The University of Northampton (UN) will soon start operations in Finland as the university has approved HELBUS Helsinki School of Business as an institutional partner. UN will start to offer the Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Business and Management degree programme in cooperation with HELBUS. Since 2012, Finns have been able to earn a British degree through the HELBUS pathway so that the third year studies have been undertaken abroad. With this new level of cooperation, students will be able to achieve the full Bachelor’s degree in Finland. The new programme will start after the UN programme approval.

Students will first study in the Higher National Diploma in Business programme and will then continue directly to the third year of the UN Bachelor’s degree, implemented in Finland. Students will be assessed according to the same criteria and assessment methods as they would as if they studied with UN directly in the UK. They will also be enrolled for the third year in UN, receiving exactly the same degree award as students who studied the same programme in Northampton. ”Our partnership will enable us to help Finnish young people achieve their university degree quickly. Our partner HELBUS has impressed us especially with the high level of their international teaching staff and gifted students”, notes Bill Toyer, Academic Partnership Development Manager of University of Northampton.

HELBUS President, Dr Kari Jääskeläinen, is pleased about the new collaboration model: “The education that HELBUS offers is already very international as our visiting professors come from ten countries. The new partnership will offer us wonderful opportunities to extend our programme offering and continue our international focus.” UN has a proud track record for employability – for five years running, 95 per cent or more of its full-time first degree leavers are in work and/or further study six months after graduation*. Its business school has also been shortlisted for Business School of the Year, three years in a row, in the prestigious Times Higher Education Awards.

The Bachelor’s degree taken through the HELBUS pathway can be completed in just two years due to the inclusion of a summer term and potential students can apply to start their studies throughout the fall. After they have completed their degree, learners can either look to start their careers or apply to Master’s degree programmes in Finland or abroad.

HELBUS vice-president Katariina Nuotio notes: “This new cooperation involves sound quality management, something that we are already familiar with due to our existing accreditation from the British accrediting organisation Pearson. We are delighted that our students can now earn a British university degree in Finland at a very efficient pace, and thereby enter their careers or postgraduate studies quickly”.

Further information:

Dr Kari Jääskeläinen

tel +358 40 5017267

* Destination of Leavers from Higher Education (DLHE) 2010/11-2014/15