Zhen Qi started her studies at Haaga-Helia’s Degree Programme in Business Information Technology in 2023. She is originally from China, where she completed her business degree and worked as a financial analyst. Qi wanted to develop her skills especially in programming and therefore decided to pursue a degree in information technology. Alongside studies, she has many hobbies, such as painting and taking care of her two rescue cats Luffy and Qiyu, and she spends a lot of time volunteering.
Why did you choose to study Business IT?
I chose Business IT and software development because I love writing code and solving problems. The moment it really clicked for me was when I was volunteering with a stray cat rescue. I spent a huge amount of time every day answering the same questions over and over: what breed is this cat, how old is it, what do I need to prepare at home. I kept thinking, if I had a RAG system back then that could answer those repetitive questions, it would take so much weight off my shoulders. That is where my interest in learning to programme really started, and Haaga-Helia’s curriculum, which combines software development with a solid business foundation, was a natural fit for me.
What has it been like to study at Haaga-Helia?
In my first year, I experienced a mix of in-person, online, independent, and group studies and enjoyed each class. As an international student from Asia, understanding the European group work and communication environment is crucial. Haaga-Helia offers a wide range of courses, allowing you to focus on areas you would like to improve.
Besides professional courses, Haaga-Helia provides many opportunities to collaborate with students from other countries. For example, I have participated in an Erasmus BIP programme and worked on a business project with students from four different universities, each located in different countries. Such courses greatly enhanced my communication and teamwork skills.
I really appreciate how academically flexible the programme is. You can freely combine minors, so it is actually possible to study coding, design, and business side by side. The school also has a 3D Lab with Blender and 3D printing, where I could try things that have nothing to do with my major. You have freedom to explore matters and figure out what kind of professional you want to become.
Beyond Haaga-Helia’s own courses, I also took advantage of CampusOnline to take courses from other universities, and I served as a Head Tutor for international students. Combining studies with internships and tutoring work was demanding but very doable, because the school is flexible about how and when you complete courses.
What surprised you during your studies?
It surprised me how much every single teacher genuinely tries to help. The school provides many kinds of opportunities to help you start a career, not just earn a degree. Haaga-Helia runs its own Softala programme, which partners with many companies so that students can complete a real internship on campus. The school also collaborates with external platforms that help students find internships outside, and runs a big career fair, Duuniin.net. This is what I most want to emphasize about Haaga-Helia: the school uses every channel it has to make sure you not only gain knowledge, but also adapt to Finnish working life, settle into Finnish society, and find a job that lasts.
What has been best at Haaga-Helia?
One of my best memories is from the Experience Designer courses, which were 30 credits in the second semester. In this course, we completed two projects: one for Haaga-Helia’s Student Services and one for Posti Group Oyj.
In the project for Haaga-Helia’s Student Services, we interviewed over 60 international students, learning about their challenges and creating plans to help them adapt to Finnish life. This project inspired me to become a student tutor at Haaga-Helia to support freshers and international students.
Posti Group Oyj project included interviewing over 70 Gen Zs about Posti services. We improved package pickup processes and tested new outdoor locker locations, understanding Posti’s culture from different angles. I learned so much from this experience.
Without Haaga-Helia providing such excellent courses, I wouldn't have had these amazing opportunities. I am very grateful to the teachers who designed this course: Marika Alhonen, Mário Passos Ascenção, Erkki Häkkilä, and Mariitta Rauhala. The mindset I picked up in those projects, talking to real users, mapping their pain, prototyping solutions, has shaped almost everything I have done since.
What kind of support did your studies at Haaga-Helia give you for your future career?
Haaga-Helia gave me both the technical foundation and the professional network to actually build a career in tech, not just a degree. The introductions to different IT roles in our first semester helped me figure out where I wanted to go, and the courses gave me concrete skills I could put on a CV right away.
What made the biggest difference, though, was how seriously Haaga-Helia treats work-life cooperation. Over three years I worked in four very different roles, moving step by step from early IT work into AI and machine learning engineering. Each role built directly on what I had just learned in class, and each one taught me something the next employer was looking for.
One small but important thing I learned along the way: in Finland, a lot of opportunities come through networking rather than job applications alone. Haaga-Helia hosts plenty of volunteering opportunities and startup events, and that is where I picked up several of the connections that later led to internships. For an international student, this is genuinely one of the ways you break in.
I also got to build something real with classmates: Start with Helga, a student onboarding platform that was later acquired by the student union Helga and now serves the wider student community. That project taught me more about product management, user research and shipping software than any individual course could.
All of this prepared me for the trainee role I hold today. I do not think I could have made this kind of career transition in three years without Haaga-Helia’s combination of practical courses, supportive teachers, and a culture that pushes you to work on real problems with real companies from day one.
Your greetings to future students
Looking back from the end of three years here, I can honestly say Haaga-Helia is one of the best decisions I have made. You will find a wide range of courses and projects where you can build real professional skills, sharpen your teamwork and communication, and meet a lot of like-minded friends and teachers who genuinely want you to succeed.
It is like a safe nest where you can try many different things and grow your wings, so that when the time comes you can soar into the wide sky of your own future. My one piece of advice: say yes to the projects, the tutoring, the BIP weeks, the internships. The courses give you knowledge, but those extra experiences turn the knowledge into a career.
