HAMK is planning significant campus projects. In Riihimäki, HAMK’s campus would move to the Travel Center next to the train station, and in Hämeenlinna, an exploring has begun on the possibility of building a new campus in the city center. The goal is to ensure that the facilities are sufficient and meet the changing needs of learning and research. If this is the first time you’re hearing about these projects, you’ll find more information at the bottom of this article.
The Student Union also wants to actively collaborate with both HAMK and the campus cities and is ready to bring students’ voices to the table. In all campus projects, it is essential that students’ needs are taken into account. The Student Union wrote an opinion piece on the matter, which you can read below. The article was also published in Hämeen Sanomat on November 28, 2025.
HAMK Students’ Perspectives on New Campus Projects
Häme University of Applied Sciences’ plans to centralize operations in Hämeenlinna’s city center have sparked interest and expectations among students. The Student Union of Häme University of Applied Sciences wants to highlight perspectives that we believe are essential for the success of a potential city center campus.
A new campus is an opportunity to attract more first-choice applicants. A central location makes HAMK more visible and approachable. This is an important competitive advantage in a situation where the number of higher education institutions will likely decrease in the future, and competition for vitality will intensify. HAMK’s Riihimäki campus is also moving to facilities connected to the railway station, which makes commuting between campus and home easier. Nowadays, fewer students live in the campus city, so a good location creates a competitive edge when choosing a place to study. We students want to see HAMK as a university that remains attractive and respected for decades to come.
We want to emphasize the quality of study spaces. Students need modern, versatile, and sufficient facilities: for group work, lectures, quiet concentration, and collaborative work. Too often, the design of higher education buildings overlooks the fact that different forms of learning require different environments. If the spatial solutions succeed, the city center campus could become an example of a new era learning environment. To make learning spaces functional, it is crucial that students are genuinely involved in the planning process. After all, students are the largest user group of the campus.
A city center location enables diverse collaboration, for example with businesses. The new campus could include pop-up retail spaces that students could use to test their business ideas with a low threshold. We also see opportunities for local entrepreneurs if spaces could be utilized in ways that create natural encounters between students and businesses. This could be combined with a mentoring model where local entrepreneurs support and guide students in the first steps of entrepreneurship.
We also see potential for the city center campus to serve as a meeting place for other events. Campus facilities could be used for various events and meetings.
The city center campus project offers many opportunities, but its success depends on how well students’ needs are considered. The Student Union is ready to make students’ voices heard and to collaborate so that Hämeenlinna develops and builds a campus that students, residents, and the entire university community can be proud of.
Juno Olkkola
The Chair of the Board 2025
The Student Union of Häme University of Applied Sciences
Briefly about campus projects
HAMK is moving its Riihimäki campus to new premises in the current Travel Center, next to the train station. HAMK’s current premises are being transferred to Hyria. The target date for the transfer is 2027.
In Hämeenlinna, the city and HAMK are working together to investigate and plan the relocation of the campus from Visamäki to the center of Hämeenlinna.
Articles about campus projects: