About us

Teaching is currently offered on all four University campuses, but the main location is on the City Centre Campus. The Language Centre consists of eight language units, the Support for Teaching and Learning Unit and the Language Services unit. The Language Centre has a staff of approximately 150, including 65 full-time teachers and 21 non-academic members of staff. In addition, University Services staff also attend to duties at the Language Centre.

The Language Centre is an independent institute of the University of Helsinki. Its duties include providing teaching in language and communication skills to students in the faculties and degree programmes of the University of Helsinki; conducting research relevant to this mission; developing language teaching, learning material and diverse forms of learning; and offering language training, translation and revision services.

The Language Centre has a board set up by the rector for a term of four years. The board comprises nine members, each of whom has a deputy.

The board comprehensively develops the Language Centre’s operations under the leadership of the chair and in cooperation with the Centre director in accordance with the University’s operational and financial objectives as well as the University’s strategic plan and the Centre’s implementation plan.

The duties of the board specifically include the following:

• Consider the Language Centre’s implementation plan and the related HR plan and budget
• Resolve matters referred to it by the director because of their importance or far-reaching nature

The director of the Language Centre is responsible for the Centre’s operations, finances and staff. The organisation is divided into language and development units, each of which has a supervisor.

The Language Centre has established several working and development groups, on which staff serve as members. The groups promote professional development, community and the quality of operations.  

The groups are as follows:

• The Committee for the Development of Teaching promotes and supports the planning, provision and assessment of teaching at the Language Centre.
• The Research Support Group promotes the research-based development of teaching as well as research-based cooperation within the Language Centre and with partners. The Group organises the Language Centre’s research seminars and coordinates the editing of the Centre’s publication series. 
• The Communications Committee discusses the principles and practices of the Language Centre’s communications and is responsible for the Centre’s annual report, communications plan and website.
• The Cooperative Committee promotes the University’s HR policy goals and enhances the activities and working conditions of the work community.

• The aim of the HYMY team is to highlight what welfare means for students and staff. The HYMY team works, for example, with the following themes: student welfare, staff welfare, tutoring and diverse learning.

• The DigiPeda Group shares experiences and plans forums and training sessions to support digital language teaching and collaborative learning.