sure. So, what are you looking for, "design" doesn't really help to narrow a list of firms down. And by Finland I suppose you mean Helsinki?

yeah, didnt much like tampere or oulu. helsinki seems to be the best choise although oulu is getting to be rather big as wel. here are two fimrs that i kind of liked and will probaby look into. they dont do anything super crazy, more clean cut stuff with a diverse scope of projects.l

http://www.tsi.fi/
http://www.k2s.fi/runko.html

but being still a youngen i still like the magaziney appeal of architecture as well... i dono what that was suposed to mean.

Right on. so - Tuomo Siitonen has been a professor of housing at the HUT, and as an employer I heard he is nice when there is no rush. Sadly, the firm seems to be always in a terrible rush & have to finish stuff in fewer hours than is needed. So, not a bad choice in the way of a "stable, clean & diverse" finnish firm. But I've heard mixed things about the work environment. Firms that are similar, and that you might have looked at already:

SARC architects - sarc.fi
Helin & co Architects - www.helinco.fi
Pekka Salminen arkkitehdit - www.pesark.com

K2S is one of the young, up & coming firms, like ALA (big) and Avanto (small), check them out at their websites:
www.ala-a.com
www.avan.to

here are some "midway" firms, that are trendyish, but not big & semi-corporate:
www.jkmm.fi
www.ark-l-m.fi

and a few trendy, design & interior design & concept driven firms and communities:
nowoffice.org
www.anteeksi.org
www.m41lh2.com


If you don't know finnish, you will have a quite limited chances in some firms, it saves time just to ask if they will even consider someone thats a non-native.

If you want additional information on some particular firm, you can e-mail me, I'd be happy to help.

These guys are good. On a side note, ever notice how finnish names have a sort of Japanese flair to them?

I second Heikkinen+Komonen, a sharp & intelligent firm. and I've heard they have new projects underway...

ya i like heikkinen a lot as well! i am kind of worried about looking for employment there because i have heard that the job market isnt very good. i am a citizen so i dont have deal with visa and stuff, thank god.

it will be an adventure never the less, i havent been back there for years, and need to catch-up on my finnish.

im worried about how to go about applying for jobs. i could call and ask but i think that might not be so good considering i might not understand them 100% and probably wouldn’t be able explain my self properly. What would be a better way of going about doing this?

I still have like 6-9 months before I can start. Do you think that would be too early to ask around?

So you speak finnish? that's a huge plus. Well - the job market is actually very good at the moment. Firms (like Siitonen) are hiring people - students and architects.

It is a bit early, though - you can always ask around but waiting a while would be good - firms don't necessarily have their upcoming projects/needs totally figured out yet.

Send a letter (in finnish if possible) with some samples/portfolio and explain the programs you use and what level of documents you have drawn (construction documents, preferably) - and previous work experience and all that. And call a bit after the letter has been received - that should be good - it's fine if you have an accent.

Entä osaatko kirjoittaa suomeksi ja ymmärrätkö alan sanastoa? toimistoissa on usein oltava yhteydessä valmistajiin ja tavarantoimittajiin - ja olen aika varma, että mahdollinen tuleva työnantajasi haluaa tietää pystytkö siihen.

no asia on etta ma ymmarran aika hyvin, mutta ma on vaan puhunut mun isan kanssa sen takia ma en tiada niin monta sanoija. elikka olisi vahan aikaa ennen kun oppisin kaikki sanat arkitehturia varten, ja se on ehka vaikeampaa kun mun pitaa oppia miten rakennukset menee yhteensenkin.

hm mutta olisi parempaa sanoa kirjaimessa etta mun suomen kieli ei oo niin hyva. tai luuleisitko etta "hyva englantin keili" olisi parempaa tiada?

pari kuukauden jalkee ma menen armejaan ja voin etsia toita sialta ehka, ja toivottavasti voisin aloitta kun se loppuu.

kiitoksia

Hyvältä kuulostaa! Joo, voi olla hyvä selittää tilanne englanniksi kirjeessä ja sitten katsoa millaisia vastauksia saat - luulen että sinulla on aika hyvät mahdollisuudet saada töitä koska osaat suomea aika hyvin ja tulet varmasti oppimaan nopeasti paljon lisää. Armeijan loppumiseen on kuitenkin aika pitkä aika, eikä kannata ryhtyä kyselemään toimistoista tai hakemaan töitä kun vasta 2-3 kuukautta ennenkuin voit aloittaa työt. Onnea matkaan ja käydään kaljalla kun olet täällä Helsingissä!