Helsinki - the centre of Finnish research
In the Helsinki metropolitan area there are 30 Centres of Excellence in research financed by Academy of Finland.
A comparative study on competitiveness conducted by the European Union found Uusimaa (the extended Helsinki metropolitan area) to be the most competitive area in Europe. About 35% of the total university and polytechnic capacity in Finland is located in this area.
The high standard of research, even by international standards, is shown by the fact that close to 60% of Finland's National Centres of Excellence in Research are in the Helsinki area. Furthermore, every other innovative company in the Helsinki metropolitan area and in Finland as a whole has an agreement-based R&D relationship with a university; the corresponding EU average is 8%.
The University of Helsinki is the biggest, oldest and most multidisciplinary university in Finland, and its research has repeatedly been rated very highly in international comparisons. The University of Helsinki is one of the founder members of the League of European Research Universities (LERU).
One of the other big universities in the Helsinki metropolitan area, Helsinki University of Technology, is at the core of the biggest technology cluster in northern Europe, which lies in Otaniemi, Espoo. Its pioneering technology research is productively coupled with local high-tech companies through an innovation system that is unique in the world.
The high standard of university education on offer in the area is supplemented by two internationally accredited business schools, Hanken, the Swedish School of Economics and Business Administration, and the Helsinki School of Economics, and several art universities that are among the best in Europe: the University of Art and Design Helsinki, the Sibelius Academy, the Theatre Academy and the Academy of Fine Arts.
The Helsinki metropolitan area also has sectoral research institutions of a high standard, such as VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland and the Geological Survey of Finland. A new research institution that is planned for the area is a research centre for molecular medicine, genetics and epidemiology.
The most notable corporate research centre in the area is Nokia's research centre in Ruoholahti in Helsinki. A major communications technology cluster has emerged in the area in the wake of Nokia. Digital media are being developed in, for instance, the Forum Virium project. The Helsinki metropolitan area also has several research-intensive biotechnology companies.
Links:
League of European Research Universities
Text: Mikael Vänttinen
Photo: Veikko Somerpuro
