Erasmus+ Inclusion Support enabled me to join the Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) in Portugal!
The story about student exchange was almost unrealistic for me. I am single mom of three kids. However, my oldest child is already 18 and my two small boys are living with me. Me and Robin started studying in the same year. I started with bachelor program in International Business and Logistics (IBL) at Metropolia, and he went to first grade at school. My youngest one was five years old in those days. The idea about being an exchange student was a personal long-lasting dream, but somehow I felt it is not applicable for me. For me it was way too complicated to change a country, especially when having a lot of responsibilities at home already. Time went fast... Kids become more confident and I tried to apply for 6 months study exchange in Spain. The reason for choosing this country – I speak Spanish a little and would like to improve knowledge and get another European perspective to my study field. However, I was already doing my final study year and long-term exchange did not anymore fit into my degree study plan. So, the exchange was not a possibility at that time and would have postponed my graduation. Then the idea sort of faded away, until on one day I got an email about FinBank challenge in Portugal, Blended Intensive Programme about Banking and Finance study with Setúbal Polytechnic Institute! The program promised to be intensive and during one week in Portugal should be presented innovation for banking sector related to design thinking and creativity. Additionally, we were able to meet with students from all over Europe online. I applied and got selected! I have been so lucky when Erasmus+ programme and International Relations Adviser in Metropolia nominated me as exchange student for this programme. That really meant a lot for me! Without funding from Erasmus+ Blended Mobility I couldn’t have been able to cover the expenses of travelling and living on top of my family's other expenses. Our intensive finance course in Setúbal was held in May 2024. A great value is that Erasmus+ programme supports students with families with additional inclusion support. This made me feel that Metropolia cares about young parents a lot. My total financial support was almost 1200 euros as I was entitled for the inclusion support, travel grant and the program day support! This is really good form of support, if you know how to take care of the arrangements correctly! This BIP about Finance was well organized by Portuguese colleagues. Professor Ana Rolo from Setúbal Polytechnic Institute provided each student team very good guidance. So, even though my major, Logistics sector is not that much finance and banking-oriented, but it was not difficult to get in to idea and join the team work and start learning! Getting ready for an adventure! From Metropolia we traveled to Portugal together in a group of five Metropolia Business School students. In the actual group work project, there were students from Norway, Portugal, Czech Republic, Romania and Belgium. Luckily, we quickly divided the tasks and got really motivated about the topic. Actually, our project was successfully completed one day before deadline. All in all, I was able to gather many lovely experiences from Portugal as the Instituto Politécnico de Setúbal created an amazing program for the students. For example, we visited Palácio da Bacalhôa located in São Simão, Azeitão, Setúbal, wine and cultural tour, went to some nice beaches by the ocean and even a natural park. Our lunch was in a most beautiful restaurant of the city - Casa da Baía. The communication with professors was smooth as we were able to ask questions, but also the work in the group of students was highly enriching and brought some new perspectives! All in all, a brilliant experience from Erasmus+ programme. I’m so thankful for International Relations Adviser and exchange possibilities at Metropolia. Because of them - I could see the ocean. Last but not least; Many greetings to my teammates who make amazing effort on presentation day! Tips based on my experience: Learn all the possible languages Touch an ocean wave and make a wish Choose the most interesting exchange programme for you. Make it happen! Julia S.
Incoming Student Story: Nina Schulz from Germany
“I did my exchange semester at Metropolia Business School in 2023. I was sure that I wanted to go to a Nordic country and I had the choice between universities in Finland and in Sweden. I had been in Finland once for one week for an exchange from school. In the end it was easy to choose Helsinki as it is a bigger city and there are a lot of things going on. It was clear that I wanted to choose Metropolia and luckily it worked out. I really liked my studies at Metropolia. I felt that everything was so structured from the beginning on and I had no questions. The Finnish course was my favorite. I tried to learn some Finnish word before arriving but that didn’t go so well so it was nice to learn the language. The course was also introducing us to the Finnish culture. Investment Portfolio Management was my second favorite course. We did a stock exchange game and I learned a lot in that course. I really liked that we had a lot of group works. There were no exam periods and it was not so stressful in the end of the semester. We had to work during the whole semester and had a lot of chances to get the points during the semester which took off a lot of pressure. I really liked the campus; everything was so modern and nice. There was a lot of spaces to work and sit with your friends. The student restaurant on campus is like a meeting point, you always met someone there. I also really liked the orientation days; they were very structured and we didn’t get lost in the first days. During my free-time I did a lot of small things in Helsinki. I went to a lot of cafés with my friend and also visited different places, such as Lammassaari which was one of my favorites. We also went for a lot of walks and did some hikes in the national park Nuuksio and even barbecued there. I went a lot to sauna, Sompasauna was an amazing place. There was also a lot of student parties and they were so nice with the overalls. I also did some special trips; they were the highlight of my time there. We went to Lapland where we stayed in a cottage, went to Norway, swam in the Arctic Ocean, saw Northern lights and went skiing. That was an amazing adventure! In the Easter weekend we rented a cottage in Varkaus for a few days. This was also so nice, we did a lot of chilling, hanging out and walks there. One highlight was the Vappu (May 1st) weekend. The city was full of people and there were a lot of traditions we got to participate into. Tutors were great. We had always someone to talk to and it felt like everyone wanted us to meet other people and connect. It was nice to have a lot of events going on and it was possible to get to know people easily. The Finnish culture was very similar to what I’m used to so I did not have major problems adjusting. At the beginning of the exchange, it was a big challenge to come to Finland alone. I was afraid that I wouldn’t find any people but we had such an intense time here together. It’s crazy that people that I met just five months ago are now so close to me. It was not a big problem to live in a different country with a different language. It just worked out somehow and all the fears turned to very good adventures. It has been good to have changes around you and doing the exchange gave me a lot of self-confidence. I got a lot of memories and friends, it’s hard to say goodbye to everyone. In the future I definitely want to do a Master’s degree and it would be nice to do the whole degree or a semester abroad. I would like to experience this kind of adventure again.” Tips from Nina: Be very open to everyone Do as many things as possible: experience the country! Don’t be afraid to make new contacts and talk to people, most of the time everyone is in the same boat
Incoming Student Story: Marie Lac from France
“I spent one whole academic year at Metropolia doing a double degree exchange. Metropolia and my home university Rennes School of Business have an agreement for this kind of exchange. One of the reasons I chose my home university was because I saw that there is a possibility to go to Finland. In France everybody says that the studies are very good and that life is better in the Nordic countries. I though I will just go to Finland myself and see if it’s true or not. I did a bit of basic research on Finland before my arrival and I found out things like there’s a lot of forest in Finland, it’s the happiest country and that people drink a lot of coffee. One reason to choose Metropolia was also the international dimension of the studies. Studying at Metropolia has been really nice and I’m really happy with my studies. The courses are very interactive and teachers are friendly so it has been easy to learn. Project group works and simulations are different than what I’m used to but at the same time perfect ways to learn. The best thing about my studies have been the people, teachers and students. I could always ask the teachers if I had any questions and they were very supportive. I met a lot of students from different countries and enjoyed how international it was. All of my studies took place on the Myyrmäki campus. I was really happy with the student restaurant: warm meals were really good, healthy and cheap. Also, the campus library is really nice, there are lots of books and also silent rooms which I used for writing my bachelor thesis. In my free-time I did some traveling in Finland and abroad. I went couple of times to Estonia and in Finland I visited some bigger cities. I was going often outside to walk and see the architecture of the city but also the nature and the forest. I went a lot to the forest and I feel like in Finland I reached a better connection with the environment and I felt always safe. I lived in an Airbnb apartment and was able to walk to school. We were also able to barbecue in the forest barbecue place, that was very fun even though the fire was hard to start. The weather in the winter was a bit hard but if you have good clothes, it’s fine. It was not hard to adapt to the culture but it’s a bit different and you have to understand that some things are done differently. I was surprised in a good way about the Finnish people. On the Internet it says that Finnish people are cold and reserved. In fact, when I came here, I found them really open and people were willing to help in English. Everyone is living their own life: you won’t be disturbed but if you need, you’re supported. During my exchange something changed in my mind and I would like to live in the future somewhere else than in France. During the exchange you learn to see the world from a different angle.” Tips from Marie: Buy winter clothes second-hand in Finland. There are a lot of second-hand stores in Finland and you can buy warm enough winter clothes from them without having to spend a lot of money. Get to know what kind of things are around you and ask people what they like to do and where they like to go. Don’t be afraid of talking to people. Helsinki is a really international city and you will find help everywhere.
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