The happiest student in the happiest country

Published: 20.03.2024 / Blog / Student life

A year ago, Kathy from Sri Lanka chose to apply to the International Business programme at Arcada. Happiness was one of her main priorities, and she has not regretted her choice of study destination since.

Hi! I’m Kathy and I’m a first-year student in the International Business programme at Arcada University of Applied Sciences (UAS). There are many reasons why I chose Finland for my higher education studies and Arcada UAS in Helsinki in particular.

The happiest country in the world

Back in my home country Sri Lanka I realized that my main goal in life is to be happy. The first aspect which made me select Finland was that it is “The happiest country in the world”. As a matter of fact, Finland has now been named the happiest country in the world for seven years in a row according to the World Happiness Report.

So, what makes Finland the happiest country? To me, the beautiful nature, high-quality education and excellent standards of living for me and my family are a few examples. I also found that Finland has strong welcoming policies for international students to live and study in Finland.

Helsinki Cathedral, one of the most distinctive landmarks of the Finnish capital.

Arcada UAS – welcoming and multicultural

Arcada offers a broad spectrum of degree programmes and is very welcoming of international students. The UAS is diverse with a multicultural environment. While in classes, I can hear so many languages being spoken around me.

Kathy enjoying Finnish treats in the Market Square.

In my studies we have been asked to perform city tours with our fellow students which enabled me to get to know my study peers better. This helped me to expand my network, which is one of the most important things for our career journey. I also appreciate the early bird discount for the tuition fee and the scholarship opportunities. Campus is located close to the heart of Helsinki city centre, very well connected and easily reachable with public transport.

Trams are a popular means of transport in Helsinki.

Studies combining theory and practice

I have felt at ease in my studies thanks to the strong combination of theory and practice. Reading while implementing theory in practice makes me understand my studies better.

There are many extra activities in which we can participate to enhance our skills and knowledge. I am proud to say that at Arcada you will find the Entrepreneurship Hub, an ambassadorship programme, Student Union ASK and the International Student Tutors programme, to name but a few things.

Kathy in one of the many learning environments at Arcada.

Continous support

The lecturers at Arcada are so friendly and helpful. I have received personal guidance when I needed support in my studies at the beginning. Whenever I felt I got a little behind in my performances, it was always easy to get in touch with my lecturers who provided guidance that helped me move further.

Last but not least, another reason I am happy about my study choice is Career Center Arabia which is located at Arcada. The continuous support and advise we receive from the Career Guidance team is great. The same goes for Arcada’s own digital job portal, in which internships and different jobs relating to our study programmes are posted. Today I am proud to say that I received my internship opportunity to work in Finland through the job portal of Arcada.

Kathy in Karriärcenter (Career centre) Arabia located at Arcada.

When I look back at my six months of stay in Finland, I can honestly say that I am happy with my decision of choosing Finland for my higher studies.

Kathy in front of Arcada's main building.

Can Machine Learning aid in finding key factors to improve the Finnish healthcare system?

Finland is in the process of change in our health care system. The Nordic well-fare system is challenged in Finland, for instance, due to difficulties in attracting nurses, changing demographics in Finland, and a general pressure to reduce costs in the whole public sector. This poses severe challenges for the entire healthcare sector. Can Machine Learning (i.e., the subfield of Artificial Intelligence, which focuses on having a machine imitate intelligent human behavior) be used to understand relationships between different critical properties of our healthcare system? Yes, it can! An excellent example of how this can be done is found in a scientific paper by Hu et al. (2020), where the authors investigated nurses' willingness to report errors in a specific geographical area of the US.

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