Details

• Finland
• MACEMS-25
• Graduate
• SoSe 2026
• Time spent at the partner university: 5 months
• Contact: Login to see contact information

1. Preparation

The preparation for my exchange was rather easy, since I am a EU citizen I did not need any Visa for my stay in Finland. This made the process a lot easier. I arrived via plane to Helsinki, which was also a rather quick flight, and not too expensive if you choose the right airline. One thing I would recommend is buying the right gear, meaning very warm winter clothes, without those it might get a little uncomfortable, especially in January & February.

2. Accommodation

My search for accommodation started by looking for a room in a shared flat over various websites, for me there was nothing I could find there that suited what I was looking for. Then I applied for HOAS, but they took a look time of confirming the stay, so I found something else in the meantime (they did offer me a room after all, which was rather cheap, but in a further away location). I ended up choosing a private long term stay in Jätkäsaari (Unity was the name of the provider). The location was great for me, it was a 10 minute walk to the subway which takes you to Aalto, so the commute to Uni was around 20 minutes for me. It was also very close to the city center of Helsinki, so for me the location was ideal. It is also very safe, but I think it is rather safe in most areas of Helsinki.

3. Academic life at host university

Aalto campus is very nice and modern, I really enjoyed the campus. There are also student meals that are 3,10€, so a very good option for lunch on campus. The teaching style was maybe more personal than at WU I would say, and the courses had no exams which was also very refreshing. On the master level I would recommend the course Fashion Marketing, I enjoyed it a lot.

5. Every day life in the host country

The public transport is very good in Helsinki and Espoo, and Finland is a very safe country, where I never felt unsafe or uncomfortable. The social life might be a bit less then in warmer countries, since in the Winter you have to go inside to do something for a longer period of time. And everything is more expensive than here in Austria, therefore I would say the social life is very different than here, but you can still find enjoyable acitivities, which are mainly indoors in the Winter and Spring. The CEMS club organized a lot of events during my stay, which made meeting the cohort very easy and made it easy to form connections to the other CEMSies.

6. Testimonial

Finland is a beautiful country, if you are comfortable with being outside in cold temperatures. Helsinki is very safe and clean city, with loads of cute cafes. And lastly Aalto has a modern and big campus, which makes spending your days there very enjoyable.