Petition to keep the wide range of languages and communication skills teaching at Oulu University La

The University of Oulu began its joint consultation process regarding the future of the Language Centre with the teaching and administrative staff of the Language Centre on 15.02.2010.

We appeal to the decision-makers, administration and board of Oulu University for the preservation of the Language Centre's broad range of language and communication studies and its support functions.

The University of Oulu's Language Centre offers university students unique opportunities to acquire wide-ranging language, interpersonal and communication skills. The Language Centre promotes students' entry into student exchange programmes and supports international students in Oulu through its teaching of Finnish language and culture.
Working life requires increasingly broad and complex language skills as well as the ability to communicate in different situations. These skills are an important recruitment criterion and a part of professional competence today. The Language Centre enables students' acquisition of sufficiently broad language skills. Cutting the diversity of courses and languages would deprive students at the University of Oulu of their opportunity to ensure their competitive edge in the future labour-market.
The Language Centre also offers expert support to the University of Oulu's own staff, who need skills development to work in our increasingly international work-environment. The Language Centre promotes the university's profiling as an international scientific university.

Keep our wide range of languages and our high-quality language and communication teaching!

Defend the opportunity for future students to study languages too!

Now it's time to act quickly!

This petition will be delivered to the university administration.
It will stay open for signing at least until the next University Board meeting, which will be held on Thursday 11.3.2010

It was written by the staff of the Language Centre in Oulu on 10.2.2010