Time: You can start your studies within a week after enrolment. The completion time for this course is two–three months. Please note! The course opens and you can start your studies 19 January 2026!
Enrollment for the spring courses is open till 14 June 2026, and you can start your studies within a week after enrollment. This course is also available in fall – enrollment opens in June and the first start is in August 2026.
Please note that lecturers will not provide guidance or assess courses between 1 June and 16 August 2026.
Place: Online studies
Scope: 3 ECTS credits
Required previous skills: This is an online course, so Internet access and computer or laptop with audio equipment are required.
Target group: Everyone interested in the topic
This course is completed independently online on Learn digital learning environment.
Please notice that only students with a Finnish social security number (i.e. a personal identity code) can start their studies on Xamk Pulse’s courses. You can read more here.
Credited in degree at Xamk: All bachelor level degrees
Area of competence mentioned in Curriculum: Optional studies
Enrolment by 13 December 2026, when there are approximately 2 months left to complete the course.
Fee: Free of charge
You can enroll for Open UAS studies for a maximum of 50 credits per semester. Enrolments that exceed 50 credits will be removed in the order of enrolments.
Xamk’s degree students who are present or absent cannot enroll for Xamk Pulse’s courses. Enrolments by Xamk’s degree students will be removed without separate notification.
Learning about Finland and Finnish culture is easy. But how valuable knowledge obtained from websites is? There are facts – significant ones, but many stereotypes too. Personal touch and opinion are crucial.
This course offers you to learn about Finland with the help of websites but also see Finnish culture from the eyes of the foreigners studying or working here. They are people with different backgrounds and have come to Finland for various reasons. They will tell you what it means to live here. So, enjoy the soft encounter with the Finnish culture.
And what if you are a Finn? You can see your country and culture through the lens of outsider perception. Indeed, you will find something interesting. Probably also help to develop the course.
Learning outcomes:
The course gives you the main characteristics of Finnish society – a brief history, way of life, economic environment and working opportunities. You will learn to identify and describe the new trends in the development of Finnish society and learn about famous Finns and their contribution to the image of Finland worldwide. Share your experience with others and learn from their experience.
After completing this course students can:
- define and identify elements in Finnish culture essential for interpersonal communication and communication in the global world,
- compare and contrast one’s original cultural values, beliefs, perceptions, and communication styles with the Finnish culture,
- recognise negative perceptions and avoid stereotyping,
- recognise the patterns in intercultural communication when dealing with institutions and social structures in Finland.
Contents:
- Cultural challenges and interpersonal communication tips,
- a brief history of Finland – how it impacts Finnish culture,
- social development of Finland, trends, economics, institutions,
- studying and working in Finland – authentic views from foreigners presented in the form of podcasts, videos and short stories.
Methods:
The course is carried out by means of independent online studies. Students can complete this course at their own pace.
The information is divided into sections and you will be able to see the titles but the content will open as soon as you have completed the present section. There is a short quiz at the end, mainly to give you an idea on what you learned about Finland.
A three-credit course corresponds to approximately 81 hours of student workload. The number of hours is theoretical and varies depending on the student’s effort.
Study material:
All the material is in Learn, and it requires consequent completion of the tasks.
Assessment:
Accepted/Failed
We will inform you about the implementation of the course by email. If you do not receive the message, please also check your spam!
Additional information on enrolment
Xamk Pulse, openstudies@xamk.fi.
Cancellation
If you do not start your studies, please inform us so that we can remove you from the course. This way, there will be no record of the course you did not complete. Cancellations should be sent to avoinamk@xamk.fi.
Transcript of records
The teacher has one month to give a grade after the student has completed all learning tasks. We will send you an electronically signed transcript of records within about a week after you have received the grade in the Peppi system. The transcript serves as a document if, for example, you are applying for credit for your studies at another university. Studies can also be credited at Xamk if you come to us as a degree student. See more on our website Information on Open UAS, Xamk Pulse studies.
This course is based on the curricula of Xamk’s degree programmes and the Finnish credits are fully compatible with the ECTS.
Please note that there can be changes in the course details in terms of the timetable and teachers, for example.
South-Eastern Finland University of Applied Sciences is audited by the Finnish Education Evaluation Centre (FINEEC).