The Bachelor’s Degree Programme in Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development provides graduates with unique skills and expertise in lifelong learning and sustainable development.
The University of Eastern Finland is developing Open University Routes also to its degree programmes taught in English. The university’s first English-taught Open University Route, i.e., a route to the Bachelor’s Degree Programme in Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development, was opened this autumn.
“We have been developing new Bachelor’s degree programmes taught in English because there is increasing demand for them. Offering Open University Routes to these programmes also contributes to their attractiveness,” Academic Rector Tapio Määttä says.
The first students to the three-year Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development programme were admitted in autumn 2022. Offered by the School of Educational Sciences and Psychology, the Bachelor’s degree programme brings together expertise in lifelong learning, adult education and sustainable development, all of which are topical themes on a global scale. The combination of Bachelor’s level studies offered by the University of Eastern Finland is also unique in Finland.
To be able to apply to the programme via the Open University Route, a student must complete the basic studies of the Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development programme at the Open University of the University of Eastern Finland by 31 March 2024, and the grade obtained must be at least 3/5. As part of the basic studies, the Introduction to Education and Lifelong Learning course introduces students to the key perspectives, theories and concepts of adult education, and of the programme. The basic studies start from the level of Finnish society, broadening the perspective to the global level. On the Finnish Education and Society course, students will consider the role of education in Finnish society as a promoter of sustainable development. The course Active Citizenship and Non-Formal Education, on the other hand, focuses on the dimensions of equality and intergenerational learning, while the Adult Education Promoting Sustainable Development course examines lifelong learning and sustainability challenges in adults’ everyday lives, addressing, for example, how sustainability challenges can be taken into account in the workplace, and what role media and technology play either as drivers of, or as obstacles to, sustainability.
Students applying to the programme via the Open University Route must also meet the programme’s language requirements in English. A maximum of 5 applicants meeting the admission criteria may be admitted to the programme via the Open University Route. The courses included in the Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development programme are suitable for everyone interested in the themes of sustainability and responsibility, and in promoting them through education and learning. The target groups include international students and immigrants living in Finland who want to take academic studies and find future employment in the themes of lifelong learning and sustainability.
“There is a need for the Lifelong Learning and Sustainable Development programme and for the associated Open University Route, as there are only few international Bachelor’s degree programmes in educational sciences available in Finland. The green transition will create new kinds of jobs in the public and private sectors, for example in educational planning and development. International organisations and non-governmental organisations, too, offer graduates opportunities to find employment. The Bachelor’s degree also provides a solid foundation for further studies in international Master’s programmes,” University Lecturer Juha Kauppila and Project Coordinator Jenni Korhonen of the programme say.
