Entrepreneurship summer course: Creating Multidimensional Experiences (Online)

Please notice that this page is for the 2020 edition of the course. You may browse the page to find out what this course is all about. For information on courses for summer 2021, please see summer.aalto.fi.

Information on the course

The Creating Multidimensional Experiences course has four focus areas: understanding the culture and people, learning the methods and tools for creating sustainable experiences with a viable business model, using storytelling and pitching to make your business stand out and doing all this while taking care of one’s own wellbeing.

To create a good experience, one should understand the surrounding environment. Course participants will have a glance at the Aalto University Startup Ecosystem through virtual sessions with passionate individuals coming from some of the most innovative, sustainability-focused companies in the country.

A good experience is also good business. During the course, participants will form groups and get their hands dirty, delving deep into teamwork, entrepreneurship, design thinking, and business modeling in order to get from an SDG-based idea into ready-for-pitch deliverables. Guided by industry professionals, mentors and AVP teachers, students will use an iterative process where they conduct user research of potential customers via various remote channels, working their way from the original idea to an experience that includes both digital and social dimensions – a viable, sustainable business concept.

No experience is good enough if no one knows about it. Great experiences are not only experienced but also created together with others. The course will start by student teams coming up with venture ideas based on Sustainable Development Goals. With the help of training provided by professional pitching coaches, groups will constantly share ideas about their ventures to the staff and other students, while also preparing for the final pitches to blow the socks off of potential investors and stakeholders. The course then culminates in a showcase, where the groups will present the concept of the ventures they have created to the international audience.

The best experiences are the ones created by people who are happy. Making something new is hard work, but working too hard often leads to everyone being worse off. The course takes a firm stand in preventing burnouts, which have become an increasingly common problem among students, especially during this challenging time of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to working on their projects, students will also learn about time management, and focus on personal wellbeing and social interaction. By the end of the course, students will not only have created a new enjoyable experience but also gone through one in a sustainable way and together with new friends! Especially, through different exercises, students will be able to turn wellbeing-boost lessons into a life-long skill.

Online participation

Students are expected to attend the daily program in real-time. Find the complete program below. All times are in the Helsinki timezone (GMT +3).

The daily program is organized via Zoom or other suitable collaboration platforms. We use Microsoft Teams as a learning environment and an online space for project work. Accepted students will receive more detailed instructions and attendee links. 

The complete summer course is worth 8 ECTS which translates to 216 hours of work in total. This includes all the work required for completing the course (pre-course activities, real-time sessions, assignments, group meetings, self-studying, individual working, etc.).

Application

The application period for Creating Multidimensional Experiences 2020 is open until June 30th. Find the application guidelines below and apply here already today!

We use a continuous selection process. If the course fills up before the application period ends, registration will be closed earlier. Applicants who applied will be informed personally.

Find the complete list of educators and mentors joining the summer course here.

Aalto Ventures Program is the entrepreneurship education program at Aalto University. At AVP, students work in multidisciplinary teams, do hands-on exercises and gain tools of mass disruption, ready to be used either to construct a startup or to renovate an existing company from within.  In a world that changes faster every day, the best way to predict the future is to build it yourself. We teach students to build like an entrepreneur.

Read more about AVP and our way of teaching here!