Learning expeditions for French students launched at the University Consortium of Pori

EFREI, Tampere University's partner in Paris

EFREI (École Française d’Électronique et d’Informatique) is a technical university based in Paris, focusing on engineering degrees. EFREI sent students to the UCPori exchange program for the first time as early as 2017. Since then, Erasmus students have come from Paris to Pori almost every year.

I myself visited EFREI for the first time in 2017. The campus is located in the Paris suburbs, in Villejuif, about 7 kilometers from the city center, just a metro ride away. At that time, EFREI was a technical university specializing in information technology with 1,500 students. When I visited the site again in the spring of 2024, the number of students had doubled, and the staff proudly showed off their new, bright, and comfortable campus.

During the visit in 2024, we were asked if EFREI could send students to Pori for a week in the spring of 2025. We agreed to the request and put together a program that combined IT workshops led by our researchers, company visits in the region, and an introduction to Finnish culture. We then drafted an agreement, which was approved by both universities.

Learning expedition for French students in Pori

In April 2025, we organized the first intensive week for EFREI students with the theme Utilizing Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics: A Finnish Perspective. The 18 French students who came to Pori were very satisfied with our week-long program. The lecturers and workshop organizers were also very pleased — it is rare to encounter such an active group of students. For example, during the company visit and factory tour in the sawmill located in Rauma, artificial intelligence and automation in the sawmill industry sparked so many questions that the visit could have been extended by an extra hour.

The students’ enthusiasm and engagement can also be partly explained by the fact that they were very engaged in the professional topics of the week, and had invested in the experience by paying for their own trip. In addition, some of the EFREI students are already in the worklife, so they are unable to take a six-month student exchange. The intensive week we organized thus served almost as a student exchange experience for them.

The event that received the most praise during the week was the gathering organized by the UCPori international tutors, where the French students had the chance to spend the evening and exchange experiences with Finnish students. Another highlight of the leisure program was the sauna and cold sea swim. The weather was on our side all week, which also made the visits to Yyteri and Reposaari particularly memorable for the students.

After a very positive experience, the learning expedition was organized for the second time in April 2026 as a new group of EFREI students spent a week in Pori. The program again included interesting company visits, insightful workshops and cultural leisure activities. The feedback from the students was exceptional.

We look forward to seeing how the collaboration develops and what kind of cultural experiences will be created in the future!

​​​​​​​Kimmo Ahonen
Project Manager for International Affairs, University of Tampere, Pori Unit