EXCHANGE STUDENTS AND PYKäLä

Pykälä - what is it?

Founded in 1935, Pykälä is the law student's association in Helsinki University. It's a student organisation that comprises virtually every Finnish law student in Helsinki, which means that we have about 1800 members. We have our own club space in Sörnäinen and an office in the city center. As an exchange student studying law, you are always welcome here in Pykälä!

Different bodies in Pykälä include:
the board,
the committee for external affairs,
the general committee,
the committee for studies and
the committee for legal help.

The board (or hallitus, in Finnish) is the main organiser and planner of affairs in Pykälä. The committee for external affairs and general committee organise various social events for members of Pykälä. The committee for external affairs, known to members simply as UAV is the main link between Pykälä and the outside world, whereas the general committee (aka YVK) focuses more on relations between members. The committee for studies (or OVK) works with people in the faculty in order to improve the quality of teaching. Finally, the committee for legal help offers free of charge legal advice for students in need. If you have legal problems don't hesitate to contact them.

What does Pykälä do?

Pykälä organises a large amount of parties and other freetime activities during the autumn and spring semesters. Some of these below:

Another form of social event organised by Pykälä on a regular basis are dinner parties called sitsit. These academic table parties usually include a three course meal, singing, downing shots of vodka and standing or dancing on and under the chairs and tables. Sitsit are a fun, unique event with their own traditions and in this case traditional doesn't mean the same as boring! Typically sitsit start at seven PM and the dinner has been eaten at about half past ten. After this the fun usually continues until late (4-5 AM). Pykälä also organises a few sitsit with exchange students in mind. In the autumn we organise the United Nations Sitsit and during the spring semester the Exchange Students -Sitsit. The idea is to help us get to know each other and also give you a chance to go to a sitsit with English as the main language.

You may have noticed that almost all students in Finland have overalls that they use from time to time when out partying. The Pykälä uniform is a burgundy coloured overall with Pykälä insignia on the back. All Finnish-speaking law students wear the same colour, whereas students from different faculties have overalls of different colours. The Pykälä overalls are available for order in the beginning of the autumn, but usually take time so if you're not here during spring semester, it might not be worth it. Otherwise highly recommended, keep your eyes peeled for this!

Originally Pykälä was founded as the watchdog organisation for law students' rights. This is still a top priority in Pykälä. We seek to improve the quality of teaching and the conditions at the university as well as offering legal advice free of charge to all university students from Helsinki.

The Pykälä way of life

Why should you, as an exchange student, be interested in Pykälä and take part? Well, Pykälä is a Finnish student organisation, which means that if you're interested in meeting Finns, this is the right place. It's easy to make new friends in Pykälä! Many Finnish students yearly become addicted to Pykälä and spend the whole year working for everyone else's benefit. It's almost a lifestyle choice, but who wouldn't like to have a bit of fun? By participating in Pykälä you too can meet some amazing people, and see some pretty amazing things happen...

How do I get notified of Pykälä activities?

Pykälä has a contact person for exchange students, the international executive from UAV (the committee for external affairs). The contact person keeps in touch by hanging out at parties and other spots that exchange students might be interested in. He or she also updates a mailing list targeted especially at you, the pykala-english list. He/she is also responsible for these pages.

You can always contact the int. exec if you want more information about Pykälä, or studying in Finland, or anything at all.

Pykala-english is the best way to get notified of all the latest developments in Pykälä. If you don't want to miss out on our parties and sitsit, please subscribe.

To subscribe to the pykala-english mailing list, just send the following line to majordomo@helsinki.fi leaving the subject field blank: subscribe pykala-english

To unsubscribe send the same line, but substitute 'subscribe' with 'unsubscribe'.

Welcome to Pykälä!

Copyright 2010 Pykälä ry
Toimisto Mannerheimintie 3 B, 5 krs, 00100 Helsinki, puh. (09) 278 5003
Huoneisto Sörnäisten rantatie 33 B, 00500 Helsinki, puh. (09) 682 1858
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