Interview with Heidi Stenberg, Director of School of Rehabilitation and Examination 

17.2.2025
Enni Leskinen

Heidi Stenberg toimii kuntoutuksen ja tutkimisen osaamisaluejohtajana sekä Metropolian edustajana pääkaupunkiseudun urheiluakatemian eli Urhean hallintoneuvostossa.

Metropolia’s core activities in learning and business are conducted through 10 different departments, with the School of Rehabilitation and Examination being one of them. This department includes a variety of degrees, both at the bachelor’s and master’s levels.  

My main task as the director of school is to lead the activities of my department in accordance with Metropolia’s strategy, with a particular focus on learning activities. As the Director of School of Rehabilitation and Examination, I am responsible for the results, personnel, finances, and quality of the department. In practical terms, this means close cooperation with team and degree coordinators, planners, and lecturers. 

I have been working as the Director of School of Rehabilitation and Examination for just over a year. My predecessor also served as Metropolia’s representative on Urhea’s Board, so this role naturally transitioned to me. As Metropolia’s representative, I actively collaborate with Urhea, so it was only natural that I participate in the Pro-Athlete UAS audit process. I am active in sports myself, and my children have also engaged in various sports. A few Finnish championship medals have even landed in my family. Promoting an active lifestyle and supporting elite sports are also personally close to my heart.

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Heidi Stenberg is the director of school of Rehabilitation and examination and Metropolia’s representative on the board of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area Sports Academy, Urhea.

What is Your Role as Metropolia’s Representative on Urhea’s Board? 

Urhea’s board consisting of representatives from sports federations, secondary schools, universities, and cities, among others. In addition, the board includes various athlete, support service, and expert members. Metropolia is one of Urhea’s seven university partners and one of the founding members of the Urhea Foundation. Collaboration with Urhea is very important for Metropolia. 

Urhea’s mission is to enable success in sports and dual careers through close cooperation with network partners. Urhea’s board meets regularly several times a year, and as Metropolia’s representative, I bring the university’s perspectives to the board meetings. The representative role emphasizes strategic cooperation, i.e., how Metropolia, as Urhea’s university partner, can support Urhea in succeeding in its strategy. Another important task in this role is to ensure the flow of information so that Metropolia’s Urhea actors and sports team are informed about the issues discussed in the board. Collaboration with Urhea also involves participating in various events, which either I or other Urhea actors, such as Urhea Customer Manager Titta Komssi or Study Counselor Paula Lindqvist, attend. 

How is the Combination of Elite Sports and Higher Education Promoted in Different Departments? 

Elite athletes have been identified as an important customer group at Metropolia, and as a university of applied sciences, we are committed to supporting athlete students’ opportunities for dual careers. The combination of elite sports and higher education is promoted in various ways within the departments. Promoting dual careers for athlete students requires cooperation both within Metropolia and externally. I communicate about the “Athlete Metropolia” concept to other directors of schools in our joint meetings. Another example of internal cooperation is the athlete student pathways built for different competence areas, which have been facilitated by experts in continuous learning. Many of Metropolia’s experts are involved in this internal cooperation. 

In addition, personal study plans (HOPS) for students include various ways for athlete students to complete their studies, allowing them to choose the options that best support their sports careers. These include online studies and the recognition and accreditation of prior learning (AHOT). In addition to HOPS, tutors and study counselors assist athlete students in scheduling their studies. It is crucial for athlete students to highlight their athlete status so that Metropolia can implement the elite athlete process. 

What New Insights has the Pro-Athlete UAS Audit Process Brought to the Cooperation Between Metropolia and the Sports Academy? 

The audit process is still ongoing, but the work done so far has emphasized the importance of broader cooperation with partners. Our task at the university of applied sciences is to train new professionals to meet the needs of the changing workforce and to build educational pathways that align with the Ministry of Education and Culture’s Vision for Higher Education and Research 2030. 

Creating and maintaining cooperation structures is extremely important, and the Pro-Athlete UAS audit process has reinforced this idea. Metropolia has several business and organizational partners, with designated customer managers from Metropolia’s staff working with them. The appointment of a customer manager demonstrates our commitment and investment in cooperation, which we hope will be as smooth as possible for all parties involved. Collaboration with Urhea is not only the responsibility of the customer manager but also involves a sufficiently broad group of actors to ensure that the cooperation progresses as planned. Systematic and organized cooperation is needed, and for this purpose, Metropolia has assembled a sports team from its staff and the student organization METKA. The sports team’s task is to advance development processes and identify areas for improvement in Metropolia’s operations. 

The audit process currently involves a self-assessment, where we examine Metropolia’s activities and practices to enable dual careers for athlete students. In the next phase of the audit, an external group will interview Metropolia’s staff and students regarding these practices. It is very important to conduct such audits because they provide us with insights and data on how we can better support athlete students and enable dual careers. 

What Message do You Want to Convey about the University’s Pro-Athlete Sports Activities and the Significance of the Audit? 

The Pro-Athlete UAS audit highlights the importance of elite sports – I believe elite sports have a significant impact on national identity. Watching sports competitions and seeing Finns succeed in sports brings great experiences to many. The 2024 Paris Olympics provided me with such experiences. Although the media portrayed Finnish Olympic success as weak, there were also successes. I closely followed dressage, where Finns performed excellently. It was thrilling to watch the competitions – I lived through the competition. Elite sports can provide us with wonderful, shared memories. Sports have been a part of my life since childhood through my father, and watching many sports competitions has left a strong, emotional memory. I still vividly remember how the whole family watched Finnish elite athletes’ performances in both individual and team sports on TV with excitement during my childhood. 

At Metropolia, we have the privilege of playing a significant role in supporting elite athletes. We are part of a larger whole – we can help ensure that Finnish elite sports thrive. The audit is an important tool for us to examine our own activities and further develop the support for athlete students and the enabling of dual careers at Metropolia. 

Combining sports and studies urhea

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