BA student stories

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Nyan Thit

I’m Nyan Thit, from Myanmar. Since last autumn, I have been studying for a Bachelor’s degree in Business at HELBUS. That is when I moved to Helsinki, where I am currently living in a student apartment. I came to HELBUS as an international student through a marketing email and I didn’t know anyone from Finland before.

I like Finland, even though the Finnish weather is exciting and frustrating at the same time! Finnish society is very inclusive, both in terms of administrative bodies and Finnish people and businesses. It is easy for people from abroad to integrate into society and communities, although Finnish is a challenge and Finns are shy by nature, not very talkative.

School has also helped me in adapting to Finland. What’s special about HELBUS is that the students from different cohorts interact with each other, so it’s easy to make study buddies. We have a really good student organisation, HELBUS Student Core, where we organise fun events. This makes it easier for new students to get to know others.

The teachers and professors are very good, experienced and from an international background. You also learn new things about many cultures through them. And the block-teaching structure, which focuses on one subject for a few weeks at a time, helps us to learn about time management and planning.

I am now 18 years old and what I find particularly good about HELBUS is that you can complete a Bachelor’s degree in Business in two years. That’s really great, because I will have a degree by the age of 19, which is very rare at other universities. I’ll have time to build my career and do some postgraduate studies. The short duration of the studies must be a financial benefit for many people.

In the future, I may want to go into finance and I hope to find a job in Finland. HELBUS studies are so versatile that I can already work in marketing or sales, for example, during my studies.

Read Nyan's story here
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Katariina Komulainen

I have grown up in an entrepreneurial family, so I did not want to spend years applying for state University. HELBUS was thus a logical first choice for me. Now I am 23, and soon a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Law with working experience in international positions and a start-up entrepreneur. I firmly believe that the fast-paced studies and inspiring lecturers have been central to rapid success and given me the right tools to go even further.

Read Katariina's story here
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Johannes Saaristo

Before starting at HELBUS, I had tried to apply to Aalto University. Still, I failed to get in due to time restrictions and other reasons. Even though I am a Finnish native, I have always felt I express myself best in English, so studying at HELBUS felt like a natural decision.

The most considerable doubts I had were the costs of the studies, but my father offered to help me financially, so I instantly grabbed the opportunity. I was pleasantly surprised by the very high-quality teaching. The steady, predictable pace helps me set time aside for my goal-oriented hobbies.

The active Student Core is excellent, with plenty of fun activities and great people.

Overall, I am very satisfied with the teaching and support I have gotten and look forward to the following year. I sincerely recommend HELBUS to everyone who appreciates high-quality English studies. If I had known how efficiently my studies progress – I would have applied years earlier.

Read Johannes's story here
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Saija Söderlund

I found HELBUS as I was looking for international business studies without the need to move abroad. The HELBUS program proved exciting and flexible, offering great teachers, a fast pace I was looking for, and excellent staff support. My studies have been both suitably challenging and gratifying, building my self-confidence and giving me excellent tools for my career.

Although I am still studying, I can already see the power of the new network and my new skills. HELBUS is internationally very competitive and great value for the money. I feel I made the right choice to join the Bachelor’s program in 2018.

Read Saija's story here
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Miika Rissanen

Before starting studies at HELBUS, I was planning on pursuing a professional ice hockey career, so I took a break after high school. At the end of my hockey career, I decided to start my studies, and I remembered reading about HELBUS. At HELBUS, I was impressed by the flexibility and fast-paced studies. Naturally, studying in English was a huge bonus. My English speaking proficiency has always been all right; still studying in English was a bit intimidating. That worked out just fine, and with the supportive staff, I got going, even if it was hard at first.

What I like most about HELBUS are the excellent student community, flexible studies and the international teachers. Pre-Covid, when we had in-class teaching, it was always lovely to go to school to meet the excellent staff and students. I always get great support from fellow students and appreciate that we can all be ourselves in class.

Firstly I recommend HELBUS for the international, very skilled teaching staff. It has been valuable for me to learn about new cultures. Most teachers have an active career in business, not only in academia. Have no doubt, HELBUS is an excellent choice for your Bachelor’s degree.

Read Miika's story here
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Aino Kauppinen

“My already high expectations have been exceeded. I really value the school’s international environment and inspirational teachers. There is a supportive atmosphere in-class, which is supported by wonderful people and the Student Core. The small class sizes are great because we get so much more personalised instruction than we would elsewhere, and the experienced instructors bring a range of cultural styles with them that help to engage the class. It is really interesting to learn from different instructor experiences and background, and be exposed to new ways of looking at things. Now that I am entering the job market, I have also found that employers have been very receptive to my education and being a student at HELBUS has really helped me stand out.

Read Aino's story here
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Belinda Selonen

“The prospect of studying at HELBUS appealed to me as I was very keen to study business in English in an international environment. The programme has been rewarding, with the exposure to a truly international faculty the clear highlight for me. The programme has been intensive and finding the right balance between school and other life took a while. Studying in English felt challenging to begin with as well, but as I worked hard I felt quickly more comfortable with my skills and I feel that I have learned so much as a result. One of the best things to come from my studies has been learning how to challenge myself further!

Read Belinda’s story here
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Hunter Deligeersang

I originally applied to HELBUS as I was moving to Finland and wanted to continue my studies in an international environment. HELBUS made the process of transferring the study credits I had already earned in Hawaii incredibly easy and I have really appreciated the amount of student support on offer since starting my studies. As a foreign student, I especially value the school’s internationalism and continue to enjoy being exposed to instructors from all over the world and the unique teaching styles, ideas and experiences that they bring with them. The smaller class size really helps develop a sense of community among the students, and the three-week unit cycle means that we are able to develop connections with the instructors in a way that I haven’t experienced elsewhere. After HELBUS, I intend to earn an MBA in either the UK or United States and then hopefully put the skills I’ve learned to good use and begin a career as an entrepreneur.

Read Hunter's story here
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Anna Lammela

It is wonderful to be exposed to different perspectives of the business environment and to learn about business cultures in other parts of the world. My dream is to continue in my current job in an international law firm. Thanks to HELBUS, I have now an opportunity to move up in the firm. Now that my English language skills are also developing quickly during my studies, I hope that working at our London office will be a possibility one day.

The HELBUS blended programme is designed to suit those of us who work full-time hours and study in the evenings. The professors are really nice and they understand that our work may sometimes affect our studies. I became interested in HELBUS as I already have a job I really like and I did not want to quit in order to study. HELBUS provided a solution for my situation and combining work and studies in HELBUS’ fully-online blended learning programme has been easier than I dared expect!

I have already gained lots of confidence at HELBUS and my English has improved even in these few months. I am truly

Read Anna's story here