Tour: 15:00–22:00, After-party: 21:00–04:00)
• For whom: Open to all students from Kuopio and beyond
• Dress code: Overalls and Wonderland theme
• Tickets: €9.50 – €18.50 (depending on the ticket type)

Ticket sales begin on February 23rd at 14:00 via Kide.app. For more information and updates, follow @approventure on Instagram.

Finnish for Working Life – for Inspiring Immigrant Women

Do you want to feel more confident using Finnish at work? Learn the words, skills, and courage you need to talk about your talents, apply for jobs, and shine in interviews- all in Finnish.

What you’ll get:

• Practical Finnish for working life
• Help with CVs & job applications
• Speaking practice in a supportive group
• Tips on job searching in Finland

Face-to-face teaching Saturdays 9:00–14:15, 21.2.–9.5.2026.

Free of charge (0 €) – funded by the Ministry of Education. For female university / UAS students with Finnish level A2. Possibility to complete a Kapos skill badge.

More info & registration: Johanna Jussila, 044 718 4714, johanna.jussila@kuopio.fi

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.