Ranja Ruotoistenmäki, an Industrial Engineering and Management student at LUT University, discovered that StartHub membership offers a unique opportunity to build operational competence alongside academic theory. Practical training provides perspectives rarely encountered in lecture halls, naturally bridging the gap between academic knowledge and everyday professional life.
Ranja Ruotoistenmäki, a first-year Industrial Engineering and Management student at LUT University, has discovered a new perspective on working life alongside her studies: the startup environment, where responsibility, learning, and experimentation go hand in hand.
Ruotoistenmäki began her internship in January at Spark Traineeship, a member startup of the StartHub community. While she first became familiar with StartHub during a campus tour, she didn’t realize at the time that it also offered internship opportunities for students. Her internship at Spark Traineeship opened up unexpectedly, giving her the chance to dive straight into hands-on work.
Her path to the company was the result of good timing and networking rather than a long-term plan. Spark Traineeship’s founder, Baptiest Mol, met one of Ruotoistenmäki’s fellow students at an event and asked if they were interested in joining the startup. Because that student lacked the time to commit, they recommended Ruotoistenmäki instead. “I was asked if I would like to help a startup, and I decided to seize the opportunity. I thought, why not—opportunities like this don’t come along every day,” Ruotoistenmäki says.
This open-minded decision led to an internship that has offered a much more concrete learning experience than her first-year studies alone could provide.
Everyday Life in a Startup: Content, Social Media, and Events
Throughout her internship, Ruotoistenmäki has tackled a wide range of practical tasks. Her responsibilities include assisting at events, producing social media content, translating and refining texts in Finnish, and bringing a fresh perspective to marketing efforts. While her role is versatile, she primarily sees it as an opportunity to challenge herself and explore her interest in communications.
“This is a way for me to take responsibility for social media. In many workplaces, prior experience is expected, but in a startup environment, it’s possible to learn and develop on a smaller scale,” Ruotoistenmäki explains.
Ruotoistenmäki’s duties include the implementation of social media and website text content
Learning Beyond the Classroom
While her first-year studies have focused mainly on core engineering courses, the startup environment has offered a completely different kind of education. Through her internship, Ruotoistenmäki has gained a concrete understanding of what happens during a company’s early stages. She has realized that communication cannot be aimed at “everyone”; instead, every message must be carefully targeted to the right audience. Additionally, she has learned how to effectively give and receive feedback and has begun to recognize which working methods suit her best.
“At the university, we often discuss large organizations and established structures, but in a startup, you see exactly where a company’s growth begins,” Ruotoistenmäki says. “At school, everything is theoretical. Here, things are concrete and operational.”
Looking Ahead: Continuously Developing Skills
Ruotoistenmäki has found both the work community and the learning experience highly rewarding. She aims to continue refining her working methods, strengthening her skills in self-reflection, and building greater confidence in marketing and content creation. These first few months have been highly educational, and she views her time in the startup world as valuable experience, regardless of where her future career path leads.
“I highly recommend the startup environment to other students. The work is diverse, and the experience is both valuable and concrete. I believe every work experience is useful, even if it’s not directly related to your major. In a startup, you learn things you simply wouldn’t see anywhere else,” Ruotoistenmäki reflects.