From school to an e-commerce professional

Nummelin believes that everyone can find their path with Haaga-Helia’s diverse course offering.

The Puuilo store in Vantaa is buzzing with people. Customers and blackshirted employees are criss-crossing in the aisles between the shelves. Shopping trolleys are filled with building and garden supplies, pet food bags rustle in shopping baskets.

However, the office space at the back of the store is quieter. Here you can find break rooms, a product photographing studio and offices. E-commerce and communications assistant Linda Nummelin is sitting in one of the offices.

Nummelin is an alumna of Haaga-Helia’s Degree Programme for Multilingual Management Assistants (Assi), who found a pleasant and varied job immediately after finishing her studies.

Nummelin graduated in 2017 and the best memories she has about her studies are the team spirit and the diverse course offering. According to her, you can study nearly anything in Haaga-Helia.

— There are extensive opportunities to tailor your studies according to your own areas of interest. My major was Organisational Communication so the courses I chose covered social media and occupational psychology, for instance. Half of the studies were language courses

– I chose Spanish, English and Swedish as my main languages, Nummelin says.

Although learning continues throughout your entire life and you learn new skills quickly in working life, studying helps you find your strengths that can be developed further. The diamond in the rough begins to shine.

— Studying strengthened my conception of my strengths. After trying out different things, I started to understand in Haaga-Helia that working with languages and communications is the career path that I will follow, notes Nummelin.

Snapchat strategy for the Presidential Office of Finland

Studying in Haaga-Helia was challenging and fun and provided plenty of opportunities for development.  Group visits were made to interesting events, such as Slush.

The amazing team spirit among the Assi students made Nummelin realise the power of co-operation.

— Previously, I was more of a solo player but in Haaga-Helia I learnt how much more you can achieve when working as a team, comments Nummelin, as she says hello to a colleague walking past her desk with a cup of coffee.

Nummelin praises Haaga-Helia’s connections with working life. Work experience and contacts are gained during work placement and projects. Students are encouraged to write their theses in working life.

Strong working life connections open doors all the way to the top of society. Nummelin carried out her work placement in the Office of the President of the Republic.

— I had just taken some social media courses which gave me the idea of creating a Snapchat strategy for the Office of the President of the Republic, says Nummelin.

— At that time, Snapchat was mainly used by private individuals, not by companies or organisations. However, many presidents abroad have started to use Snapchat as part of their communications and I introduced this option to the Office of President Niinistö, explains Nummelin.

Nummelin’s thesis was one of those that received an award from Haaga-Helia. Each year, approximately 2,500 future talents graduate from Haaga-Helia: young professionals in fields ranging from international business to journalism and from management to information technology.

From School to an eCommerce Professional

Haaga-Helia quickly opened the doors to working life for Nummelin. She started working during her studies and after graduating, she started her career in Puuilo, where she now has a permanent position in e-commerce and communications. The language skills acquired in Haaga-Helia are in frequent use as Nummelin also translates texts.

— Of course my studies also included a couple of courses the usefulness of which I did not quite understand at the time. However, all of them have proved to be very useful, says Nummelin with a little laugh.

Orders from the online store keep coming to Nummelin’s computer so she needs to get back to her work.

However, she still has time to give a few words of advice to all future professionals.

— You will find your own path even if you do not immediately know what you will be doing in the future. The teachers are the best in their fields and the study programmes are continuously developed to meet future needs, she says.

— Enjoy your life as a student. It is really enjoyable in Haaga-Helia.