---

Teekkari

Teekkari is a general term for a university student studying technology or architecture who has studied the field for at least a year and therefore earned the right to use the title of teekkari. Teekkaris are creative, bold, and mischievous individuals who are constantly coming up with new ways to entertain not only themselves, but the community around them. Teekkaris are also heavily involved in charity work through various stunts and campaigns and are active contributors to the university community. Their most recognizable symbol is the tasseled Teekkari cap, along with the overalls, a tradition that has since spread to students in other fields as well. The approximately five year education of a teekkari leads to the title of Master of Science in Technology or Architecture, but the teekkari identity never fades: once a teekkari, always a teekkari!

Excursions

An excursion is a study trip designed to provide new learning opportunities. During excursions, participants visit companies operating in their field and see real life applications of what they study, all while enjoying time with fellow students. On an excursion, teekkaris receive plenty of information about possible future job prospects, get the opportunity to network and spend time in good company. The process engineering guild organizes excursions for their members throughout the academic year, catering to both freshmen and more senior students. The lengths of the trips vary from a couple of hours to multiple days, with most excursions taking place within Finland. An exception is the UlkoMaanPitkä excursion, which is organized every other year and takes students abroad.

Pranks

Pranks (jäynä) are humorous, surprising and often technology-based practical jokes that are meant to bring joy and laughter to the pranksters, the target, and to a broader audience. A prank is meant to help people take daily life less seriously and to challenge their gullibility, promoting a higher sense of critical thinking. A prank is not meant to cause distress or material damage and does not seriously address topics such as religion or politics. Pranks also no longer target any authorities. Pranks can be carried out individually or as a group effort. In Oulu, teekkaris compete for supremacy in the local prank competition, where the creativity of the teams is evaluated by a jury. The chosen winner goes to represent Oulu at the national prank competition (Valtakunnalliset Jäynäkisat). The Process Engineering Guild has participated in the latter multiple times, with varying levels of success.

You can learn more about pranks here.

Babtism

In the Teekkari Baptism tradition in Oulu, the freshmen take a slide into the water at Lasaretinväylä, and as their head fully submerges below the surface, their freshmanhood “dies.” Emerging from the water, they become beings in limbo. The next morning, at 5am, together with their classmates and fellow members of the teekkari community, they ceremoniously place the glowing white Teekkari cap on their heads for the first time. Thus, they are reborn as full-fledged teekkaris. Baptism traditions vary between teekkari cities, but they always take place during the Wappu celebrations of a student’s freshman year, and they attract significant attention from both students and the public. Read more about the Teekkari Babtism.

Kyykkä

Kyykkä is an ancient throwing game from Karelia. Its winter version, academic kyykkä, is considered to be the national sport of teekkaris, with the annual world championships held in Hervanta, Tampere. The game includes throwing wooden bats (karttu) to knock over and remove wooden cylinders (kyykkä) from the playing square with as few throws as possible. It can be played individually, in pairs or as teams of four. Oulun Akateeminen Mölökky- ja Kyykkäseura ry is responsible for preserving and developing the traditions of the sport in Oulu. Within the process engineering guild, the term “culture of winning” (“voittamisen kulttuuri”) is rumored to have originated thanks to the contributions of our world-champion level kyykkä players.

Singing

It is often said that a teekkari sings enthusiastically rather than well. Teekkari songs are an essential part of teekkari celebrations, lifting the communal spirit. The songs are usually humorous parodies or rewrites not meant to be taken too seriously. The most traditional songs include “Ikuisen Teekkarin Laulu” (“The Song of the Eternal Teekkari”), which is often sung at the end of formal dinners or other such events, and the Teekkari hymn, which is sung solemnly at midnight during Teekkari celebrations and guild-organized events. Every year, Oulu’s teekkaris compete in the art or songwriting at the Laulumarathon, where the Process Engineering Guild has frequently claimed victories in various categories. The lyrics are compiled into the Laulukalu, a songbook that is literally sung from cover to cover during a single event.

Sittnings

Sittnings are academic table parties originally from Sweden, where participants enjoy food, drinks, singing, company, and entertainment. Sittnings usually have a theme dictating the dress code, decorations, entertainment, and menu. If there is no theme, the dress code is usually formal: a dark suit for men, and a little black dress for women. Despite the formal dress code, sittnings are not stiff or overly serious events – quite the opposite! The Process Engineering Guild organizes various sittnings throughout the year, tailored to different audiences, such as freshmen or all members. Sittnings are also often held in collaboration with other guilds.

Speksi

An interactive, student-led theater performance combining improvisation, music, dance and humor. Speksi performances are organized in other academic fields as well. The audience can influence the performance by shouting “Omstart!”, prompting the actors to improvise the previous scene in a different way – such as in another language or in slow motion. The script of a speksi often incorporates relevant humor, providing excellent opportunities for creative and unexpected omstarts. Notable speksi performances include the Otaniemi Teekkarispeksi and Tampere Nääspeksi, both which visit Oulu annually. Additionally, the local Pahkispeksi has several performances every year leading up to Wappu.

Teekkari cap

The tasseled teekkari cap has been the national symbol of the teekkari identity for over 145 years. The Oulu teekkari cap is uniquely shaped and there are strict traditions and rules to wearing it. These regulations are respected with the appropriate reverence – but not overly rigidly. The teekkari cap is a summer hat, freely worn from Wappy (May 1st, 5AM) until the cap removal ceremony (Lakinlaskijaiset) on September 3oth at 11:59PM. Outside of this time frame, permission to wear the cap must be requested from the board of the Technical Students Association Oulu. Members of the Process Engineering Guild can be recognized by the “Kaikki Virtaa” -arrow shaped cockade on the Process Engineering Guild’s cap.

Campaings

Campaigns are a way to do good, raise awareness or otherwise spark public interest in a relevant issue or problem. Campaigns can be used to raise money for charitable purposes. While a campaign can influence societal matters, either in support or opposition of something, it is not a protest. There is always a positive purpose behind it. Teekkaris usually organize campaigns in a large group, especially during Wappu, with the aim of spreading good vibes. Campaigns can be anything, such as nationwide school visits to promote awareness of technology fields, unique charity celebrations, volunteering doing tire-changing, donating blood, or even producing the Wappuradio. The main thing is that everyone has fun while promoting an important cause! You can read more about campaigns here.

Wappu

Wappu is the most noble and important celebration of them all. The previous Wappu is fondly remembered, while the next year’s is eagerly anticipated. With its traditional yet ever-evolving events and ceremonies, Wappu celebrates the end of the academic year and the start of summer – or summer jobs. Wappu is celebrated both with your own guild, other teekkaris, and other guilds as well. The core value of Wappu is a sense of community: Wappu radios take over the airwaves, topical humor is shared and laughed over in Wappu magazines, and freshmen transform into fully fledged teekkaris during their baptism. An Oulu TeekkariWappu is something that must be experienced, and as a sign of surviving it, a teekkari ties another knot to the tassel of their cap.