Membership and member services

SAMOK’s Slack

We maintain a Slack platform for student unions. Through the intranet you can hold discussions and ask questions of other student unions as well as SAMOK’s Board and staff.

SAMOK and its member student unions use the instant messaging app Slack. Slack is a discussion platform for communication between SAMOK, student union elected officials, and student union staff and executive directors / secretaries general. SAMOK’s networks also operate on various Slack channels, which you can join according to your own areas of responsibility. On Slack you can freely chat, share tips and ask questions – anything you might need colleagues for!

The link for joining Slack is available to student unions in SAMOK’s Drive.

Mailing list

You can reach all student unions and our office staff at once by sending an email to the [email protected] mailing list. Student union actors can join the mailing list by sending a message to SAMOK’s Communications and Services Adviser.

Newsletter

In our newsletter, sent about once a month, we gather information about our activities, news from our advocacy work, topics affecting UAS students and other current topics. The newsletter is sent to people who have joined the opiskelijakunnat mailing list.

Material Bank (SAMOK Drive)

We have gathered useful materials for student unions in ​Google Drive​. SAMOK Drive contains, among other things, invitations and programme information for all our events, and event presentation materials are also stored there. In addition, it contains background material to support advocacy and a folder through which student unions can share materials with each other.

Advocacy communications

We actively communicate on social media about topics related to advocacy for university of applied sciences students. Student unions can use this content in their own advocacy communications. You can find the content we produce on the following channels:

Facebook @SAMOK.FIN
Instagram @samok_fin

Communications advice

Our communications adviser is happy to help you with communications-related questions. You can contact them at any time when you need consultation, training or a speaker for your student union’s event on communications.

You can request communications consultation/training/a talk on topics such as:

• appropriate and effective use of social media in organisational work
• developing a communications plan or strategy
• communicating about advocacy
• drawing up a crisis communications plan and carrying out crisis communications
• accessibility of communications

Online discussions

We regularly organise online discussion events on various themes related to student union activities. Online discussions can be used, for example, to discuss current advocacy topics, present and comment on materials we have produced, or provide training. We announce upcoming online discussions on SAMOK Slack and by email.

Data protection contact person

Student unions can contact the Executive Director on matters related to data protection.

Data protection contact person

• Provides advice on obligations under data protection rules and, where necessary, points out any shortcomings identified.
• Provides advice on conducting a data protection impact assessment upon request.

Events

We organise training and networking activities for all actors in our member student unions, as well as separately for their staff and management sectors. A list of upcoming training sessions can be found on the intranet, and information on upcoming events is also updated in the Services section of our website.

Advice & training on organising events

SAMOK’s events and other member services of the union are the responsibility of our communications and organisational services adviser. You can contact them at any time when you need advice, training or a speaker for your student union’s event on events. You can request advice/training/a talk from them on topics such as:

• events as a tool for organisational activities
• project management of event arrangements
• event funding and budgeting, competitive tendering of service providers and preparing requests for quotation
• event communications
• planning remote events

SAMOK’s office employs a team of advisers whose areas of expertise lie in education policy, social policy and international advocacy. You can contact them at any time when you need consultation, training or a speaker for your student union’s event on UAS student advocacy. You can request consultation/training/a talk from our advisers on topics such as:

• students’ social benefits
• student health care and FSHS
• student well-being and study ability
• equality in the student community
• developing student representation
• feedback system and other quality work
• European Union decision-making concerning students and its impact on Finland

You can request talks and training from our education policy, social policy and European policy advisers.

Financial and human resources administration

SAMOK’s finances and human resources administration are the responsibility of our Executive Director. You can contact them at any time when you need consultation, training or a speaker for your student union’s event on financial or HR administration. You can request consultation/training/a talk from our Executive Director and administration adviser on topics such as:

• financial administration, budgeting and financial monitoring
• personnel and employment matters
• various contractual questions
• organisation insurance
• organisational processes