For Media and Press

32nd of Oulu's "100 acts": The business idea competition for new Oulu high school students

Julkaistu 22.01.2013

If the Oulu region and Finland are to keep up with global competition, we need a supportive atmosphere, brave professionals, knowledgeable advisors and structures that support business operations. These were the thoughts of economic sciences and business studies students from the University of Oulu who came up with a new business idea competition for high school students. The successful concept is to continue into the future too.

Young economic sciences and business studies students from the student organization Finanssi ry started a new tradition as the municipalities of the Oulu region were being merged. The goal was to encourage entrepreneurship in younger people and provide financial support for talented individuals.

"Due to mergers and changes in structure, Oulu is in need of courage and innovation. This is why the students of economic sciences and business studies from the University of Oulu developed a competition in which all the high school students of the new Oulu were asked to come up with new ideas to develop the region," explains Anssi Tossavainen, who is in charge of Corporate Relations at Finanssi ry.

New tradition well received

The business idea competition for high school students of the new Oulu was first held in the fall last year. The competition consisted of a preliminary written competition held in September 2012, followed by oral finals.

"We received a lot of really good ideas and high school students were very enthusiastic about the competition. The media was also very interested in the event and reported on it throughout the competition. The competition finalists received incentive rewards for a total value of EUR 1,800 and the region’s business organizations, such as BusinessOulu, Business Kitchen and Finnish Enterprise Agencies, trained and continue to train the finalists to become successful future entrepreneurs," says Anssi Tossavainen, summing up the competition.

The Oulu region will continue to encourage its high school students to follow their dreams, so why not start developing new business ideas for the next competition?

For more information, please contact:

Anssi Tossavainen, tel. +358 50 5917 776, anssi.tossavainen@gmail.com

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The 100 Actions program brings Oulu area municipalities together and gives everyone the opportunity to highlight small and large actions that take the area forward and bring joy to the population. Take a look at the 100 Actions program and enter your own project or candidate at www.oulu.com/100tekoa