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• From this page you can find the Mikkeli specific information.
• Information on our partner universities you can find from the .
• General information on the exchanges can be found from Exchange studies | Aalto University.
• Information on the funding for exchange studies can be found from Funding for exchange studies | Aalto University.

General Requirements

The completion of the BScBA Programme of the Aalto University School of Business, Mikkeli Campus requires students to spend their last semester abroad. This is done in a foreign university, where students take a semester of undergraduate level courses equivalent to the usual workload expected in the specific institution during the term (usually 30 ECTS). The Bachelor’s Programme in International Business has about 50 partner universities in many regions of the world. If the exchange university uses a system different from the semester system the Student Exchange Coordinator in Mikkeli should be consulted.

As a general rule you must have completed all other studies for the degree (total of 150 credits) prior to the study abroad period. The number of credits will be checked before the nominations are send to the host universities.

If you are exempted from the study abroad requirement you have to earn the required 30 credits in the Aalto Mikkeli BScBA programme. For more information on the exemption application process, please contact the Student Exchange Coordinator.

Free Mover Exchange

If you wish to apply for other universities than for our partner universities, you must get the application forms and information yourself. Remember that you need to pay the possible tuition fees by yourself.  

It is not possible to apply to a free mover exchange to a partner university of any Aalto University's schools, no matter if their cooperation with the foreign university is at the BSc. or MSc. level. 

The university you are planning to join as a free mover must fill the quality requirements set by the Aalto University School of Business: The university must have at least one of the international accreditations which Aalto University School of Business has (AACSB, EQUIS, AMBA) or be listed on an internationally known ranking list (FT Ranking, U.S. News Ranking, Shanghai Ranking, or similar. 

When entering a university as a free mover, you must take part in the normal degree studies, not for example participate in a separate programme designed only for exchange students. 

 If you have any questions, please contact the Student Exchange Coordinator (exchange-mikkeli@aalto.fi / office 208).

Selection Criteria for Study Abroad Places

Study abroad destinations can be found in the . 

Students are selected for exchange based on the applications submitted after the first full year of studies. Note: for total credits the formula will not take into account the credits completed during modules 9 and 11. This way the total number of credits completed during the first academic year is more equal between students with different educational background. Students are nominated to exchange universities primarily based on their study index, provided that they fulfill possible language requirements and other possible criteria given by the exchange universities (e.g. minimum GPA).

The most important selection criterion is success based on the study index. It is calculated from

• the total number of credits completed for the BScBA degree during modules 1-8, 10 and 12-15 of the first full year of studies (=> max 76 cr taken into account) and
• the Weighted Grade Point Average (GPA) of all completed courses in modules 1-15
• related to the study time (the number of semesters student has been present at the School of Business – 2 for the first year students).

The formula for calculating the study index is the following:

(credits * weighted GPA) / number of semesters attended

Only the studies that are part of a student's BScBA degree and completed during the official study right as a degree student at the Aalto University School of Business are taken into account. Exception to this are the Open University Track students for whom all credits completed for the Open University Track requirements for the BScBA degree will be taken into account.

The credits and GPA are calculated from courses in the approved personal study plan (HOPS) of the BScBA degree.

Progress in studies is proportioned to the number of semesters attended. The semester ongoing during the application period is not taken into account. If a student has enrolled as non-attending previously, it will not have a negative effect on the selection. An attended semester can be removed from the application only due to strong arguments, such as health issues or compulsory military service.

If two or more applicants have the same index and they are competing for the same exchange place, the overall situation of the applicants is evaluated, based on 1) the GPA of the degree studies, 2) number of credits completed for the degree, 3) language skills for the country in question and 4) the suitability of the former studies to the exchange destination. If, after that, no difference is indicated between the applicants, the decision will be made by lottery.

Application Process for Study Abroad Places

The application period for exchange period during the academic year 2025-2026 is now over and the next round for the exchange period for the academic year 2026-2027 will be in autumn 2025. 

Study abroad destinations can be found in the .

In the internal application process, the students list their preferences of the university and country by giving ten (10) alternative choices in preferred order. Yet, we would like to remind that the BScBA Programme makes the final placement decisions based on the above-mentioned selection criteria.

Application Instructions

General instructions

• All the questions marked with * are required.
  Once you have completed a page, remember to mark it complete.
  If you do not complete the application in one session, it is possible to save the application and return it later.
  Remember to submit the application by the given deadline. If you fail to submit the application by the given deadline, your application will be processed last.
   

The following information is needed for the application:

Personal Information

• For the authentication, you will use your Aalto login. Your personal information will be uploaded from the system. If there is any false information, contact the study office.
  Remember to add your bank details, which are used for the Aalto Study Abroad Scholarship. For the scholarship payment, we highly recommend using a Finnish or European bank account. This way the process is smoother and there won't be any delays on the payments nor extra fees for you.
  For international degree students, your tax municipality is Mikkeli.

Educational Background

• Current Degree: Undergraduate/ bachelor
  Current Study Program: International Business (Bachelor at Mikkeli)
  Studies completed during the exchange period will be included in the following degree: Undergraduate/ bachelor
  Language Proficiency: Add more language skills with the green tab. You should add here the relevant language information. For the languages studied in Mikkeli, you do not need to add any information.

Selection of Universities

• List 10 universities in the order of your own preference. For each destination you need to select the following information:
  Your Aalto School: School of Business
  Your campus: School of Business Mikkeli Campus (BScBA Program)
  Exchange continent of framework: Asia, Europe (Bilateral), Europe (Erasmus), Latin America, North America, Oceania. Under Europe (Bilateral) you get the universities in Switzerland and UK.
  Country of Destination
  Name of the university: from the drop-down menu, you can find the name of the university. The French Universities, which have more than one campus (Kedge Business School, Skema Business School), you first choose the name of the school and then stay opportunity. Swedish universities names are in Swedish.
  Stay opportunity: There are own stay opportunities for Kedge two campuses (Bordeaux and Marseille) and for Skema campuses (Lille and Sophia Antipolis). 
  Preferred exchange period: You can choose either autumn semester or spring semester.
  Exchange duration: One semester is the only option. You are not able to stay longer than one semester.
• You should list 10 universities in the order of your preference on the list. From green "Exchange destination" tab you add a new university.
• Remember to list the universities in your own preference without thinking what the other students might select!
• The additional information: Here you can add the information, if you want to go to a certain university, where the places are divided between semesters and you are flexible with the semester option OR if you want to go to a certain university with your friend.
• Relevant Document to be uploaded: For Aalto Mikkeli students, only the certificate of language proficiency is necessary, if you have studied the language outside of the Aalto Mikkeli.
• Emergency Contact: Add here the primary contacts in case of emergency.
• Waiver: Read the text and tick the "yes" box.
• Disclaimer: Read the text and tick the "I agree" box.
• Submit application
   

Courses and Credit Transfer from Study Abroad

Course Selections for Study Abroad

You must complete 30 credits (ECTS) during the study abroad period. A minimum of 24 of the study abroad credits must be in the field of business, economics or languages. Language studies (max 6 cr) can be accepted if you have not studied the same language for your degree in Aalto Mikkeli. A maximum of 6 credits may be in humanities, social sciences or related areas that focus on historical, cultural, political or sociological studies.

You must send your course selections beforehand to the Manager of Academic Operations for final approval by using the form Study Plan for Study Abroad below. We recommend you list more courses than what is required. This will help you choose alternative courses in case the host university informs that the course you have chosen is full, cancelled or you are otherwise not able to take it. Please leave at least a week for the staff to process your study plan.

Form: Study Plan for Study Abroad (Word document)

Credit Transfer for Study Abroad Credits

The courses done during the Study Abroad form the Minor Subject Studies of the BScBA degree (30 credits). In order to get the credits completed abroad to your Aalto transcript, you need to apply for a credit transfer on Sisu. In the Sisu credit transfer application you need to apply for inclusion. Add all the courses you have completed abroad to one application. These studies will then form your International Minor. You also need to attach the foreign transcript and previously approved Study Plan for Study Abroad Form to the application. Please note that the courses on the foreign transcript need to match with the approved study plan. Exchange studies will be graded with pass/fail. 

Outgoing students during the academic year 2024-2025

• Study Abroad Info, May 2024

Outgoing students during the academic year 2025-2026

• Study Abroad Info, May 2025

Documents related to study abroad period

Documents for all students studying abroad:

Scholarship Commitment

Study Plan for Study Abroad

Documents for Erasmus students: 

Aalto Erasmus+ Grant Agreement

Erasmus+ Letter of Confirmation

After the Study Abroad Period

All students returning from exchange are asked to fill out an "After Exchange" form in  portal. In the form you can update your address and bank account information for the scholarship payment (2nd part) and upload all required documents from your exchange. If you do not have all required information available yet, you can save the incomplete form and submit it once you have collected everything. Please note that you can submit the form only when all necessary information and documents have been added. 

Note! The form is used by different schools and the instructions might be a little different in each school. For example, you do not need to attach the Aalto transcript to the form.

Required documents to upload to the "After Exchange" form:  

Exchange report    

All students on exchange must write an exchange report. The exchange report should be written in English and submitted within a month after your exchange period. Regular guidelines for academic writing should be followed; write the report by yourself and indicate the source if you use citations. Use of AI is prohibited. 

• Instructions for writing the report:
• Returning the exchange report is one of the conditions for receiving the second part of the Aalto exchange scholarship.
• Repeating the most important instruction: Use of AI is prohibited.
• Upload the report in pdf format, max. 2MB.
• Mention the name of your exchange university and the exchange period with semester accuracy.
• The length of the exchange report is min. 2500 words + possible pictures. The exchange report are published in the "Exchange Finder - Aalto Mikkeli School of Business Mikkeli Campus".
• The content of the report is public. If you don't want your information to appear in e.g. Google search, do not mention your name. Also, remember to remove "Author" from the document before saving the document information (Instructions for deleting date (in English).
• Do not mention people by name in your report.
• The purpose of the exchange report is to provide information to future students selected for the same destination and to those students who can to compare different universities and countries before applying. The last two questions are meant to help with reflection and self-evaluation of the exchange experience. You do not need to answer all the questions, these are meant to help you in writing the report.
  • Preparing for exchange
    • What documents did you submit in the exchange university's own application process?
    • How long did it take to get a visa/ residence permit (if one was needed)?
    • Traveling to the exchange university, registration, orientation
    • Possible challenges
  • General information related to studies
    • Semester start and end dates (including orientation and exams)
    • General information about the courses
    • Was the course offering sufficient?
    • What courses and at what level (bachelor's/master's) was it possible to choose?
    • Which program's courses did you study?
    • How freely could you choose courses? Did you have to choose the courses from a specific program?
    • What was the language of instruction?
  • The following information about each course you took:
    • Course name and course code as well as level (Bachelor's/Master's) and credits
    • Teaching and assessment methods (exam, project, practice work, etc.)
    • Content of the course
    • Your assessment of the usefulness of the course
    • Your own positive and negative comments about the course
  • Free time and other matters outside of studies
    • Living costs: possible fees at the university, exam books and other study materials, housing, food and other expenses
    • Free time and getting to know other students Information about the city, the surrounding area, the climate and cultural differences
    • Travel in the destination country
    • Useful tips
  • Final comments
    • Would you recommend the exchange university to other students? Justify your answer.
    • Would you do anything differently if you went to the same destination again?
    • What did you learn during the exchange experience?
    • What did you learn about yourself during the exchange or because of the exchange?
    • Please attach at least one photo.  

Transcript from the exchange university: The exchange universities can send the transcript either directly to you or us. Nowadays more and more universities are using electronic transcripts. Check from your exchange university whether transcripts are sent automatically or do you have to order them separately. If your exchange transcript is available for us in the university system, please let us know. 

• The transcript of records from the host university is the only official certificate of the studies completed during the exchange period, so remember to keep it! 

In addition to the above mentioned document the following Erasmus+ documents needs to be uploaded to the “End of Exchange” form:  

• Erasmus Letter of Confirmation: Students who have been on Erasmus+ exchange have to submit the Erasmus Letter of Confirmation after their exchange and with the starting and ending dates of the exchange. The Letter of Confirmation must be signed by the coordinator of the exchange university. The form can be found above.
• OLA in pdf-format approved by all three parties.

Aalto BIZ electronic feedback form

You will receive a link to the electronic feedback form from the School of Business. Please fill it in – we will get a lot of useful information regarding the academic level and possible problems and challenges at each university. The feedback from our students is essential in evaluating and developing the partner university network! Your opinion truly matters! The form is open until the end of February (for the autumn exchanges).

Note! Students on Erasmus+ exchange have to fill out the EU Survey after the exchange. This is an electronic feedback form which is sent automatically by the European Commission to all Erasmus+ students after the exchange. The link to the survey has been send to your Aalto e-mail! 

Credit transfer

To transfer the studies completed on exchange to your degree, you must apply for a credit transfer in Sisu. You can apply for the credit transfer as soon as you have the official transcript from your host university. Please check detailed instructions from the Student Guide.

2nd part of the scholarship

The second part of the scholarship will be paid, if the studies have been completed as agreed, you have applied for credit transfer and submitted the completed After Exchange form and feedback form.

Please note that scholarships are paid only twice per month and payroll services require the payment information from us two weeks in advance. Therefore, it may take some time before you receive the second part of the scholarship.

The goal of the BScBA Ambassador Programme is to promote Aalto University and our programme among potential degree students abroad. Ambassadors mainly give presentations at high schools during their exchange period but can also attend e.g. local study fairs.

What do you do as a Student Ambassador?

Visit local high school(s) during your exchange to promote Aalto University and the BScBA Programme.

How to become a BScBA Ambassador?

Apply to be an ambassador before or during your exchange period:

1. Send us an e-mail (ambassador-mikkeli@aalto.fi) and we will agree on the procedure.
2. We will provide you with detailed instructions and presentation material.
3. Contact the high school and arrange time for the presentation.
4. Give an inspiring presentation at the high school.

How to give the presentation?

The presentations are given at local high schools. Primarily, the target is to visit IB schools, but you can also visit other local high schools. .

We have prepared a presentation for you. It includes information about Finland, Aalto University and the BScBA Programme and also about the study experience and applying and admissions. Additionally, we encourage you to tell about your own experiences about studying here.

Let’s spread the Mikkeli spirit and welcome new international students to our programme! Don’t hesitate – become a BScBA Ambassador!

To ask additional questions about the Ambassador Programme, please contact us at ambassador-mikkeli@aalto.fi.