The aviation industry has consistently been a reliable enabler for the ever faster and more accessible global connections. Thanks to it, we have infrastructure in the skies and on the ground that can ensure almost immediate departures and arrivals of everything that we hold dear around the world across infinite city pairs: from Sofia to Helsinki, from Porvoo to Chongqing, you name it.

Haaga-Helia has a very important mission in keeping the world connected, too. We open doors to future careers. We make sure that professionals, who will be in charge of our world, have the right tools to succeed in terms of learning.

Thus, it is only natural that Haaga-Helia includes in its educational offer aviation business studies, which are unique due to strong industry connections with the key aviation stakeholders.

The importance of credible partners

Building up aviation business studies is not a straightforward path. Many organisations are needed along the way to strengthen the credibility of the education and to ensure the visibility of our students on the global job market.

International Air Transport Association (IATA), a core aviation stakeholder that leads and represents 290 airlines in 120 countries of the world, has worked with Haaga-Helia on many frontlines for the past years.

IATA was founded in 1945 in Havana and since then has achieved a number of groundbreaking solutions and critical international frameworks for airline operations and business development, in such fields as safety, simplifying the business, training, economics research, environmental standards and more.

In mid-2000s, I used my aviation and tourism industry background and my experience as an IATA-certified instructor to conduct a study on the feasibility of such cooperation. The research was done as part of my Haaga-Helia education and clearly pointed out the potential of strengthening IATA presence in Finnish educational industry.

Haaga-Helia advancing the cooperation

From the start the Haaga-Helia and IATA cooperation has involved the active participation of our students. As a part of first semester studies in tourism and aviation programmes, students work on an ambitious project, which requires active networking with the industry stakeholders.

Students, in numerous large delegations, have visited IATA offices in Stockholm, Madrid, and Geneva. These visits offer unique opportunities to network, while IATA experts have prepared exciting lecture programmes on aviation’s most topical issues.

Reciprocally IATA directors gave several plenary talks at the annual Future of Aviation -seminars organized by students and attended by hundreds of Finnish and international guests at Haaga-Helia’s Porvoo Campus.

Thesis projects have been commissioned by IATA for our students on topics including public opinion on aviation in Nordic countries, benefits of aviation for healthcare, aviation training needs, passenger satisfaction studies, and more. IATA also took part in commissioning and following our semester projects, and was awarded as Commissioner of the year by the Porvoo Campus management.

A very fruitful development in Haaga-Helia IATA cooperation has been our joint work in research, development and innovation. IATA is our core industry partner in several consortia, that Haaga-Helia has put together to apply for EU funding. Project topics have included electric aviation, inclusive aviation for passengers with special needs, and other.

Haaga-Helia has also become IATA’s Authorised Training Centre in Finland. This license adds credibility to our ambition to provide high-quality aviation business education. It also allows delivering IATA training modules to aviation professionals. Dozens of aviation business students and several aviation staff members took IATA training and received IATA diplomas in areas ranging from airline revenue management to human resources.

As for the future, some of the current discussions focus on helping our students become IATA interns, as well as on the exchange of pedagogical know-how in developing educational projects.

Cooperation aiming toward new heights

Aviation business is a constantly evolving business. Working in close multidimensional cooperation with the world’s leading aviation stakeholder, has enabled our students to remain in sync with the latest developments and opportunities. This strongly contributes to Haaga-Helia’s mission and helps the aviation industry to get the best support from the motivated and talented students.

Thanks to the cooperation, the best sides of the aviation industry is strengthened and made more sustainable. Thus the world we know remains connected.

The above is an example of how we at Haaga-Helia create strong cooperation practices with industry stakeholders. Cooperation that can ensure our contribution to sustainable business development. For the aviation industry, such cooperation right now is as important as never before.

Further reading:

• Connecting present and future generations for a better aviation industry