Haaga-Helia's Erose Sthapit is one of the top names in his research field - "There is a fun-filled competition with my former instructors"

Dr. Erose Sthapit, an expert in research services at Haaga-Helia University of Applied Sciences, rarely needs introductions in his circles. He has a strong academic reputation was ranked among the top two percent in the world in his field in a survey conducted by Standford University last year.

According to the SCImago Journal Rank​ (SJR) indicator, which measures references to scientific publications and the appreciation of listed publications, he was ranked among the top ten researchers in Finland last summer and still holds eleven places on that list.​

Such results are no surprise to the research service expert himself, but talking about them makes the eyes of a polite and extroverted Nepali glow.

Of course, this makes my heart pound. It's every scientist's dream to get recognition for their work. Technically what this means is that people read my papers and quote them in their own work, he says.

ACCORDING to Dr. Sthapit, academic work is his passion that raises its head, especially in spare time.​

Sometimes, perhaps, too much, as he barely ever has vacations. Even during the summer, a hard-working home researcher published two academic papers.

His passion is also reflected in the number of publications.

Dr. Sthapit began to work at Haaga-Helia as a research developer and innovation expert in the autumn of 2019, but since that, he has changed to a research services expert due to organizational change. During his time, he has published a total of 15 academic papers.

And in 2018, a total of twelve publications were accumulated.

Anyone else would be amazed by their own performance, but he acknowledges the number of papers published with a shrug.

— In a way, publishing is a fun-filled race I go with my former instructors, he smiles.

Dr. Sthapit completed his master's degree at the University of Lapland in Rovaniemi, from where he ended up working as a researcher at the University of Vaasa.

In Vaasa, he also did his doctorate, supervised by Professor Peter Björk of Hanken and Professor Emeritus Martti Laaksonen of the University of Vaasa. From the two, especially Björk's influence is strong in everything Dr. Sthapit does nowadays.

ADAPTING to the cold and dark winter of Rovaniemi was not always easy.

Not to mention the biting marine climate of Vaasa and Helsinki. But on the other hand, adapting to extremes has also taught him a lot about herself.

—​ After moving to Finland, I had time to focus on myself for the f​ir​st time in my life.​ Think about my own needs and goals in life. Research is by no means everything to me, although it plays an important part in my life, he reveals.

Living in Finland has made him fall in love with nature, where he spends a considerable part of his free time. When asked about hobbies, the list is endless: running, swimming, hiking, well, you name it.

Finland is truly an ideal place to spend time in nature, he says.

In addition to sports and nature, the research services expert loves to make short road trips to Finnish rural landscapes and small towns. In his opinion, rural peace provides a great counterbalance to work and the hectic urban life in the metropolitan area.

According to him, there are currently preparations going on for several large projects. Not to mention the ones already underway, which also employ the experts commendably much.

— Sometimes it's good to get away from all the noise and stress, he says.

WHEN ASKED about his plans for the future, Dr. Sthapit tells that he is interested in teaching. In Vaasa, he often held lectures to master students, and he kind of misses it. He also dreams of new accreditations for Haaga-Helia. Such achievements motivate him to do more.

— In past years, Haaga-Helia has taken huge steps in developing its research side, but we still lack some key accreditations that are strongly connected to academia, he says.

He would also be delighted to work with Haaga-Helia researchers to achieve these goals and milestones, but unfortunately, that is often challenging due to a lack of time. Research work and academic publications are not really part of his job description as an expert in research service. 

Dr. Sthapit's specialization is in financial instruments as well as drafting funding applications.

—​ But fortunately for me, Haaga-Helia is really supportive, when it comes to research work. I mean, as long as there are enthusiasm and skill involved, he laughs.

This article is part of the Familiar with the research field series, in which we highlight people who are influential in Haaga-Helia's research field. In our next story, you will get to know our researcher Tiina Brandt.

Read more about Haaga-Helia's research, development, and innovation work on our website at:​​ ​

https://www.haaga-helia.fi/en/research-and-development​