Study Guide

Descriptions

The Master’s Degree Programme in Health Business Management is a joint programme with students from Engineering, Business, and Health Care and Social Services. A multidisciplinary approach is needed in finding innovative solutions and business models to renew the sector and to provide sustainable services economically and efficiently, yet maintaining high quality and a human-oriented scope in all decision making. Whenever appropriate, the studies in this versatile degree programme will be linked with some of the four innovation hubs, with emphasis on the collaboration with Customer-oriented Well-being and Health Services.

A special feature comes from the fact that this Master’s degree programme invites students from diverse backgrounds, professionally, educationally, as well as culturally. Business graduates, engineering graduates, as well as the largest group, graduates from Health Care and Social Services, will jointly tackle the various problem-solving situations and learning tasks. Sharing everyone’s expertise becomes an added value.

In one way or another, internationalization lies at the core of any health business. The HBM Master’s graduates will possess excellent competences in managing and developing multicultural and international work groups and networking communities.

Upon completion of the advanced professional studies, the student is capable of designing business innovations to the competitive advantage of organizations. Furthermore, (s)he is able to analyze the main drivers and trends in health business and to further develop the business models. The student can also manage safety and quality processes in health business enterprizes. Finally, the student is capable of planning, implementing and assessing the finances of a health business.

Sufficient research and development competence is established at an early stage of the studies as it is needed in planning and implementing perhaps the most rewarding part of the studies, namely the Master’s Thesis, 30 ECTS. More often than not, the development task comes from and is implemented in the organization in which the Master’s student is employed. Upon completion of the RDI studies, the student can work as a development and project manager engaged in an organization’s RDI activities.

Objective

The skills and knowledge of students graduated from Metropolia University of Applied Sciences are described according to the NQF, National Qualifications Framework, and the recommendations of the Rectors' Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences.

General competences: competence descriptions

Learning competence
- lifelong learning competence: is able to self-evaluate and develop one's expertise in a versatile and focused way
- is able to retrieve, analyse and produce information and evaluate it critically from the viewpoint of different fields
- is able to supervise and mentor others and to share one's expertise
- is capable of taking responsibility for collaborative learning in a target-oriented way

Ethical competence
- is able to take responsibility for the actions of a community and their consequences as well as to
evaluate the effects of the actions
- is able to apply the ethical principles of the subject field as an expert and as a developer of working life
- is able to make responsible and sustainable decisions, considering an individual and the community
- is able to contribute to the principles of equality in working life
- is able to contribute to the principles of sustainable development and social responsibility
- is able to leading socially influential activities based on ethical values

Working community competence
- is able to develop and lead the operation of a diverse and multidisciplinary work community and to improve its wellbeing and productivity
- is able to develop working life communication and interaction in a participatory way, taking diversity
into account
- is able to apply technological possibilities in working life communication and interaction
- is able to create and lead networks and partnerships
- is capable of managing and supervising tasks and improving activities in complicated and
unpredictable environments
- is capable of working in demanding expert, entrepreneur, management and supervision tasks. as an expert or entrepreneur, and has abilities for management and supervision tasks

Innovation competence
- is able to create new knowledge and improve existing working methods by combining expertise from different fields
- is capable of managing projects
- is able to manage research, development and innovation projects and masters the methods of research and development work
- is able to develop innovative, customer-oriented, sustainable and cost-effective solutions

Multicultural competence
- is capable of managing and developing multicultural, international networks and working communities
- is able to predict the effects of and opportunities for global development and phenomena in one’s own field
- is capable of demanding international communication and interaction

Technological competence
- is able to apply technological opportunities in management, expert and development work
- is able to predict the effects of technological development on one's field, work and operating environment
- is capable of promoting technological development and its utilisation in one's field

Degree-specific competences

Competence descriptions

Social and health care competences
The student is able to:
• utilize extensive and highly specialized social and health care skills and knowledge;
• apply the concepts and methodology of social and health care to his/her independent reflection and/or development of the professional field;
• function in the diverse and changing environments of social and health care.

Managerial competences
The student is able to:
• follow high ethical standards in managerial work;
• implement strategic competence;
• work in managerial positons in diverse organizations;
• evaluate the results and success of management.

Service competences
The student is able to:
• create desired social and health care services in cooperation with clients and other interest groups;
• apply and combine know-how from different fields in service production;
• apply market knowledge and marketing communication skills;
• participate in service procurement and tendering processes;
• meet the demanding challenges of service business.

Business competences
The student is able to:
• use the most important business processes, procedures and tools of health care and social services strategically and operationally;
• develop the organization's business processes, procedures and tools in the changing environment.