We Develop Professional Youth Work

The Key Competence Area of Youth Work

Individuals, groups, and communities are the focus of the key competence area of youth work. Community encompasses youth work -specific work communities as well as regional, national, and international communities.

In line with the Youth Act, our educational and development activities in youth work promote young people’s social inclusion and opportunities for exerting an influence. We prevent social exclusion by developing outreach and social youth work and by taking part in societal conversation and decision-making.

Since we operate nationally, we ensure equal opportunities for youth work education and development regionally as well.

Humak’s Strategic Emphasis on Youth Work

Social Inclusion of the Youth

The focus point of social inclusion strives for strengthening youth worker competences of interaction and inclusion while at the same time promoting youth involvement and preventing social exclusion.

NEET-youth (NEET = Not in Employment, Education or Training) and youth from cultural minorities receive special attention. However, “regular youth” is, of course, not forgotten either.

The central innovation tools in development work are internationality and digitization.

Life Progression of Youth and Strengthening Involvement

The focus point of youth life progression works on the fields of free time, work, school and other institutions to support meaningful life for all youth. The aim of youth work is promoting involvement in the everyday life of the youth and in their official and unofficial communities.

The environments of youth work are understood to also cross the limitations free time. Thus, this challenges the Youth Act notion of limiting youth work as work done in youth’s free time. An example of this is youth work in schools and other institutions.

The interest of this focus point are various e-phenomena. In its research and development, various electronic methods and phenomena and utilizing them in youth work are also taken into account.

The central themes of this focus point are the well-being of youth workers and defining clear boundaries for work in a digitized world.

The Youth’s Civic Activities, Globalization and Sustainability

We strengthen youth work competences on supporting and developing the youth’s societal impact and involvement. Alongside traditional ways of influencing, new forms to exert influence in everyday life have taken space in the field, for example in the form of consumer choices.

Globalization challenges youth work to work with an international mindset. The growing worry about the environment requires youth work to develop its competence in the theme of sustainable development. The central themes of the focus point are global education, media education and human rights. The duties of youth work also entail strengthening the notions of democracy and the constitutional state.

The demand for skills in digitization and social media as well as for developing youth’s multiliteracy, media literacy and communication skills is also high in youth work.

Humak’s Key Competence Area of Youth Work Relies on Partnerships

Humak is involved in the youth work collaborative network formed by youth work educators Allianssi, Kanuuna, the National Church Council and the Finnish Youth Research Society. The most important partners in other institutes of higher education are Xamk and Centria which also offer community educator degrees.

Humak’s strategic partners in youth work are Kanuuna, in terms of local youth work and Allianssi, in terms of organizational youth work. Kentauri, the youth work centre of expertise, which Humak is a part of, is also an important part of Humak’s sector of youth work.

Childen of the Station is a strategic partner on the focus points of youth life progressions and the prevention of social exclusion.

In terms of research, a key partner is the Finnish Youth Research Society / the Finnish Youth Research Network which is in a cooperation agreement with Humak. Koordinaatti and the digital youth work centre of expertise. are our collaborative partners in developing digital competence in youth work.

Our goal is to find partnerships in tech companies where the focus is on digitization and which are interested in developing services for the youth.