Summer employee stories

See what our summer employees in 2025 have to say

Alberth Hansel Wijaya, facility cleaner, Suonenjoki

Alberth Hansel Wijaya works as a facility cleaner at the bed ward of Suonenjoki Health Center. The main tasks include cleaning patient rooms and offices, ordering food, and assisting nurses with the food distribution. The work is done in three shifts (morning, midday, and evening) every day of the week.

– Last year, I worked as a facility cleaner in an elderly care home. Compared to that, working in the bed ward is more versatile and unpredictable. I’ve enjoyed my summer job; all staff members help each other when needed. I’ll be working until mid-August, and in September I’ll continue my industrial engineering studies in Lappeenranta, says Alberth.

According to Alberth, the best thing about the job is that he has learned to clean different spaces carefully; for example, he finds cleaning the special care room particularly interesting.

Sini Kaukonen, facility cleaner, Varkaus

Sini Kaukonen works as a facility cleaner in Varkaus during the summer. She cleans at developmental disability and day care unit, at Nuorten Talo, at the Hongisto service home, and in one office space. The work is done on weekdays from 6:00 to 14:09.

– My work locations are very different from each other, so the days vary and they go by quickly. Transitions between different locations provide pleasant breaks during the day. In addition to daily cleaning tasks, I’ve done a lot of deep cleaning at the locations, says Sini.

Summer work has gone well, but the big responsibility made Sini nervous at first.

– For the first two weeks, I had another employee or a service supervisor with me to guide me through the tasks, but after that I’ve been working independently. I’ve managed well, even though at first, I was nervous about being solely responsible for the cleaning, says Sini.

Sini has enjoyed her summer job.

– I’ve met truly wonderful people over the summer, coworkers, care staff, and even patients. I work alone, but there are many people around me. I’ll warmly remember all the interactions. I’m surprised by how warmly I’ve been welcomed. If I’ve been absent from work, people have asked about me. That feels meaningful, says Sini.

Helmi Nenonen, food service worker, central kitchen Iso-Bertta

Helmi Nenonen has been working as a food service worker at the Iso-Bertta central kitchen from the beginning of June until the end of July. She has mainly worked on what is called “the line”, where meals are served directly onto patients’ plates.

– In total, there are seven people working on the line. Each person has their own role, for example, the first person prepares the tray and cutlery, and the next adds the salad and dessert to the tray. I’ve worked in almost all the roles, but I haven’t served porridge for breakfast or acted as the inspector, says Helmi.

Helmi studies nutrition science at the University of Eastern Finland and will start her third year of studies in the autumn. She feels that the summer job has helped her understand what food service operations are like in practice.

– Over the summer, I’ve realized how much food needs to be prepared at once, and how many things need to be considered, like allergies, special diets, and illnesses that affect nutrition. It’s been interesting to see how hospital food services are carried out. I’ve been positively surprised by how much thought goes into the meals, and how they try to make the food as pleasant as possible for patients and clients, says Helmi.

Helmi was surprised how much the work varies.

– I initially thought the work would be repetitive and done alone. However, it has turned out to be surprisingly varied, as there are many different tasks on the line. The shifts also alternate between morning and evening. It’s nice that even though you handle your own task independently, other coworkers are nearby, and you can chat with them a bit while working, says Helmi.

Helmi thinks the best part of the summer job has been its versatility and the fact that the work isn’t overwhelming. The orientation was also well organized, and she didn’t have to know everything right away.

– It’s nice that after the workday I don’t feel exhausted, and I can forget about work immediately. The work atmosphere has also been very pleasant, even though the team changes a bit during the summer due to holidays, Helmi reflects.

Kerttu Koponen, financial administration assistant

Kerttu Koponen started her business studies at Tampere University last autumn. Right after her first year of studies, she found a summer job in her field at Servica, working as a financial administration assistant.

– My summer job at Servica has supported my experience that I am in the right field, which feels especially exciting. I ended up studying business because I have always been interested in matters related to company operations and economics.

At Servica, Kerttu’s tasks include a variety of sales and purchase ledger duties, such as creating sales invoices and processing purchase invoices.

Workdays are spent in close collaboration with the financial administration team, and Kerttu thinks the atmosphere in financial administration is relaxed and pleasant, yet productive.

– During the summer, I have learned a great deal, as most of the programs I used were completely new to me. My learning and enjoyment have been supported by helpful colleagues and supervisor. I have been able to take initiative, my work has been trusted, and I haven’t had to fear making mistakes. Overall, I have been warmly welcomed at Servica. On the other hand, it has also been a pleasure to notice that the things I learned at school have been useful and especially helped in understanding the bigger picture, Kerttu says.

Kerttu feels that working at Servica has offered valuable opportunities to have conversations with experts from different fields, which has broadened her perspective on working life in general.

– I also got to participate in the development day for experts and supervisors, which was a great experience. Servica does important and meaningful work for society, so the summer job at Servica has increased my interest in working in this type of organization in the future, says Kerttu.