Master's degree structure (60 ECTS)

Information about the structure and content of the one year 60 ECTS master's programme.

Hanken's master's programme in Sustainability Reporting and Financial Analysis is a one year double degree programme in collaboration between Hanken in Vaasa and Umeå School of Business, Economics and Statistics (USBE) at Umeå University. The programme comprises 60 ECTS and students spend the autumn term in Umeå and the spring term in Vaasa. Upon completion of the programme, students will receive two degrees, one from each business school.

The student workload is measured in credits. One credit at Hanken corresponds to one ECTS, which in turn corresponds to 27 hours of work. Full-time study equals approximately 30 credits per semester, or 60 credits per academic year.

The Sustainability Reporting and Financial Analysis programme will be taught in English, full-time and on-site in both Umeå and Vaasa.

Degree structure

During the first semester, you will study at Umeå School of Business, Economics and Statistics (USBE). At USBE, you will take the 30 ECTS course Financial Analysis, Sustainability and Reporting, which contains the following modules: Financial Reporting and Analysis, Advanced Management Accounting, Advanced Financial and Sustainability Reporting, and Risk Management. These modules will give you a deep understanding of topics that are essential in the current business landscape. All modules integrate sustainability perspectives to the key themes of the corresponding modules.

During the second semester, you will study at Hanken School of Economics. At Hanken, you will complete the following courses: Financial Modelling Using MS Excel and VBA, Sustainable Finance, Financial Reporting and ESG Analysis, and a master's thesis of 15 ECTS.

Studies in Languages and Business Communication - mandatory for students with previous school education in Finland

If you have received your previous school education in Swedish or Finnish in Finland (diploma from lower secondary and/or upper secondary education), you must fulfil the requirements for language proficiency in Finnish and Swedish in accordance with the Act on the Knowledge of Languages Required of Personnel in Public Bodies (424/2003). If you have not fulfilled these requirements in your previous degree, you must do it as part of your master's degree at Hanken. You can find more information about the requirements and how to fulfil them below:

Requirements of language proficiency of Personnel in Public Bodies

Do I need to fulfil the requirements of language proficiency of Personnel in Public Bodies?

Students who have received their previous school education in Swedish or Finnish in Finland (diploma from lower secondary and/or upper secondary education) must fulfil the requirements for language proficiency in Finnish and Swedish in accordance with the Act on the Knowledge of Languages Required of Personnel in Public Bodies (424/2003). The language requirements must be fulfilled at the time of applying for the degree certificate.

You do not have to fulfil these requirements in your degree at Hanken if:

you have a previous degree from Finland, in which you have written a maturity test in the language of your previous education and fulfilled the requirements for language proficiency in the other national language, in accordance with the Act on the Knowledge of Languages Required of Personnel in Public Bodies (424/2003). Check your degree certificate to see if you have fulfilled these requirements.
you have received your previous education (comprehensive school and upper secondary education) abroad or in another language than Finnish or Swedish.

How do I fulfil the language requirements in my degree at Hanken?

Students at a Master's Programme with instruction in English and previous education Finnish:

Write a maturity test in Finnish (with language review) when submitting your master’s thesis.
Fulfil at least satisfactory skills in Swedish in one of the following 4 ways:

Course 5656 Swedish for Language Proficiency in Finland - Svenska på arbetet, 5 credits
Pre-requisites: CEFR A2.2, shown through a test in Swedish or by completing the course 5623-3B Swedish as a Foreign Language 3B.
Target level: CEFR B1
EXAM: Language test in Swedish (560)
a. The written part of the test (560-S) is completed in Exam. The written part consists of two parts: an e-mail or other short text (~50-70 words) about communication in working life and a written assignment (~200 words) on a subject within your own field of study.

b. The oral part of the test (560-M) is completed through an oral exam and gives the student a certificate for approved language skills on level B1 in Swedish.

Please contact Swedish teacher Charlotta Sundström if you wish to fulfil your Swedish language requirement by completing the test in Exam.
We ask that you use Swedish when contacting Hanken’s Swedish teachers.
A language test completed in Swedish at another university. The transfer of the test is approved by the head of the subject of Swedish at Hanken.
A language test for the State Administration that shows good or satisfactory written skills in Swedish, supplemented with an oral test where the student must demonstrate knowledge of the terminology within their own area of expertise.

Level test in Swedish
The level test in Swedish provides a picture of whether your knowledge of Swedish corresponds to CEFR, A2.2 i.e. the level required for taking the course 5656 Swedish for Language Proficiency in Finland - Svenska på arbetet. The test is completed during the orientation days, but it is also possible to take it later. You need an active Hanken user ID to be able to take the test.

If you do not fulfil the pre-requisites required for course 5656 (CEFR A2.2), you can start by taking courses in Swedish as a foreign language on lower levels:
5659, 5623-1B
5623-2A, 2B, 2C
5623-3A, 3B, 3C

NB: The level test in Swedish is not the same as the language test used for admission to Hanken or the language test that shows skills in Swedish (560) for the degree.

More information can be found on the Language Centre's webpages.

Students at a Master's Programme with instruction in English and previous education in Swedish:

Write a maturity test in Swedish (with language review) when submitting your master’s thesis.
Fulfil at least satisfactory skills in Finnish by completing the course 5724 Yritysviestinnän syventävä kurssi. Please inform the teacher Marit Nilsson-Väre at the beginning of the course that you need to fulfil the requirements for language proficiency in Swedish.