Teacher and Staff Exchange

Teacher and Staff Mobility

Participation in international exchanges and projects forms part of Laurea's pedagogical, regional development, RDI and service activities. Laurea strives to cooperate with its partner institutions by planning and implementing themes, projects and other elements jointly.  

Laurea's lecturers visit partner institutions to teach, and Laurea receives lecturers from partner institutions. Teaching can be part of for example a jointly build study unit or an intensive study programme. Non-teaching staff members visit partner institutions to benchmark and develop their field of work and in turn welcome their colleagues from partner institutions for visits at Laurea. 

Guidelines for In­ter­na­tion­al­i­sa­tion at Laurea

Internationalisation at Laurea is guided by the Laurea Strategy 2030 and the units’ operating and financial plans. You can find the latest versions here on the intranet pages. Laurea’s internationalisation activities are also guided by the Ministry of Education and Culture, which has published the Policies to promote internationalisation in Finnish higher education and research 2017–2025. 

International services work with the degree programmes at Laurea to support the internationalisation of Laurea’s students. Such joint implementations include shared international online studies (Collaborative online international learning - COIL) and Erasmus + funded BIP (Blended Intensive Programme) implementations, Laurea’s International Weeks and double degrees. More information on internationalisation cooperation is available here. 

International staff mobility includes both teacher and staff exchanges to Laurea’s partner institutions and companies, conferences, etc. Internationalisation is supported by Laurea’s extensive partner network. The SoleMOVE programme includes higher education institutions with which Laurea has mobility agreements.  

In­ter­na­tion­al­ity policies for education 

The Laurea Strategy for 2030 sets Laurea’s strategic intent to being an international developer of workplace competence and vitality in Uusimaa. Highly educated industrial experts who have graduated from Laurea have working internationality skills, an understanding of cultural diversity and the ability to act ethically in a global media and technology environment. 

The internationality policies for education updated in 2021 are based on the Laurea Strategy 2030 and on the goals and measures specified in the On a Globally Sustainable Path publication from 2018. This presentation contains the key goals and measures for the internationality of education for the current strategy period until 2030. They have been defined on the basis of previous policies, taking into account the special features of different degree programmes. Practical plans for implementing internationality are drawn up in degree development groups under the direction of the person responsible for each degree programme. When developing the internationality of education, continuous student feedback related to internationality will be utilised and different forms of internationality will be developed so that the accumulation of international competence is possible for students and staff in different kinds of life situations. This includes measures such as special investments in the development of virtual exchanges and various forms of internationalisation at home. 

Laurea is building international and multidisciplinary cooperation in accordance with the European Universities Initiative with the PIONEER Alliance for urban development. The Alliance develops and implements education, staff exchanges, regional development and RDI activities that promote sustainable international urban development together with European scientific universities and universities of applied sciences and their urban ecosystems. Operating within the EU, the Alliance works closely with cities, businesses, organisations and citizens. Virtual education cooperation implemented within the framework of the PIONEER network enables a completely new platform for international collaboration for Laurea students and staff. 

In­ter­na­tional experience as a part of studies 

The internationality of studies promotes the development of students’ international competence. Laurea’s goal is to increase the number of short-term mobility options and methods that support internationalisation at home in addition to the traditional long student exchanges and traineeships, in order to better meet the needs of the changing student profile. 

Laurea’s internationalisation at home is made up of the above-mentioned factors and of studies on multuculturalism and intercultural communications as well as learning exercises and projects done in English in international and multicultural groups. Each degree includes an international section during which students complete studies in English and study in a multicultural environment. An international perspective can also be included in a project or study unit done in Finnish, for example via multicultural content. The tutoring of international students, visits by international specialists, theme days and events bring international activities to students. In addition, Laurea students can take virtual studies offered by international partner institutions and include them in their degrees, or carry out studies and write theses in international projects. 

Double degrees and joint degrees as well as OIL (Online International Learning) play an important role in students’ internationality. OIL refers to studies or learning exercises that are organised in collaboration with the teachers of an international partner school for the students of both Laurea and the partner school, either entirely online or as a combination of virtual learning and short-term mobility. 

International services support the internationalisation of Laurea students together with the fields of study at Laurea, and the aim is to allow each student to gain international competence during their studies in a way that is suitable for them. 

Staff in­ter­na­tion­al­i­sa­tion and in­ter­na­tional competence 

Laurea staff plays a key role in the internationalisation of our higher education institution. The development of the international competence of Laurea staff is supported by means of international mobility programmes, among other things. Teacher and staff exchanges should be goal-oriented and linked with Laurea’s strategy. 

A multicultural work environment develops skills valued by employers, such as language skills, tolerance, understanding of other cultures, perseverance, productivity and curiosity. These are the characteristics of an international expert. Although employers appreciate these features, they rarely realise that they are linked to international competence. 

Erasmus + exchanges have been proven to develop the skills of international experts, not only including the skills mentioned above, but also interaction skills, self-confidence and trust in one’s own abilities, tolerance of uncertainty, problem-solving skills and readiness to embrace new things. 

Laurea aims to be an international developer of workplace competence and dynamism in the Uusimaa region in 2030. According to the Strategy 2030, internationality is one of Laurea’s strategic competence areas. Expanding and deepening the international partner network is also part of it. 

In a genuinely international higher education community, all students, teachers, researchers and staff have the opportunity to gain capabilities for international collaboration and to participate in the higher education institution’s international activities. 

The objectives of in­ter­na­tional staff mobility and virtual staff exchanges are: 

• developing international competence: give opportunities for both outgoing and incoming international mobility (staff exchanges, projects, international events) either as in-person exchanges or virtual exchanges. These activities share international competence among colleagues, students and Laurea’s partners. 
• Market Laurea and export Laurea’s competence 
• Promote Laurea’s international networking and development of international joint implementations 
• Provide staff with opportunities to develop their vocational expertise and personal competence 
• Collecting and adopting information through lectures, workshops, conferences, etc. 
• Applied learning; adopting new operating methods and applying them in practice 
• Seeing one’s own work with new eyes, peer support 
• Improving motivation and well-being at work 
• Finding new concrete ideas and stimuli for the work 
• Strengthening cultural knowledge, learning from local culture and understanding multuculturalism, developing cultural diversity among staff 
• Developing and maintaining language skills 
• Implementing and strengthening international cooperation with business and industry 
• Mapping RDI project cooperation    

International staff mobility includes teacher exchanges and other staff exchanges with Laurea’s partner institutions and companies as well as participating in international field-specific events, for example. Internationalisation is supported by Laurea’s extensive partner network. 

If you are interested in coming to Laurea on a teaching or staff visit please contact Laurea International Services (intl.info@laurea.fi).  

Guidebook for International Visitors to Laurea 2025.pdf for our international visitors, which shows the different campuses and some practicalities in Laurea and in Finland. 

Laurea's international partner institutions for mobility can be viewed in SoleMove system.