Trigger 1

1. Identify the skills needed for International BBA graduates

According to my sources, here are some skills that a BBA student needs to employ themselves:

• In Finland one needed skill is definitely either Finnish or Swedish language: There's a 5,4% unemployment rate compared to 3,1% for those managing at least one of the official languages (1)
• 79% of HR decision makers expect individuals to maintain and develop skill sets in simultaneous careers (2)
• 91% of HR decision-makers think that it’s likely that people will be recruited on their ability to deal with change and uncertainty (2)
• Leadership skills (62%), alongside management skills (62%), emerge as the most important skills that HR decision-makers think need to be developed in employees to drive growth over the next five years (2)

Picture from Study Higher Education Employability

• Employability education for students might include the importance of extracurricular activities as part of the full student experience. Activities such as sport, music, clubs and student societies appear to develop graduates as well-rounded and distinctive. (2)
• Only one of seventeen interviewed employers said that only graduates with outstanding grade point averages are recruited. Other factors, such as a well-rounded perspective based on diverse experiences are more influential. (2)

So in short it seems BBA students would do well to study languages, leadership skills, communication, and maybe have some interesting extra curricular activities. It would also be advisable to get in touch with the working life before graduating.

2. Understand the process behind granting (creating a professional identity) the International BBA degree (who / how)

• First and foremost some figures regarding the difference between Uni students and UAS students:

The tables are from Thesis Employability of Foreign BBA Students at Arcada, Nora Weckman, 2012 

• Ammattikorkeakoulut perustettiin tiedekorkeakouluille rinnakkaisiksi ja statukseltaan kilpailukykyisiksi koulutusvaihtoehdoiksi. Perustusvaiheessa haluttiin painottaa ammattikorkeakoulujen ammatillista osaamista ja työelämäyhteyksiä erona yliopistojen tieteelliseen toimintaan ja perinteisiin työmuotoihin. (Tynjälä ym. 2004, 111–112.) (1)
• Translation: Universities of Applied Sciences were founded as parallel and status-wise competitive education option to science institutes. On foundation phase the goal was to emphasize the professional knowledge and working life connections of UASs as a contrast to the scientific approach and traditional methods.

• In Haaga-Helia's strategy there's no mention about the standing professional identity of graduates. (4) It merely states that Haaga-Helia opens up doors to working life. A question arises: What kind of doors? Studies show that UAS tradenomes have lower employment rates and lower standing in work life thaan Uni students. Is Haaga-Helia wants to be seen as an equal educator as a university, then maybe the stategy needs to say something about the quality of  professional identity their education gives to students.
• This aspect, however, is partly adressed in the Haaga-Helia, Laurea and Metropolia co-operation: "Yhteistyön lähtökohtana on, että jokaisella pääkaupunkiseudun ammattikorkeakoululla on selkeät koulutusprofiilit ja vahva identiteetti." Which means the schools' common goal is to give each school a strong identity. (4)
• Also it is definitely a step in the right direction, that the schools are starting to export Finnish education
• The three schools have seven common development projects:
• Professional Summer School
• Green Card
• TalentTrack
• YrittäjyysSavotta
• EduExcellence
• Työelämälähtöisyys 9.0
• International ProjectTatami
• One player involved in developing Finnish educational system is definitely the Ministry of Education and Culture. The OKM (The Finnish abbreviation of the Ministry) gives out notice worthy grants to Finnish education. 
• For example the ”Co-working learning space – TKI 2.0”-project. The ministry shared in it's 2013 supplementary budget 10 Million euros to strengthen UAS working life originated education, research and development work. More grants are available every now and then. (5)

The factors that have the biggest effect on the proffessional identity of a BBA student, in my opinion, are working life connections, curriculum, teaching and learning techniques, marketing, the performance of the graduates in working life. I think the biggest active player in developing these aspects is definitely the school in question, as the school can apply for grants, do marketing and educate and advice the students on how to build their own personal brand.

3. Define (concepts that could form) the bridge between skills and professional identity

• Research indicates that the future of higher education will be personalized learning (3)
• This applies also in here: Employability education for students might include the importance of extracurricular activities as part of the full student experience. Activities such as sport, music, clubs and student societies appear to develop graduates as well-rounded and distinctive.(3)
• Some bridges between skills and professional identity could definitely be formed with the seven development project offered by the three UAS (4)

A great importance with forming bridges between employers' needs and graduates' skills can be placed on study methods provided by higher education. Thus developing the curriculum in close co-operation with students and employers could really help close the gap between working life and studies.

Sources

1. Weckman, N, 2012. Thesis Employability of Foreign BBA Students at Arcada, https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/49330/Thesis_Nora%20Weckman.pdf?sequence=1
2. Manpower Group, 2014 The Flux Report - Building a resilient workforce in the face of flux, comissioned http://www.rightmanagement.co.uk/wps/wcm/connect/350a18c6-6b19-470d-adba-88c9e0394d0b/Right+Management+Flux+Report+Spread.pdf?MOD=AJPERES
3. Study supported by Australian government, 2014-2016 Higher Education Employability http://cdn.graduateemployability.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/17203301/04-Facts-from-our-Research-2014-2016.pdf?__hstc=130348624.f0f89b6c6045ce88bfdc50fc5732ddd7.1472146462953.1472146462953.1472146462957.2&__hssc=130348624.1.1472146462957&__hsfp=3068600097
4. Haaga-Helia, Laure and  Metropolia co-operation http://www.haaga-helia.fi/fi/haaga-heliasta/haaga-helian-laurean-ja-metropolian-strateginen-liittouma?userLang=fi
5. Koskinen, L, Laasanen, M, Paldanius, K, 2/2016, Kokemuksia työelämälähtöisyydestä YAMK-tutkinnoissa. https://uasjournal.fi/koulutus-oppiminen/kokemuksia-tyoelamalahtoisyydesta-yamk-tutkinnoissa/