The first days and weeks at the University are usually an absolute avalanche of events. On the first day, you’ll meet your tutor and attend the introduction to the University, studies, and academic life. Your tutor is a volunteer amongst the students. The University of Vaasa is a close-knit community, and help is always available on request.

VYY also organizes student parties where all new students of the University of Vaasa are welcome. The most legendary of them are the first night and first weekend’s parties, which are not to be missed! At the end of the tutorship period, an initiation ceremony is arranged, where new students will be formally accepted as members of the academic community.

Here are some things you should take care of as soon as possible:

• You can get VYY’s digital student card through Slice app to access hundreds of student discounts and benefits. In order to sign up for the card, you need to pay the Student Union membership fee that is otherwise voluntary for exchange students. Read more about the student card.
• If you decide to pay the membership fee, You can also order and buy plastic student card. Before you order a plastic card, please read the instructions carefully on our student card page.
• Find an apartment. You can apply for one at VOAS.
• Notify the post office if you would like to forward your mail to your Finnish address.
• Remember to make an electricity contract to your apartment, if it’s needed. You can make a electricity contract with, for example, our affiliate partner Vaasan Sähkö.
• If you need home insurance for your apartment, you can get it for example from our partner LocalTapiola Ostrobothnia. You get a 30% discount on home insurance for a year, when you buy it online by 30.9.

First things to do at the beginning of the semester:

• Ask questions from your tutor or from the Student Union in case there’s anything you’d like to know. We are here to help you.
• Join the new students Facebook group to get to know other freshers and find out about events during the freshers' autumn.
• In case you’ve ordered a plastic student card as mentioned above, make sure you get the academic year sticker to it. You can get the sticker from the Student Union service office. In case you decide to use the Slice application, no sticker is needed.
• Follow at least VYY and your subject association's social media pages and subscribe to the VYY weekly newsletter to keep up to date with important information related to student life.