Graduating to International Business Expertise

Christian from Germany is graduating from the Degree Programme in International Business. He feels good about his studies in an international society among new friends. “It’s exactly what I was looking for!”

My name is Christian Wagner and I am from Düsseldorf, Germany. I am 26 years old and I am studying International Business in Seinäjoki, Finland. I have started my studies in Venlo (Netherlands) but after an exchange semester in Finland, I decided to stay in Finland.

The choice to go to Seinäjoki was an easy one. I love to interact with people from different nationalities and learn more about different cultures. In Seinäjoki each semester there are many international students from all over the world. Additionally to that, I love the fact that there are each semester lecturers from different countries visiting the Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences. This way Seinäjoki offers perfect possibilities to learn more about different nationalities and cultures. What could be more important than that in the globalized world that we are living in?

Snowy and clean Finland

To be honest, I expected Finland to be boring. Additionally I expected a lot of snow and cold weather. 2/3 of my expectations were met, it’s cold in Finland and there is a lot of snow in the winter. But it is definitely not a boring country!
I did not experience a big culture shock. I was born in Germany and Finland is quite similar to Germany. But I guess many foreign students will be surprised how clean Finland is.

Finns are practical sauna people

I think Finns are great people and Finland is a great country! Unfortunately the Finnish cuisine is lacking very much. Maybe that’s a point where Finland could learn more from the different nationalities that are living in this country. A good meal also increases one’s quality of life, not only Sauna. :)

Most Finns are very practical people and they are looking for the most efficient way to get a problem fixed. The focus is on “solving a problem” and not on “how a problem could be solved”.

Flexible Finnish education system

The Finnish education system is just great. In Finland the sizes of student groups are small and it is always possible to ask questions. This would not be possible with 50 or even 100 other students in one room attending the lectures. You would have no chance to ask questions if you have difficulties to understand some course related topics. In Finland the situation is the exact opposite and the teachers are always happy to answer your questions! It’s the perfect learning environment.

Professional and personal growth 

I am currently writing my bachelor thesis in Seinäjoki and I will graduate soon. On one hand it makes me happy to know that I will finish my studies soon. On the other hand it makes me sad that I will leave Finland to find work in Germany. But who knows… maybe I will come back to Finland and even work here.

I have grown in a professional and in a personal way. I have learned many things about doing business in a globalized world and running a business. Additionally I have become more independent and am very well prepared to work internationally and interact with many cultures.

Christian’s greetings to other international students

If you want to come to Finland you should be ready for a change! If you want to study abroad you should also accept the fact that you are not in your home country! Don’t do everything the way you did it in your home country and most importantly, don’t stick only to people from your own nationality! I am observing it very often that people from one nationality are sticking together in groups and are not making any real contacts with other nationality. From my point of view that’s a left out opportunity to make new friends, to learn something and to grow personally. Additionally you are not improving your English at all if you are only speaking in your mother language all the time.

Entrepreneurship + contacts = a key to success

I will definitely use the knowledge that I have gained in SeAMK. The area around Seinäjoki is famous for its entrepreneurship and I already adopted that. Currently I am running a small fashion label which produces and sells handmade clothes online and its working quite well.

Additionally to that, I will profit very much from the international experience that I have gained in Finland. I know how to handle different cultures, I know how to make business with different cultures and now I have many contacts in many countries all over the world! What could be better?