With her dissertation safely on the back burner, Liisa Suvikumpu was invited by Dr Paavo Hohti to help him establish the office of the Council of Finnish Foundations. But after a few years, the call of research proved stronger and she gave in her notice.

– In Spring 2007 I started seriously tackling my dissertation. Although I did stray into writing a microhistorical monograph on the Saari Manor in central Tavastia as my Licentiate thesis. Still, I finished my dissertation in two years, so that little detour didn’t cause much of a delay. I’ve always been one to jump in with both feet – a frantic burst of work is my way of getting results.

In 2009, Suvikumpu successfully defended her doctoral thesis on the significance of Finnish artists’ journeys to Rome in the development of the Finnish national identity in the 19th century. The following year she was appointed Docent in European History. Asked to name the sine qua non of a historian, Dr Suvikumpu mentions strong gluteal muscles. It’s a cliché but it's true. You need perseverance for wading through your data and for writing.

– You must also be able to let go of your text in time. Your paper may look incomplete but you must let the academic community evaluate it because otherwise you won’t learn anything new and nobody will benefit from your research.

Dr Suvikumpu wants to stress that her studies at the best University in Finland have given her confidence that a historian has the best possible ability to analyse the world.

– I think historians’ training hones their capacity to analyse each phenomenon from several perspectives, discern the essential, and report their findings in an engaging manner. Many of my abilities come from having learned to think from the smartest people in Finland, courtesy of the University.

Being a researcher isn’t always a bed of roses. Writing her latest book, the history of spa culture in Finland, took a lot out of Dr Suvikumpu. She had just landed the job of her dreams, she had a one-year-old son, and a husband abroad, but at the back of her mind there was the nagging obligation to finish the book, since she had received a grant for the purpose. The book was mostly written at night, when the rest of her family was asleep and her day job wasn’t affected. The award-winning Suomalaiset kylpylät – Kotimaisen kylpyläkulttuurin historiaa (‘Finnish spas – the history of Finnish spa culture’) by Dr Liisa Suvikumpu was published in 2014 by the Finnish Literature Society (SKS).

• Historian Liisa Suvikumpu discussing spa culture in early 20th century Finland: “Kurkistus kylpylöiden kultakauteen” ('A peek into the golden age of spas'), YLE Morning TV 31 March 2014.
• “Kylpylät ennen ja nyt – onko eleganssi kadotettu?” ('Spas then and now – is the elegance lost?') Helsingin Sanomat 10 March 2014.
• Liisa Suvikumpu receives the Lauri Jäntti Award 2015, Lauri Jäntti Foundation.

“Tohtorintutkinto on valtti työelämässä” (‘A doctorate is an ace up your sleeve for work’). A video produced by the Finnish Union of University Researchers and Teachers. Veli-Pekka Leppänen and Liisa Suvikumpu discuss the benefits and advantages of a doctorate at work. Published on 6 January 2015.