International Summer School

During this course, you will learn to understand the process of entrepreneurship from identification of problems, ideation and brainstorming to evaluation. After completing the course, you can apply different approaches for brainstorming and ideation, create early business models and know how to evaluate and pitch ideas. The course will include workshops, team work and individual work. 

Free of charge for students from partner universities. Tuition for others: 450 €.

Guest lecturers

Niall Shakeshaft,Vice President and Head of Design at VTT,  Technical Research Centre of Finland. Mikael Leppä, Head of Design from the Norwegian state energy company Equinor.

Course coordinator

The International Entrepreneurship course will help you understand the dynamics of entrepreneurship in an international context. You will learn how to discover, evaluate, and exploit of international venture opportunities. You will develop essential skills using various tools and frameworks during the entrepreneurial process with particular attention to applying brainstorming and simulation tools for sparking innovative ideas with the potential to address global market needs. In addition, you will learn how to set up an international business plan for the launch of a global start-up or a new international venture at an existing business.

The course will consist of lectures by academics, workshops/seminars, teamwork, pitching and presentations, individual work, and other collaborative learning activities to maximise learning outcomes.

Free of charge for students from partner universities. Tuition for others: 750 €.

Guest lecturers

Gary Knight is the Helen Simpson Jackson Chair and Professor of Global Management at Willamette University in Salem and Portland, Oregon, USA. Gary’s research emphasizes international entrepreneurship, internationalization, international marketing, and technology’s role in international business. Prior to academia, Gary was an executive in international business for several years.

Dirk Libaers is the John and Beverly Grant Endowed Professor of Entrepreneurship and the director of the USF Center for Entrepreneurship at the Muma College of Business at the University of South Florida. His research interests include technology and academic entrepreneurship, new product and service development in new ventures and established firms, and issues related to creativity and innovation. 

Dr Jules O’ Dor is the Subject Group Leader for Strategic Management, Enterprise & Organisational Change at Sheffield Business School in the UK and he leads the Managing Strategy module on all MBA courses. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute, a Fellow of Higher Education Academy as well as being an active non-executive Director. His research is primarily concerned with the institutions of social and co-operative enterprise with a particular focus on the legal structures of social enterprises.

Course coordinator

By the end of the Start-up Scouting and Valuation course, you will have a more in-depth understanding of startups and their importance for disrupting businesses. You will be able to scout start-ups and analyse meaningful metrics that indicate successful performance and sustainable development of start-ups. You will learn how to identify and evaluate different start-ups and create rankings that can be used to predict company futures. The course supports the development of skills in the areas of analytical and critical thinking, collaboration in diverse teams and business research and analysis.

The course activities include lectures, investor and start-up company guest-speakers, workshops, individual and group assignments such as scouting and pre-evaluation of start-up companies.

The course is conducted in co-operation with EnergySpin Business Accelerator and VES (Vaasa Entrepreneurship Society).

Free of charge for students from partner universities. Tuition for others: 300 €.

Course coordinators

There are many possible ways to travel to Vaasa depending on your departure location and travelling preferences. Usually the easiest way to reach Vaasa from aboard is to fly to the Helsinki airport and from there, continue with a flight to the Vaasa Airport or by train to the Vaasa train station. There are three daily flights from Helsinki to Vaasa and several daily train connections. Please visit the Finnish rail company VR’s website for more information about train connections. 

Remember to make sure you have all your travel documents up-to-date. If you are not a citizen of a Schengen member state, you will need a visa for your stay. The accepted students will receive the invitation letter needed in the visa application from the University. Please make sure that you have all the documents for the visa application well in advance, such as your passport, travel insurance, hotel reservations, flight tickets etc. More information about the visa requirements in Finland. 

GreenStar Hotel offers Summer School participants accommodation at discounted rates. You will receive more information about the prices and discount with the confirmation letter. There is the opportunity to share a room with other students if you are travelling as a group. It is recommended to book your travels and accommodation as soon as you receive the confirmation.