News

Maarit Korpi-Lagg: I have so few female colleagues that sometimes it’s difficult to maintain self-esteem

In this video, Professor of Astroinformatics Maarit Korpi-Lagg shares her childhood dream and how it feels to work in the midst of the many male researchers and professors.
Maarit Korpi-Lagg, photo by by Matti Ahlgren
‘My biggest dream since I was a child was to understand astronomical objects. Then, I have focused most of my career in understanding the sun,' says Maarit Korpi-Lagg. Photo: Matti Ahlgren.

'It’s of course a daunting task for a female professor to do something as great as these recognised professors. Sometimes it’s difficult to maintain self-esteem in a situation where there are so few female colleagues. Both in physics and computer science there are very few female researchers and professors. Last year we had a celebration because the first female student passed my course. It was a big thing for me,' says Professor Maarit Korpi-Lagg.

The video has been produced by the European Commission and it has been directed by Kasia and Dawid Kissinger.

Maarit Korpi-Lagg turned her childhood hobbies into a living

As a child, Maarit Korpi-Lagg was interested in the stars and coding, and now she researches the activity of the sun, which could not be done without computer science

Read more
Nainen seisoo ja katsoo sivulle hymyillen kädet puuskassa. Hänellä on päällään musta paita ja sininen huivi ja aurinko värjää taustaa vaaleaksi.

See more videos

Minna Halme, photo by Hayley Le

Minna Halme: At first, sustainability wasn’t taken seriously

'I was told to do a doctoral thesis on a different topic if I want a job in the future.'

News
Saban Ramadani, Photo by Hayley Le

Saban Ramadani: Is it radical to create a rocket in a week?

‘When you are expected to come up with something quickly, for instance, in visual arts, is the purpose itself lost in the creative process? Is it radical to create a rocket in a week?’

News

Walk in my shoes

Inspired by the saying that you should walk a mile in someone’s shoes to understand them, the ‘Walk in my shoes’ series aims to share some of the experiences, thoughts, perspectives and challenges faced by members of the Aalto community.

Read more
Walk in my shoes, illustration by Anna Muchenikova.
  • Updated:
  • Published:
Share
URL copied!

Read more news

A woman presenting her master's thesis on textile chemistry at Aalto University. A laptop and notes are on the table.
Research & Art Published:

Master’s student showcases efficient color stripping of cotton fabrics

On December 9, master’s thesis student Elsa Vuorenmaa from the Textile Chemistry Group presented the results of her research on color stripping of reactive-dyed cotton fabrics.
Four men in formal attire, each in different settings. One wears a turtleneck, others wear suits with ties.
Research & Art Published:

Future makers research batteries, cryptography and plastic recycling

The Technology Industries of Finland Centennial Foundation awarded 3.5 million euros in research funding to eight projects, five from Aalto University.
Sebastian Szyller photographed indoors on campus.
Research & Art Published:

Sebastian Szyller: I want to make machine learning more dependable and resilient to attacks

Sebastian Szyller has been appointed assistant professor at Aalto University Department of Computer Science as from 1 September 2025. He studies how to train privacy-preserving machine learning models, how to safeguard them and ensure robust predictions in untrusted environments
Aalto Global Impact in Kenya
Studies Published:

The Industry Project course is at the heart of the IDBM Master's program

The multidisciplinary master's program in International Design Business Management (IDBM) celebrates its 30th anniversary this year