Laurea or Metropolia better?

UllaW · Post by **UllaW** » Tue Nov 24, 2009 11:28 pm

Hi

i am planning to apply to the Bachelor's Degree programme in Social Services. I am living in Helsinki so my main options are Metropolia AMK and Laurea AMK (and järvenpää but i would like to avoid having to go that far every morning)

does anyone know which programme / school is better?
i heard rumours that the programme in metropolia isnt very good especially because the lecturers dont speak english too well so the lectures are boring and not really high-levelled. but then someone told me as well that all the AMK are bad so it doesnt matter which one i choose.

Metropolia (Kumpula) is closer to my home thats why i would prefer it, but if the studies are really so bad ... ? maybe i should rather have Laurea as the 1st option?

Does anyone know about the entrance exam in Metropolia? How is the finnish language test and which other assessments does the exam consist of?
I know that in Laurea they got an essay part and a personal interview, because I went to that exam two years ago (i was accepted but i couldnt accept the study place)

thx for your help

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Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 9:08 am

Arcada is also pretty close and they're top notch.

UllaW · Post by **UllaW** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 11:04 am

yes but arcada does not offer degree programmes in english, unfortunately, and my swedish is not that good =(

UllaW · Post by **UllaW** » Wed Nov 25, 2009 11:07 am

correction. arcada offers programmes in

* International Business
* Human Ageing and Elderly Service
* Plastics Technology

but i would rather want to go in the direction of youth work / substance abuse prevention etc

Amandine.K · Post by **Amandine.K** » Thu Nov 26, 2009 10:08 pm

There are about the same really. I did my studies at Metropolia (Nursing) and have no complaint about the quality of teaching I got. Sure some stuff were very easy but then again you're studying towards a BA not a MSc. We had several guest lecturers but all in all the English was always understandable if not perfect.

jazzori · Post by **jazzori** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 7:51 am

I think both schools put an emphasis on skills rather than knowledge. I can only tell you about Laurea. I must admit I had higher expectations, but maybe it's because I didn't know what's a polytechnic all about..

In the opening day, Laurea stuff "bragged" that the difference in between Metropolia and Laurea consists mainly in the fact that Metropolia takes the course materials from "outside" and just translates it, while Laurea has its own lecturers from abroad and such..
I would still choose Laurea, though. (if any polytechnic)

Maybe you should consider Arcada, as well. I was there for the entrance examination and I was left with a good impression. If you take, for example, the "human aging" degree, you have the certainty that after graduation there's a terrain you know really well to function in. I wonder if I, as a student at Social Services, will get the opportunity for specialization during this degree or it is just "flirting" with everything, not getting anything : )

maurine · Post by **maurine** » Mon Nov 30, 2009 1:38 pm

i did study in Metropolia, the curriculum is slightly different from Laurea, I loved my school and i wount have trade it for Laurea.
but its your choice i believe someone who studied in Laurea will tell you otherwise.

AnjaSmith · Post by **AnjaSmith** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 4:44 pm

I am about to graduate from the Metropolia's nursing programme in english, and allthough there have been ups and downs, I can say that in general there are many things that I have been satisfied with. Metropolia has had the longest tradition with english degree programmes, and is very widely recognized as one of the leading polytechnics, or university of applied sciences as it is known today. Laurea is also a very good UAS, and comparing metropolia and laurea would be like comparing a cat with a dog. You are either a cat person, or a dog person. They are just different institutions, and they cater for different types of people. I have many friends over at laurea, and they have been equally confused, frustrated, dissatisfied with their institutions as we at metropolia have been.
The people on the finnish side in both UAS's say that these are the main differences:
Metropolia has its pedagogic foundations in evidence-based-practice, long standing traditions (and in nursing in particular: medical sciences), and in research and development.
Laurea on the other hand concentrates on innovation, cutting edge technology, paradigm shifts, and also strong foundations in research and development.
They say that laurea is for innovators (people looking to change the future based on the present), and metropolia is for researchers (people looking to change the future based on previous experiences).
But I think that those idologies are present in both universities.
I can't say much about the english speaking teachers at laurea, or about the tecahers of the social services side in my UAS, but what I can say is that english speaking tecahers are hard to come by here in Finland, and often we have to make do with not so perfect english. We have even had to join some of the finnish classes due to lack of lecturers willing to teach in english.

My friend who is studying soc.serv in english at laurea has commented frequently that its more about the class mates than the teachers that make for a good learning experience, and I have to agree with her. Soc.serv and nursing are studies where you are thrown into a lot of team work, group work, pair work...etc. going solo is rarely an option, and having to rely on classmates who cheat, are lazy or not motivated can sometimes make studying whereever you are chronic pain in the saccrum.
So What I suggest is, apply for both, and check out the people who you are writing the exam with, and check out the teachers and the type of entrace exam. I'm sure that you will find whatever floats your boat.

Amandine.K · Post by **Amandine.K** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 10:23 pm

Another DPN student from Metropolia! I have just graduated from there after taking a long break to have my baby boy

So you are from the SN06S1 group?

I don't know about Laurea but the support you get in Metropolia from your main teachers is outstanding. I wouldn't have done it without Päivi or Nanne!

Pursuivant · Post by **Pursuivant** » Tue Dec 01, 2009 10:29 pm

I've done some non-degree studies in Laurea and Arcada and Laurea was a bit... hmmm...into hermeneutical flatulence which I hate of "university/academia". Otherwise they had some very ambitious projects going on there in the IT department, not your boring 9-5 office droning at all. Arcada was pretty efficient and I liked their facilities (brand new building)... haven't been back to my old alma mater Helia to check how they're doing. But I only "do" IT departments... I know Metropolia had Stadia in it which was the old Sairaanhoito-opisto I got accepted to become a paramedic after the army (didn't go) so they have "long traditions". So wouldn't write them off at all.

AnjaSmith · Post by **AnjaSmith** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 11:59 am

Yea, I'm a DPN student from the SN06S1 =)
And yes, we have some great teachers here. I have to mention KT though, she is an excellent teacher and very dedicated, and without her the department would fall apart, which it almost did when she went on maternity leave.
What group were you originally in?

Pursuivant: I feel the same way about Laurea. And some of their students really irritate me (esp some of my friends) when they behave as if they are so high and mighty (at laurea we do this and that, and at Laurea we have this and that system which is so much better...blah blah blah). If its one thing Laurea can do well, it is propaganda and there is nothing I hate more than blind loyalty and perpetual gloating of something that honestly is not really that much better than the other competitors. So actually what I mean is that I hate what the institution is doing to my friends. Laurea totally screwed up when we had to have joint lectures with them, when they failed to tell us about their arrangements, so we ended up having the lectures the following year at a most inconvenient time. I know that metropolia has equally as many screw ups, but I feel that I can forgive mets more easily because at least it is not so pretentious about it.

Amandine.K · Post by **Amandine.K** » Wed Dec 02, 2009 9:52 pm

Originally I was from the SN04S1 group. KT is cool, one of the best teacher there is in the DPN actually. I only had her for Nursing expertise and Transcultural nursing but she was excellent.

UllaW · Post by **UllaW** » Mon Dec 07, 2009 2:55 pm

AnjaSmith wrote: So What I suggest is, apply for both, and check out the people who you are writing the exam with, and check out the teachers and the type of entrace exam. I'm sure that you will find whatever floats your boat.

i am going to apply for both. But I have to name one as my first preference. I cannot anymore change my preferences after february. The entrance exams are in April/May. If I get accepted for my first preference, I am not allowed to take any other study place which I chose as a lower preference.

I had the problem already one and a half years ago. I got accepted for social services but I wasnt allowed to take the place, I had to go study Media Engineering eventhough I didnt want to do it anymore...

Now I have wasted already so much time doing things I dont want to do and I am so frustrated, I dont want to do another mistake.

jazzori · Post by **jazzori** » Tue Dec 08, 2009 7:04 am

You're free to pick whichever study place you've been granted, as far as I know, regardless of your first pick.. as long as that is the only position you accept. As far as I was concerned, the order of the options mattered only for the admission for they were interested in your motivation, your choices regarding school, etc.. so that's why I'm a bit confused by your "had to" referring to the studies you pursued. Yeah, once you accepted one study place, cannot change your mind, but that's entirely your choice and it hasn't got to do with the options you mark on the paper as being 1st interest, 2nd, etc..

Sorry if I'm totally off the track here, might be that I misunderstood or such.

Oh, wait, is it so? Once accepted for first, cannot refuse it? Cause now I remember. My first option was Metropolia, but because I studied late at night, I didn't manage to wake up in time in the morning

So I only went to my 2nd and 3rd's option admission. But even then, I could choose.. Hmph.

UllaW · Post by **UllaW** » Fri Dec 11, 2009 7:19 pm

well i find this

https://www.admissions.fi/vierashaku/am ... 7738;59282

"If you have been accepted to a higher option of preference, you cannot choose a study place
from options of a lower preference."

so i guess thats it.

can someone tell me about the finnish language test for the metropolia Social Services /Nursing programme?

I need to have finnish basic level 2 but i would still like to know what exactly is the test like.

thanks a lot

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